Distractions

Great to re read this classic but I have to say that the background music and additional audio tracks are a great distraction. I have listened to hundreds of audio books...some good...some great in their presentation and reading. This is one of the most difficult to listen too and stay focussed on the story. Unfortunate since this is a timeless classic from Asimov.

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Classic, but flawed...part 3

Asimov's Foundation series, based on the ideas from the "Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire," starts with a 12,000 year-old Galactic Empire. The great Hari Selden has mathematically proven that the Empire will soon fall and a 30-millennium Dark Age will follow, but Selden's Foundation can shorten that time by a factor of 30.

In Second Foundation, the Mule has conquered the original Foundation and much of the galaxy, but the secretive Second Foundation---oriented to mental science where the first Foundation is oriented to physical sciences---lurks out there and is interfering with the Mule's plans for a new empire. The Mule attempts to track down the Second Foundation. After the Mule's death, the original Foundation needs the Second Foundation's help in getting the Selden plan back on track.

The Foundation trilogy is a bit dry, and the characters are quite one-dimensional and cartoonish. It may be more enjoyable if you think of it as a history book from the distant future rather than an adventure story. The envisioned technology was typical for the 1940's (computing your course across the galaxy with a slide-rule), but seems rather quaint now. One other complaint: Asimov got pretty wordy in places, to the detriment of the story.

I like Scott Brick as a narrator and he does a pretty good job with this.

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Culmination point

This is third book of trilogy (Foundation, Foundation and Empire, Second Foundation). Of course, it is culmination point and Issaac Asimov is a master of suspense and unbelievable twists. I loved this book in childhood and I still love it.

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epic classic sci fi wonderment

Where does Second Foundation rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Isaac Asimov's "Second Foundation", for the sci fi fan i am, floats near the top of my list for all audiobooks thus far, it is intriguing, intelligent, believable, spoke with excellence by Scott Brick and exceeded expectations.

What other book might you compare Second Foundation to and why?

Second Foundation, as all of Asimov's, in this collection, almost stands alone in this genre; but, if had to compare a book of such vast fictional intelligence i could easily put this in the same shelf as "star wars" and "star trek"...i only wish they would do a current day mini-series to show off the brilliance of the author.

What does Scott Brick bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Although lacking an enormous pool to choose from, Scott Brick, at this point, is....by far...my favorite! He is astronomically brilliant in his disposition of ALL characters, he is grammatically perfect in all facets of speech, punctuations, poetic pauses and character purpose and appeal. It is difficult to imagine any other doing a novel as well. I often filter for Scott Brick read books to find new! He is excellent!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

No idea what a "tag line" is!? :)

Any additional comments?

Sci fi fans are doing a disservice to themselves if they have not read this epic classic....I highly recommend the series!

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Very disappointed

After completing the so-called "Foundation Trilogy," I felt compelled to write this review because I was so disappointed. My comments apply to all three books in the trilogy. I have read excellent reviews of these books from sources I considered credible. I am not an avid sci-fi reader but believed (erroneously, it turns out) that some familiarity with Foundation was necessary for the well-rounded reader. I have no complaint with Scott Brick. He did the best job possible with the material and remains one of my favorite narrators. This review is based entirely on Asimov's writing. The story line is interesting and could have been compelling. The story telling is just awful, based entirely on cliche-laden dialogs between one-dimensional characters and equally cliche-laden soliloquies. All three books in the trilogy consist entirely of characters talking to one another, thereby explaining to the reader events that took place prior to the conversations. There is no action here, no sweep of galactic events, just endless, boring dialog. I have now suffered through nine of the 15 books in Asimov's suggested reading order for his "Galactic Empire" novels (taken from the author's note in "Prelude to Foundation"). I kept hoping for something to hold my interest, but as I progressed, the stories became more boring and the author introduced nothing to hold my attention. Concerning "Second Foundation" specifically, Asimov never explains (or I was never able to grasp from the ceaseless dialog) why the First Foundation felt animosity towards the Second Foundation. The conflict seemed baseless to me. Two thumbs down for Asimov and two thumbs down for the Foundation Trilogy.

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Concludes the original Foundation Trilogy

Just as when I first read the Trilogy ~50 years ago, Asimov has taken me to the far end of the galaxy. The Trilogy now comprises six or seven books in total, and listening once again enables me to press on with the additional books. This series is a must-read foundation for any serious reader of Asimov in particular or science fiction in general.

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disappointing narration

the entire trilogy, like most of his works, is an amazing story but the narration does not do it justice. it is worth reading this one.

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Perhaps the weakest entry in the trilogy

nonetheless, an intricate and interesting story. the performace amazing, as we've grown to expect from Scott Brick

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Truly wonderful

This is an amazing story. The best one so far in the series. The plot is a little more complicated than in the previous ones, the characters and the events much more exciting.

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Twists and turns

I liked the gotcha moments at the end - the culmination of misdirects. However, I was also a little disappointed by the final twist. To say why would give away too much, but be prepared. Otherwise, the meat of the story was colored with interesting characters, a bit more humanized than those in the first two books. It's also easier to follow what's happening.

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