The Incomparable Asimov On:

• Interplanetary tourism
• Monsters through the ages
• Our water—all 28 trillion drops of it
• A cosmic empire built on a network of black holes
• A scientific prophet named Cyrano de Bergerac
• Solar power stations in the world’s deserts

Once again, Isaac Asimov journeys from past to present to future, from earth’s recesses to the limits of the universe. Here is a provocative, endlessly fascinating foray from the moons of Jupiter to America’s quadricentennial, from the coming Ice Age to life beyond the solar system.

I hate to say it, but as Asimov essay collections go, this is a rather minor entry with few items of genuine interest. This is, of course, an inherent problem with Asimov’s non-F&SF essays: they generally cover ground he covers elsewhere, and he has to repress the chatty style of his F&SF essays when writing for other magazines. So there isn’t a lot here that’s new or outstanding— even the title essay is a rewrite of “I’m Looking Over a Four-Leaf Clover,” slightly updated.