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It's Been a Good Life
(The Autobiography of Isaac Asimov #1-3 (condensed))
by
Isaac Asimov,
Janet Asimov (Editor)
4.17 · Rating details · 416 ratings · 48 reviews
New one-volume autobiography spans Asimov's life for the first time!
As one of the most gifted and prolific writers of the twentieth century, Isaac Asimov became legendary for his inexhaustible creativity, wide-ranging intellectual curiosity, and talent for explaining complex subjects in clear, concise prose. While regaling his readers with an incredible opus of almost five hundred entertaining and illuminating science fiction and nonfiction books, he also found time to write a three-volume autobiography. Now these volumes have been condensed into one by Asimov's wife, Janet, who also shares excerpts from letters he wrote to her. Together these writings provide an intimate portrait of a creative genius whose love of learning and playing with ideas is evident on every page.
Reading this autobiography is like sitting down with Isaac Asimov and experiencing his witty, engaging, and brilliant personality firsthand. We are treated to many marvelous stories about his upbringing in Depression-era Brooklyn, his early fascination with the new science fiction pulp magazines, the thrill of his first published story, the creation of his well-known story "Nightfall," the genesis of the Foundation series, and the evolution of his creative life as a writer.
He also reveals his inner thoughts about and experiences with various luminaries in science and science fiction. Above all, Asimov's autobiography conveys unbounded enthusiasm for his craft, the infectious joy of learning and creating, complete intellectual honesty, his strong humanist convictions, and his infinite fund of good humor and optimism even at the end of his life - all told in the lively clear writing style that was his trademark.
Although Janet Jeppson Asimov concludes this work with a shocking revelation about her husband's death, the volume is clearly intended as a celebration - as the title suggests - of a wonderful, creative life. As a poignant coda to this work, Janet has appended one short story that was Isaac's favorite, and his 400th essay on this thoughts about science. (less)
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Hardcover, 309 pages
Published March 1st 2002 by Prometheus Books
Original Title
It's Been a Good Life
ISBN
1573929689 (ISBN13: 9781573929684)
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The Autobiography of Isaac Asimov #1-3 (condensed)
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Jun 07, 2011Stefan rated it it was amazing
Recommends it for: Anybody who enjoys memoirs or the writings of Isaac Asimov
Shelves: biographies-memoirs, history
"Its Been A Good Life" would rank among one of the best memoirs I've ever read. The variety and fullness of Asimov's intellectual life as described in his own words was reason enough for reading this thoughtful auto-biography. The large number of charming reminiscences (about friends, conferences, world events and a life spent writing constantly and unceasingly) and a diverse range of revealing excerpts from Asmov's multitude of speeches, letters, books and articles (often accompanied by interesting commentary Asimov's wife, Janice) made this book even more worth reading. My ultimate impression though was Asmov's intimate, candid and wittily cheerful tone. The incredibly inspiring optimism that was at the core of Asimov's personality (and clearly evident in his writing) was (as he put it) based on s life-long love of learning, books, stimulating conversations and a constant curiosity about the world. Having read this abbreviated auto-biography, I look forward to reading all three complete volumes of of Isaac Asimov' memoirs at some point in the future. (less)
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Apr 17, 2021Craig rated it liked it
This is a nice mix of biography and auto-biography of Asimov edited with commentary by his wife after his death. Asimov was one of the first superstars of the science fiction field, and his many, many non-fiction works probably did a lot to educate people about science and history and practically everything else in a clear and entertaining manner. He wrote or co-edited almost 500 books in his lifetime, and his story is fascinating, as are his accounts and impressions of other notable people who were his contemporaries. There's not a lot of original material here; much is pulled from his two-volume 1978 autobiography In Memory Yet Green and In Joy Still Felt, but I'd recommend this to people who are leery to tackle a project of that length but who would like to learn more about the man. (less)
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Sep 26, 2018Jerry rated it liked it
With Mr. Asimov long gone, it was enjoyable to read his life story from his own perspective. His thoughts on various topics were enlightening, even if I didn't agree with his opinions. It was also surprising to see my hometown, which hardly ever gets mentioned in any sort of national or international media, get referenced briefly.
