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Isaac Asimov
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Robot Visions Hardcover – April 3, 1990

by Isaac Asimov (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 750 ratings
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Spanning Asimov's fifty-year career, this collection of eighteen stories and essays offers a visionary study of humankind's future relationship with robots, including both classic and original pieces, all based on Asimov's three laws of robotics
Previous page
  1. Print length
    482 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Roc
  4. Publication date
    April 3, 1990
  5. Dimensions
    7 x 1 x 5 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0451450000
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0451450005
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

NAL launches its new SF imprint, ROC, with a collection of 18 of Asimov's ( Foundation ) robot stories. The earliest tales here, written from 1940 to 1960, remain among the most-loved in the field, the best being "Little Lost Robot," about a robot who obeys an order to "get lost." "The Bicentennial Man" (1976) about one robot's desires and efforts to be first free, then equal, is the quintessential robot-as-man's-mirror story. The book concludes with brief essays offering companionable commentary on the history of robots in fiction, the Frankenstein complex, the origin of Asimov's famous Three Laws and the author's own surprise at the emergence of robots during his lifetime.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Roc; First Edition (April 3, 1990)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 482 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0451450000
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0451450005
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.5 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7 x 1 x 5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 750 ratings

About the author

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Isaac Asimov

Isaac Asimov

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Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Isaac Asimov (/ˈaɪzᵻk ˈæzᵻmɒv/; born Isaak Yudovich Ozimov; circa January 2, 1920 – April 6, 1992) was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was prolific and wrote or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000 letters and postcards. His books have been published in 9 of the 10 major categories of the Dewey Decimal Classification.

Asimov wrote hard science fiction and, along with Robert A. Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke, he was considered one of the "Big Three" science fiction writers during his lifetime. Asimov's most famous work is the Foundation Series; his other major series are the Galactic Empire series and the Robot series. The Galactic Empire novels are explicitly set in earlier history of the same fictional universe as the Foundation series. Later, beginning with Foundation's Edge, he linked this distant future to the Robot and Spacer stories, creating a unified "future history" for his stories much like those pioneered by Robert A. Heinlein and previously produced by Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson. He wrote hundreds of short stories, including the social science fiction "Nightfall", which in 1964 was voted by the Science Fiction Writers of America the best short science fiction story of all time. Asimov wrote the Lucky Starr series of juvenile science-fiction novels using the pen name Paul French.

Asimov also wrote mysteries and fantasy, as well as much nonfiction. Most of his popular science books explain scientific concepts in a historical way, going as far back as possible to a time when the science in question was at its simplest stage. He often provides nationalities, birth dates, and death dates for the scientists he mentions, as well as etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Examples include Guide to Science, the three-volume set Understanding Physics, and Asimov's Chronology of Science and Discovery, as well as works on astronomy, mathematics, history, William Shakespeare's writing, and chemistry.

Asimov was a long-time member and vice president of Mensa International, albeit reluctantly; he described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs". He took more joy in being president of the American Humanist Association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, a crater on the planet Mars, a Brooklyn elementary school, and a literary award are named in his honor.

Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by Phillip Leonian from New York World-Telegram & Sun [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
750 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

M. Decker
5.0 out of 5 stars Isaac, The Robot Man
Reviewed in the United States on May 7, 2016
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Great short stories as only Isaac can whoop them out. Of course, you MUST read all the books from the foundation series, as well as the "Empire" books. Those all go together though not intended to be that way when he began the first book. There's 15 all together, I think. But it's a journey that will blow you away. Just google search "what order do I read Isaac Asimov's Foundation and Empire series of books." You'll get lists from several people. Make sure not to start with The Foundation series. Anyway, once you've read those 15 or so books, start on this, and Robot Dreams as well. I can't believe I'm gonna do this for you, but what the heck. Here's the order, all 15 books comprising some 2.5 MILLION words!!! 1)The Complete Robot 2) The Caves of Steel 3)The Naked Sun 4)The Robots of Dawn 5)Robots and Empire 6)The Currents of Space 7)The Stars Like Dust 8)Pebble in the Sky 9)Prelude to Foundation 10)Forward The Foundation (No matter what you hear, this is the slot to read this book) 11)Foundation 12)Foundation and Empire 13)Second Foundation 14)Foundation's Edge 15)Foundation and Earth Well, there you go. I want to warn you, this is as good as it gets. You will never read another sci-fi series as good as the 15 books I've listed above, so enjoy, relish it, savor every word. When you're done, you can read the rest of his works for dessert. Hope this helped. As you read, you will see how much stuff was "stolen" from him, especially little details like "hyperspace" and of course Robot stuff. Keep in mind he wrote much or most of this way back in the 1940's and 50's then shake your head in disbelief. Isaac is THE man.
55 people found this helpful
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ConsumerAdvocate
4.0 out of 5 stars Good collection of robot stories from Asimov
Reviewed in the United States on December 27, 2008
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This is more a complimentary book to I-robot than a stand alone collection. If you have not read I-robot, you should get that as well, as the two books are best consumed together and in close proximity to each other so that the differences between the two can be compared.

