The Gods Themselves

By: Isaac Asimov

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Only a few know the terrifying truth - an outcast Earth scientist, a rebellious alien inhabitant of a dying planet, a lunar-born human intuitionist who senses the imminent annihilation of the Sun... They know the truth - but who will listen? They have foreseen the cost of abundant energy - but who will believe?These few beings, human and alien, hold the key to the Earth's survival.

©1980 Isaac Asimov (P)2014 Random House Audio

An old favorite

I first read this in high school over 30 years ago. I may have read it more than once, but it's certainly been over 30 years since last I picked it up. It's as great a story now as it was then, and Scott Brick, of course, never disappoints.. It's no accident that Dr. Asimov is so widely haled as one of the masters of SF, and this is, I think, among his best work. The second section, where he imagines a whole alien society and life cycle, even including alien sex, was superbly done (and, as I recall the story, on a bet!) Come to that, I think the "para-men" were more fully fleshed out characters than were the humans. Anyway, it was great revisiting a well-loved story and finding that it's still just as well loved with lots of time in between.

Great book

Great story, great performance, great quality. This book was better than I expected. Asimov pushes the boundaries of his writing.

The Grandmaster of SciFi Always Delivered

I have yet to read a book by Asimov that didn’t wow and inspire me.

I was attracted to this book by its mention in Barrowe’s Guide to Extraterrestrials. In fact this is one of the few of the books referenced in that essential guide available on Audible. Maybe they should work on that (hint hint). I have vision problems that make reading large amounts of text difficult.

Great conceptual idea, just little odd execution

I love the concept, such a massive plot... Such a unending idea related to the multiverse. Poor execution of the story, great in technical structure but not in storytelling

Good overall

I loved it in the beginning, but got a little dry near the middle to end-ish. I think it picked back up at the end though.

Reminds me why Asimov is a Grand Master

This is one of the few Asimov books that I missed in my youth. Man, did I miss out. This has to be one of his best, and it stands up well to the passage of time. Great concept. Great execution. Scott Brick is, as always, fantastic.

My favorite book.

Asimov is a giant of science fiction, and this book in particular is a shining example of how the genre should be approached.

Almost Didn't Make It Through

I approached this book with absolutely no knowledge of the story, or the way it was laid out, in terms of the three books. I was very absorbed by the first book, "Against Stupidity...", the story of two universes that find a way to share a technology that apparently provides infinite free clean energy for the entire Earth and, presumably, similar benefits for the other universe. I was getting very involved with the intrigue of that first book when, all of a sudden it ended, and book 2, "...The Gods Themselves", began. Not having a clue where this book was going, the change totally threw me. It was a completely different story with seemingly no connection whatsoever with the first book. I actually thought for a while, that a completely different novel had been accidentally appended to the audiobook!

This different story seemed to go on and on and on, seemingly with no end, and absolutely no apparent connection with the first book. It started getting so monotonous and repetitive that I just about gave up. So I decided to read some of the positive reviews to see what I could possibly be missing. The reviews convinced me to persevere and, I've got to say, this is definitely one of those times when the positive reviews got it right. The second book finally connected with the first book wonderfully, and I became just as transfixed with the second part as I had been with the first.

The third book, "...Contend in Vain?", wasn't as strong as the first two, but it certainly resolved the entire book very satisfactorily.

While not one of Asimov's best - that would arguably have to be "The End of Eternity" - I am so glad I decided to get through the difficult part, because it became very rewarding and enjoyable. Narrator Scott Brick, as usual, is masterful.

classic sci-fi

3.5 stars. This is definitely what I would consider "hard sci-fi" and is for the physics minded reader. It is split into 3 parts which were apparently released as novellas. The first part takes place on Earth where scientists discover the possibility of a parallel universe where physics doesn't follow the same rules. The second part takes us into that para-universe. The third part takes place in the near future on the moon where there has been colonization. Liked the first part, loved the second, and got a bit bored with the characters in the third.

As a classic, it holds its own and doesn't feel too dated. Great science and concept but I was disappointed that the characters seemed a bit one dimensional

Asimov at his Best—but only for a part of the book.

The middle section of The Gods Themselves shows an Asimov who can deal subtly with gender issues and depict fully-formed character. THe other sections have one dimensional characters and a juvenile attitude toward sex, but advance a good story. The performance, however, is uniformly excellent.