However, this was also very fragmented and choppy, with quite a bit of wasted space. So, this was a mixed bag. (less)
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Jun 30, 2015Lorraine rated it it was amazing
Recommends it for: anyone who writes
I've just finished a delightful visit with an amazing man who loved writing and communicating for all the right reasons. The book has been edited by his widow, condensed from Asimov's 3-volume autobiography. Loved his science fiction stories when I was a teenager, wasn't aware he was actually a scientist who made his living writing non-fiction as well as science fiction. He seemed proud of his "child prodigy" status, and reluctant to give up the belief that he was better than the average bear. (less)
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Dec 20, 2014Sudar Muthu rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: biography
Pretty much all the books of Asimov that I have read so far are addictive page-turners and this one is no exception. I read this one in about 4 days, but could have finished it in just 2 days, if I was not busy with other things ;)
Not really an Autobiography
This book is technically not an Autobiography, but a one-volume condensation of his three autobiographies with annotations by his wife. In addition to it, this book also has the following
“The Last Question” – Asimov’s favorite short story
His 400th essay on science, with lot of anecdotes (by his wife)
A shocking afterword by his wife (more on it later in the review)
A Rationalist
Apart from the reason that he is a prolific writer, the other reason why I like Isaac Asimov is because he is a rationalist. He starts off the book with following quote in a typical Asimov fashion. Funny, but Honest.
I am not impressed by ancestry, since if I could trace my origins to Judas Maccabeus or to King David, that would not add one inch to my stature, either physically, mentally, or ethically.
He believed in reason and was not interested in labeling or identifying himself with a group, religion or a country.
I refuse to consider myself to be anything more sharply defined than “human being”
When talking about religion, he says:
Have I told you that I prefer “rationalism” to “atheism”? The word “atheist,” meaning “no God,” is negative and defeatist. It says what you don’t believe and puts you in an eternal position of defense. “Rationalism” on the other hand states what you DO believe; that is, that which can be understood in the light of reason. The question of God and other mystical objects-of-faith are outside reason and therefore play no part in rationalism and you don’t have to waste your time in either attacking or defending that which you rule out of your philosophy altogether.
A prolific writer
Asimov was one of the prolific writers of all times and has written or edited more than 500 books.
He talks about how he got into writing science fiction and the background behind writing most of his science fiction short stories and novels. It’s really existing to read about the background and what went through the author’s mind when writing a particular short story or novel that you enjoyed a lot. It was this feeling that I really liked about this book.
In addition to being a prolific writer he was also a life-long learner and believed in continuous learning.
To learn is to broaden, to experience more, to snatch new aspects of life for yourself. To refuse to learn or to be relieved at not having to learn is to commit a form of suicide; in the long run, a more meaningful type of suicide than the mere ending of physical life.
He also talks about how he enjoyed writing about what he learned in such a way that other people can understand and learn from it. Apart from his science fiction works he has written lot of textbooks and guides to a wide range of topics from bible to Shakespeare to different fields of science like Physics, Chemistry, Astronomy, Maths etc.
Unfortunately most of these books are out of print today :(
His Death
Towards the end of the book he talks (often jokes) about his illness and how it is taking a troll on him and affecting his ability to write. One of the last books that he wrote at this time when he was ill was “Forward the Foundation”, where he talks about the last few days of his famous character Hari Seldon. When I read “Forward the Foundation” last year (unaware about it being the one of last books of Asimov), I sensed a slightly feeling of sadness in the way he described the last few days of Hari Seldon, but now I realized that he was in fact writing from his own experience and I was overcome with grief :(
Finally he finished the book with the following quote.
My turn will come too, eventually, but I have had a good life and I have accomplished all I wanted to, and more than I had a right to expect I would. So I am ready. But not too ready … I shall hope.
