About the Author

Arthur C. Clarke is considered the greatest science fiction writer of all time and is an international treasure in many other ways, including the fact that an article by him in 1945 led to the invention of satellite technology. Books by Mr. Clarke--both fiction and nonfiction--have more than one hundred million copies in print worldwide. He lives in Sri Lanka.

Reviews

“3001 is not just a page-turner, plugged in to the great icons of HAL and the monoliths, but a book of wisdom too, pithy and provocative.”—New Scientist

“A one man literary Big Bang, Clarke has originated his own vast and teeming futuristic universe.”—Sunday Times

“Well-paced and absorbing . . . It is as a flight of fancy by the master of science fiction that 3001 makes its mark.”—The Times

“In his exciting new novel, Clarke reveals the ominous answer about the ultimate purpose of the monoliths.”—Daily Telegraph

“Serene, uplifting, and icy clear.”—Mail on Sunday

“From the moment I picked it up, I couldn’t put it down. 3001 The Final Odyssey is a tour de force that finally answers the questions that sparked the imaginations of an entire generation.”—Buzz Aldrin

"3001 is not just a page-turner, plugged in to the great icons of HAL and the monoliths, but a book of wisdom too, pithy and provocative."-New Scientist

"A one man literary Big Bang, Clarke has originated his own vast and teeming futuristic universe."-Sunday Times

"Well-paced and absorbing . . . It is as a flight of fancy by the master of science fiction that 3001 makes its mark."-The Times

"In his exciting new novel, Clarke reveals the ominous answer about the ultimate purpose of the monoliths."-Daily Telegraph

"Serene, uplifting, and icy clear."-Mail on Sunday

"From the moment I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. 3001 The Final Odyssey is a tour de force that finally answers the questions that sparked the imaginations of an entire generation."-Buzz Aldrin

Frank Poole was the astronaut murdered by the berserk computer HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey. In this third sequel to that classic novel, Poole is returned to life after his frozen body is recovered floating near Neptune. Much of the novel centers on Poole's reentry into society as, in a series of vignettes, he is introduced to the wonders of the year 3001. These include an enormous space habitat completely encircling the Earth and anchored by four gigantic space elevators; velociraptors genetically engineered for use as gardeners; and the braincap, a machine that allows the mind to absorb information almost instantaneously. Halfway through the novel, Poole travels to the former planet Jupiter, now the mini-sun Lucifer. There, he learns about the development, sparked by a mysterious monolith, of a civilization on Europa, about the banning of humanity from that Jovian moon, and about the occasional ghostly visitations of astronaut Dave Bowman (introduced in 2001) to the Lucifer system. Defying the ban, Poole lands on Europa and encounters both Dave and HAL, now fused together into one semi-autonomous program within the Europa monolith. From them, he learns that the monolith's signal broadcast a millennium ago was a request for further orders. He also learns that an answer is expected momentarily and that humanity won't be pleased by the result. It is only at this point that Clarke injects any real tension into his story. Unfortunately, the threat he imagines to humanity's future is dealt with somewhat offhandedly in a mere 30 pages; then the story ends. This novel is a must read for those who have followed the saga so far, but it's too thin to interest those new, or at least unfamiliar with, the series. Major ad/promo; first serial to Playboy; Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club alternate selection; Science Fiction Book Club main selection; audio rights to Random House Audio; foreign rights sold in the U.K., Spain, Latin America, France, Japan, Brazil, Holland, Italy, Portugal and Sweden. (Mar.)