The book also includes some of Asimov's excellent non-fiction on the subject of robots, including his foundational theories about THE THREE LAWS.

If you like robots and you've not read this book, you owe it to yourself to get a copy. Asimov is the grandfather of modern science fiction when it comes to all things robotic, and this book is a fantastic place to dig into the wealth of Asimov's imagination on that topic.
12 people found this helpful
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Roger Wade
5.0 out of 5 stars Core literature
Reviewed in the United States on April 9, 2024
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I grew up on this and still think about it.
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Kathleen vogel
5.0 out of 5 stars Love these robot stories
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2024
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Isaac Asimov. tells such great stories 🤗🤗 I just really enjoy reading anything he writes!!! Great reads every time .. Always want more.😀
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Amz_zulu
5.0 out of 5 stars Love Robots!
Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2007
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Bought this book to add to the Asimov Books already read----half finished this book and it is a very good collection---easy read---

if you like Robot books the following may be of interest to you,

****Issac Asimov -
****The Robot Books
Asimov had a sugested reading sequence HE published in Prelude to Foundation --- for all the books he had written on robots
---am listing that here - they were not written in sequence as you see.

The Complete Robot - 1982
The Caves of Steel - 1954
The Naked Sun - 1957
The Robots of Dawn -1983
Robots and Empire - 1985
The Currents of Space - 1952
The Stars, Like Dust - 1951
Pebble in the Sky - 1950
Prelude to Foundation - 1988
Foundation - 1951
Foundation and Empire - 1952
Second Foundation - 1953
Foundation's Edge - 1982
Foundation Earth - 1983

peace and love----
29 people found this helpful
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B
4.0 out of 5 stars most of the stories are great recommended for sci-fi fans
Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2014
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I like Asimov's short stories. Very food for thought. I also like how some of the characters are in several stories. I can feel more attached to the characters. The essays at the end were hit and miss for me, but I would def recommend this for its story content :)
One person found this helpful
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Eric A. Silver
5.0 out of 5 stars Robots, really
Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2015
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In this book, a collection of short stories about robots, Asimov points out the direction in which robotics might move in the future, which has become our present--a present some of which he lived long enough to witness. A good bit of the writing is dated, but then it would have to be given how long ago it was written and the state-of-the-art at that time. Nonetheless, Asimov points out the directions in which robotics (his own invented term,) might move as the state-of-the-art progresses.
We live in an era in which robots serve many of the functions that used to be taken by humans performing the most menial tasks. As time progresses, we might see the role of robots increasing in our lives , a role which the author foresees and predicts as a near certainty.
2 people found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
3.0 out of 5 stars Another review of Asimov's writings based on sixty year old memories.
Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2014
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I am unable to express more precisely my attachment to Asimov's work. It has a humane aspect that one doesn't expect from a book about the (future) history of man-robot interactions.
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Top reviews from other countries

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DBL
5.0 out of 5 stars Very good
Reviewed in Canada on October 9, 2023
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Very good
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Théo B.
5.0 out of 5 stars An important part of the Isaac Asimov's universe
Reviewed in Brazil on February 22, 2021
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An important part to understand and to immerse in the story until arriving in the Foundation trilogy.
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peter brandani
3.0 out of 5 stars Non il mio genere
Reviewed in Italy on January 1, 2022
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Già dover affrontare la difficoltà di leggere in inglese poi lo stile letterario l`ho trovato lontano dal mio gusto personale.
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Valeriy M.
5.0 out of 5 stars Sehr interissantes Buch
Reviewed in Germany on April 5, 2020
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Ich werde nichts schreiben über den Zustanden des Buches, er ist einfach gut. Aber der Inhalt des Buches, dass ist eine Wunde. So interessantes Buch, besonders interessant auf den Grund, das Buch wurde geschrieben in der Zeit, wann kein Computer und kein Roboter existieren. Lesen Sie das Buch und aus dieses Buch wurde 3 Regel für die moderne Roboterbau übernommen.
One person found this helpful
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sc
3.0 out of 5 stars Too much overlap with I, robot
Reviewed in France on September 25, 2017
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A very nice selection at a fair price, I bought it especially for 'mirror image'. But then I'd advice to buy some larger collection only once to avoid repeated stories.
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