At the beginning of this review, I mentioned that there was a “shocking afterword” by his wife. It was shocking because in the afterword his wife, Janet reveals that the myocardial and renal complications that he had towards the end of his life were the result of an infection by HIV, which he had contracted from a blood transfusion received during his bypass operation a decade ago. They convinced Asimov not to go public with the news because of the anti-AIDS prejudice that was prevalent at that time. Instead, his wife and daughter waited for ten years and when most of the doctors who attended Asimov have passed away they made it public.
Even though this book ends with a shocking revelation about his illness, this volume is clearly intended as a celebration – as the title suggests – of a wonderful, creative life and above all a wonderful human being. Issac Asimov – You will always be missed.
Full review available at my blog http://sudarmuthu.com/blog/book-revie... (less)
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Jan 19, 2017Owlseyes marked it as to-read
Shelves: autobio
I, PRODUCTIVE
Isaac Asimov wrote almost 500 books in his lifetime—these are the six ways he did it
in:
https://qz.com/886038/isaac-asimov-wr... (less)
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Jun 16, 2013Troy rated it it was amazing
Shelves: nonfiction
In my first reading of this autobiography of the Grand Master of Science Fiction himself, there are revealed brilliant advice and insights on writing, on life and its impending end from the author and his surviving family. I recommend it highly.
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Jul 08, 2015Ted Wolf rated it really liked it
Recommend for people who have read at least his Robot series and Foundation series. The more familiar you are with his work the more enjoyable the autobiography will be.
This Autobiography is written in Asimov's familiar style and you can learn about his development as a writer. Among other things you can learn about how Second Foundation was inspired, his return to science fiction later in life and what led to Forward Foundation Toward the end it is full of his thoughts of death as he was not particularly healthy, but he remained humorous throughout.
This was one of my favorite passages in the book dealing with mortality:
"There may be some morbid satisfaction in being a last survivor, but is it so much better than death to be the last leaf on the tree, to find yourself alone in a strange and hostile world where no one remembers you as a boy, and where no one can share with you the memory of that long-gone world that glowed all about you when you were young?"
The final chapter by his second wife, Janet, details the end of his life.
The appendixes contain Asimov's thoughts on science taken from various letters 'Essay 400' and the short story 'The Last Question', which was one of Asimov's favorites.
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Nov 09, 2017Liedzeit rated it liked it
Shelves: auto-biography
His wife compiled this out of his autobiographical writings and a couple of letters. Quite nicely actually but the book could have used some more editing. There are people mentioned that were never introduced, for example, and a reader not too familiar with Asimov could possibly become confused. In an epilogue, she reveals the sad and yes, shocking news that The Good Doctor actually died of AIDS that he caught in ’83 when he had his bypass surgery. There is also a piece that Janet Asimov has the nerve to call Essay 400 (which he wanted to write but never did) and his wonderful ‘Last Question’. Since I love Asimov and especially his talking about himself I read this with delight but the truth is that his ‘I. Asimov - A Memoir’ is surely better, although I could never forgive his publisher the stupid title. (Asimov wanted to call part three of his autobiography ‘The Scenes of Life’). But this title is even worse. Well. The bibliography at the end lists among his books ‘I, Robert’ (sic!). Very funny. (7/10)
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Dec 17, 2013Lee Pfahler rated it really liked it
Recommends it for: Any Asimov or science fiction fan
Shelves: science-fiction, autobiography
This autobiography is actually a collection of excerpts from Asimov's three previous autobiographies one of which I have read, "I, Asimov". It was interesting reading this right after having read a biography of Asimov which did not pull many punches regarding his personality and his sexual improprieties none of which is mentioned in this autobiography.
