Astounding: John W. Campbell, Isaac Asimov, …and the Golden Age of Science Fiction - Alec Nevala-Lee Audiobook

Written by Alec Nevala-Lee
Read by Sean Runnette
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 64 Kbps
Unabridged

Astounding: John W. Campbell, Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlen, L. Ron Hubbard, and the Golden Age of Science Fiction

Publisher: HarperAudio
Release date: October 23, 2018
Duration: 13:22:51

Astounding is the landmark account of the extraordinary partnership between four controversial writers—John W. Campbell, Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein, and L. Ron Hubbard—who set off a revolution in science fiction and forever changed our world.

This remarkable cultural narrative centers on the figure of John W. Campbell, Jr., whom Asimov called “the most powerful force in science fiction ever.” Campbell, who has never been the subject of a biography until now, was both a visionary author—he wrote the story that was later filmed as The Thing—and the editor of the groundbreaking magazine best known as Astounding Science Fiction, in which he discovered countless legendary writers and published classic works ranging from the I, Robot series to Dune. Over a period of more than thirty years, from the rise of the pulps to the debut of Star Trek, he dominated the genre, and his three closest collaborators reached unimaginable heights. Asimov became the most prolific author in American history; Heinlein emerged as the leading science fiction writer of his generation with the novels Starship Troopers and Stranger in a Strange Land; and Hubbard achieved lasting fame—and infamy—as the founder of the Church of Scientology.

Drawing on unexplored archives, thousands of unpublished letters, and dozens of interviews, Alec Nevala-Lee offers a riveting portrait of this circle of authors, their work, and their tumultuous private lives. …. For the first time, it reveals the startling extent of Campbell’s influence on the ideas that evolved into Scientology, which prompted Asimov to observe: “I knew Campbell and I knew Hubbard, and no movement can have two Messiahs.” It looks unsparingly at the tragic final act that estranged the others from Campbell, bringing the golden age of science fiction to a close, and it illuminates how their complicated legacy continues to shape the imaginations of millions and our vision of the future itself.

“Narrator Sean Runnette’s deep and languid voice aligns well with a story that looks back at a world of yesteryear and a realm that held tight to being a boys’ club. Nevala-Lee covers how the authors rose to prominence and how they eventually passed from both their fame and lives. It’s here that Runnette does some of his best work, giving emphasis and emotional depth to their words and their passings. Nevala-Lee’s rich history captures both the promises and problems that science fiction has to offer:— AudioFile