Amazon Cover
Nightfall by Isaac Asimov (original short story) and Robert Silverberg (expanded into novel)
BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON
An expanded version of Asimov’s short story, “Nightfall,” reveals a world on the brink of chaos, torn between religious fanaticism and scientific denial and faced with the end of civilization
MY REVIEW
When I first read this (mumble) years ago, it was groundbreaking and amazing. The original short story was published in 1941, written by Isaac Asimov when he was a grad student. The novel was published in 1990, with an extended beginning and an extended ending written by Robert Silverberg, but approved by Asimov.
The conceit of a world without night (because at least one of the six suns in the vicinity of the planet is always shining down, one sun is the primary which the planet orbits), reacting to an astrological phenomena – a once in two-thousand year eclipse, bringing Darkness and something more. Stars. All the wonder and fear, awe and insignificance we normal Earthlings are exposed to each night (when city lights don’t hide the night sky) in one painful twelve-hour period with no preparation.
I always think about how quickly and decisively humans jumped off planet because we had our sister planet, the Moon, just hanging up there, taunting us, tantalizingly close. If all we had to see were the stars, it would have taken much longer to dare space. I wonder about other worlds with intelligent life without Moon to tease them to “come play”. About worlds with perpetual cloud cover, like Venus or Jupiter, never even seeing the stars, and maybe not even their own sun clearly. Would they even leave their planet? Our relatively thin atmosphere (compared to gas worlds), is “only” six thousand miles. Our tallest mountain is 5.5 miles; if everything above that distance is hazy nothingness, why would you ever go further?
Nightfall asks the question of what happens to a people who have never seen further, whose furthest sight line is maybe two light-years, who – with far more reason than our Earthling predecessors – think they are the center of this small scape, suddenly see so much more.
I love the question. I love the development. The science Asimov used to create this world is still believable; the archeological support and psychological support and governmental maneuverings added by Silverberg make it that much better. It is perhaps one of the best short stories and novel adaptations ever in the science fiction genre.
That said, I hate how the social aspects have aged over the 35 and 80 plus years since the novel and short story have been written.
First comment is just a writing style change. The book is set in omnipresent third person, as well as second person, and also has first person POV switches, with some head hopping. Not something we do now, but was an acceptable writing technique in the past. Styles change over time. I am already seeing how fanfic, video game storytelling, and electronic delivery systems are changing writing styles now; not good or bad, just different.
Second comment is “Wow, the toxic masculinity.” Even though the characters have witnessed, have experienced, the danger of Darkness, each of the men think “I am stronger than this.” Over and over again. “I cannot be a coward; I would not be able to live with myself.” But it is like asking a normal man without training to lift a thousand pounds, it is going to break him. … But, you know, can’t be a coward.
Third comment is “Smurfette Syndrome.” No, the archeologist isn’t the only female of the book but I do think the ratio of male to female is one in four or one in five, and among the scientists and people of power more like one in ten. There is an ingenue sex partner, but she is more an obstacle than a person and only one person actual talks to her. Siferra is the only female with agency and initially she starts with absolutely no interest in sex; but eventually she falls for the one man with the persistence (stalking) to continue to pressure her until there was a yes rewarding the action-hero non-scientist with a beautiful, physically fit, amazingly intelligent, supportive woman who he proceeds to overtalk, ignore, and actively manipulate to get his way. Chapter 38 onward is a study in the many of the ways science fiction writers have mistreated women characters over the years. So much potential, but using a 2025 lens, completely unacceptable. (Also the female-needs-to-be-threatened-with-rape trope, but at least she gets herself out of it, even if she is completely insane when she did it, because, of course, a real woman wouldn’t have overreacted that way … oh, but we do imagine it.)
In conclusion, great concept. A worthy ready, especially the beginning and middle (Asimov’s original story), for the history of science fiction. Don’t give to the book to your female children to read; the teenagers and twenty-somethings won’t see Siferra as a strong-woman character. They have been deprogramed from this level of toxicity and will see it for what it is: a male chosen-one reward-in-female-shape. (She started out Ace; a modern writer would have let her stay that way, but times were different.)
When I originally read this in the nineties, the story would be a five-star. Now, toxic tropes would take it down to a two and history pulls it up to a three-star.