Asimov was definitely an interesting character and unfortunately he died a bit young (72)and probably could have produced several more novels had he lived longer. I have only read two of his novels The Gods Themselves and Nemesis; the former and did not like and the latter I thought was great. I also tried to read The End of Eternity but I could not get through it. Which means I have not read his Foundation and Robot series which he is best known for so now I think I will finally tackle at least the Foundation series but first read his Galactic series first to see what his first novel is like. (less)
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Jan 29, 2021SSShafiq marked it as to-read
Shelves: biography-memoirs
Jan 20201:
I've been wanting to read the separate volumes of the biography for year but most are too expensive and not available from the library. This volume is at the library to I am going to check it out from the library I think ...
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Apr 23, 2011Jennifer rated it really liked it
Shelves: non-fiction, memoir-autobiography, owned
It should be said right up front that this is sort of a strange book. This is not his autobiography as Asimov wrote it. During his life Asimov published three volumes of autobiography. After he died, his (second) wife edited these volumes, supplementing with letters she and Asimov exchanged, and also added an afterword. There is often very little and sometimes no transition between excerpts from his original volumes, which can be jarring. In places, it feels as if you're always coming in during the middle of a story. I do not know how much was cut out, or why, but given the strength of Asimov's writing on nearly every subject, I cannot imagine that the missing material was dry or uninteresting. Perhaps Janet (his wife) felt there was just too much of it.
That issue aside, Good Life is a fascinating and enjoyable read. I had enjoyed all of Asimov's work that I had read before -- The Foundation Trilogy and some of his robot stories, but I had absolutely no idea how tiny a portion of his writings this made up! He wrote hundreds of books -- both fiction and nonfiction, as well as edited probably dozens of anthologies and his own SF journal. While he was a scientist, he was a far better writer and educator than researcher, so it wasn't long before he managed to get out of his research duties altogether in order to devote himself to his true calling -- that of amassing, processing, and conveying information. He could become an expert on virtually any topic, write a book on it, then move on to the next interesting idea. As much as he is known for his SF, his fiction writing seemed often to be something that was squeezed in when time allowed rather than the focus of his life.
He's just plain brilliant and funny, and that comes across very well in this book. I was away from home for a few days while I read this, and I kept a list on the back of my bookmark of all the anecdotes and their page numbers that I had to read to Andrew when I got home.
Also included was his favorite short story (that he wrote), which was indeed wonderful (and which I cannot read aloud without at least verging on tears.) And in the afterword -- Janet reveals for the first time that what Asimov finally died of was AIDS (contracted via blood transfusion during an operation.) They kept it quiet for fear of prejudice, and because another public figure had recently revealed they had AIDS -- so they didn't feel the revelation would add anything to the cause or the public good.
I must just go back to say it was a particular joy to read Asimov speak of "the problem" of women in science fiction -- particularly why he had so few female characters in his early writing, but then as he was married and began to know other women professionally, his work included more and stronger women. I also really enjoyed when he briefly wrote about the other popular SF writers in that age of SF when Asimov, Heinlein, Dick, etc. were churning out novels. I would so love to read a history of that period -- those men and their relations, how their writing was affected by the Cold War and the dawn of nukes, etc. I wonder if such a book exists?
Anyway, even for the choppiness of some of the material, the uneven way different periods and subjects were treated, etc., on the whole, this book was pretty delightful. I was left convicted that I need to increase the size of my Asimov library -- and look for that book on the early greats of science fiction! (less)
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Jul 08, 2017Michael Scott rated it it was amazing
Shelves: science, bio, memoir, sci-fi
TODO an actual review:
+++ The story of Isaac Asimov, in the (selected) words of the man himself.
++/- The book reveals an Asimov in control of his life and environment, knowing his strengths and weaknesses, and vain but beyond the smart little tricks of youth. If in your mind Asimov is the glorious writer who made you love sci-fi with his clever little puzzles, this picture of him may not be what you wanted.
++/- Much about the origins and evolution of the Foundation and the Robots series. Not what you wanted, probably, in that it's more a calculated risk instead of an author overflowing with desire, but the story nevertheless.
