2010 ODYSSEY TWO

In continuation to the 2001: A space Odyssey. The science fiction level in this book is almost at the scientific level and it is a must read for everyone.

A space voyage went horribly wrong. A computer went mad. And an astronaut vanished without a trace.The epic, cosmic finale to the legendary "2001: A Space Odyssey" is one of the most unique in literary history, but unsurprisingly, it leaves a lot of loose ends for the people back on Earth to tie up. And Arthur C. Clarke addresses these in the solid (though not quite as spellbindingly suspenseful) sequel "2010: Odyssey Two," which features a new voyage to the reaches of the solar system -- and new discoveries that change the way the human race sees the universe.A few years after the fateful loss of the Discovery, a joint team of US scientists and Soviet cosmonauts (remember, written in 1982) is sent out in the spaceship Leonov. Their goal: find the Discovery, find out what happened to HAL 9000, discover what may have happened to Dave Bowman, and investigate the monolith. Among the crew are Dr. Chandra, the man who created HAL and similar intelligent computers, and Dr. Heywood Floyd.However, their mission isn't free of complications. A Chinese ship shoots past them in a failed attempt to snag the Discovery data (inadvertently discovering life on Europa), and HAL remembers nothing of what happened to Dave Bowman. But Bowman himself is not truly gone -- he has become an energy creature of godlike power and scope, unrestricted by physical needs or limitations. As he bids farewell to his old human life, he brings a mysterious message to the crew of the Leonov, warning them of massive changes that will endanger the Leonov -- and change the nature of the solar system forever.Where "2001: A Space Odyssey" was all suspense building up to a glorious finale, "2010" is a somewhat slower build. The first half of the book is solid but not entrancing, mostly devoted to the voyage of the Leonov, the interplay of the crew members and the reclaiming of the Discovery. Clarke keeps it from getting stagnant by injecting some outside perspectives (glimpses of Floyd's family on Earth, the doomed Tsien and its discovery), but it's pretty standard hard-SF fare.And it's something that Clarke does well -- he gives the highly-technical side of the voyage a sense of suspense and urgency, as well as a gentle undercurrent of humor and compassion (Dr. Chandra's embarrassing incident with the cigar and the fire alarm). Despite the obvious political anachronisms, it's a very solid, semi-realistic depiction of a space voyage.But that changes when Dave Bowman rejoins the story. He brings back a sense of bittersweet wonder to the book, as we see Bowman saying farewell to the vestiges of his old life, and exploring the universe as easily as Clarke's expansive imagination can allow. The writing becomes utterly spellbinding ("The megatons flowered in a silent detonation that brought a brief, false dawn to half the sleeping world"), and Clarke reveals a great deal more about the mysterious godlike aliens who created the monolith, and the mind-blowingly epic destiny that awaits the changing solar system. Really, this part makes up for the more technical, pedestrian first half.And he crafts the characters with equal skill. The Leonov's crew each have their own distinct personality and personal history (Zenia's scars, for instance), and there's a lot of personal and romantic interplay between them (including a bisexual love triangle). Clarke especially focuses on the socially awkward Dr. Chandra, as well as the amiable Floyd, who is leaving his younger wife and children for the next two-and-a-half years. And despite his exalted state, Dave Bowman is a fascinating creature, with almost boundless power but with still with vestiges of human thoughts.It's not quite the masterpiece that the first book was, but "2010: Odyssey Two" builds on its story, before unleashing some shocking plot twists of its own -- and leaving doorways (in monoliths) still open for more expansive journeys through the cosmos.

i had read the previous book 2001: a Space odyssey, so was curious to read the next book in the series. really love books by arthur c clarke.

Sequel to Odyssey one

nice book

Content is good but print of the book is very poor,very disappointed,and charged more than its original price

Page quality is miserable. Seems very old stock. For comparison with vol I 2001 see the pic and judge yourself.