++ Much about his passion for writing science, and in general non-fiction books, about which I knew so little.
--- The tone is dry and the story does not really flow. Perhaps the editor could have done more here? (less)
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Aug 19, 2015B rated it really liked it
Shelves: westend, own
I was really uncertain whether I should read this or the full trilogy from which this is abridged. (See https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4...).
I'm not sure I made the right choice. This is good enough and in a few places fragmentary enough that I wonder if I should not have stayed at the knees of the master for hundreds of pages. I guess I'll never know.
Many of these stories are charming and amusing. There are a few nuggets on the creation of canonical science fiction stories, novels, and people. All in all, it's a pretty good time. The epilogue presented some facts that were a complete surprise to me. (Is it spoilers if it's non-fiction?)
Asimov was an amazing person and, as an amazing storyteller, he makes you believe it. (less)
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Jul 10, 2013Michael Cummings rated it liked it · review of another edition
A curious entry in the autobiographical material of Asimov's life. If you have no other resources, or your only other resource is the slim "I, Asimov", then you may find more enjoyment in this book. Personally, I found it to be a somewhat disjointed collection of excerpts from the longer autobiography that he wrote (I've read "In Memory Yet Green" and "In Joy Still Felt", which covered 1920-1978). Unfortunately, this is about the best you're going to find these days, especially if you're looking for a digital book. Ye olde paper books are rare and out of print as near as I can tell, so this is the best of what you can find, but don't think you've found the best. (less)
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Jun 20, 2017Vincent Noel rated it really liked it
Very entertaining and (for me) instructive. I had no idea Asimov has written so many books on so many subjects. Lots of anecdotes and réflexions.
What I find puzzling is how abstract are his description of relationships with close friends and family. There is no description at all of something funny his kids did for instance, or the impact their birth had on him. It's only work, work, work. He mentions a bit how his daughter reacted to that thing he did and that thing he said, but apart from that, you don't know how the people close to him dealt with such a productive person. It's like they exist only as an audience to him. You learn in passing that he had another child. (less)
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Mar 05, 2016Jay Gabler rated it liked it
This book serves its purpose as a compact selection from Asimov's sprawling memoirs, with very little new material. I found the editing heavy-handed, with many parenthetical insertions. It does speak to the Asimovs' close relationship, which is nice but hardly revelatory. For those seeking a one-volume Asimov memoir, I'd instead recommend I. Asimov, which covers Asimov's entire life and feels more coherent. (less)
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Jul 29, 2014Anita rated it it was amazing
Shelves: non-fiction
This is an autobiography put together by Asimov's wife using his own words from other writings and letters. It gives good insight into Asimov's thinking and personality with highlights of his life and major writings. The book includes his favorite short story in the Appendix along with a complete bibliography according to subject and indexed. Originally I got the book from the library, but decided to buy the ebook version for reference. You'll want to read this if you are an Asimov fan. (less)
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Jun 19, 2015Karen Tompert rated it really liked it
I refuse to consider myself to be anything more sharply defined than “human being,” and I feel that aside from overpopulation the most intractable problem we face in trying to avoid the destruction of civilization and humanity is the diabolical habit of people dividing themselves into tiny groups, with each group extolling itself and denouncing its neighbors.
Isaac Asimov It's Been A Good Life
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Jan 22, 2017Scott Dunham rated it it was amazing
I love Isaac. His sf, his mysteries especially. Try the Black Widowers books... I am now reading an article on "how he did it," that is how he was so prolific. Here 'tis, if you're interested.
https://qz.com/886038/isaac-asimov-wr...
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Mar 25, 2017Deborah Jade rated it it was amazing
Shelves: read-2017
A funny and inspiring read about Isaac Asimov's life. I was surprised by the number of non-fiction books he has written and impressed by his passion for self-education and then passing knowledge on to others.
It was interested to read about his journey through life and his approach to writing. Since reading this, I definitely want to read more of his books.
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