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Fantastic Voyage #1
Fantastic Voyage
Four men and a woman are reduced to a microscopic fraction of their original size, sent in a miniaturized atomic sub through a dying man's carotid artery to destroy a blood clot in his brain. If they fail, the entire world will be doomed.
186 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 1, 1966
About the author
Isaac Asimov
4,463 books25.7k followersWorks of prolific Russian-American writer Isaac Asimov include popular explanations of scientific principles,
The Foundation Trilogy
(1951-1953), and other volumes of fiction.
Isaac Asimov, a professor of biochemistry, wrote as a highly successful author, best known for his books.
Asimov, professor, generally considered of all time, edited more than five hundred books and ninety thousand letters and postcards. He published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey decimal classification but lacked only an entry in the category of philosophy (100).
People widely considered Asimov, a master of the genre alongside Robert Anson Heinlein and Arthur Charles Clarke as the "big three" during his lifetime. He later tied Galactic Empire and the Robot into the same universe as his most famous series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those that Heinlein pioneered and Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson previously produced. He penned "Nightfall," voted in 1964 as the best short story of all time; many persons still honor this title. He also produced well mysteries, fantasy, and a great quantity of nonfiction. Asimov used Paul French, the pen name, for the Lucky Starr, series of juvenile novels.
Most books of Asimov in a historical way go as far back to a time with possible question or concept at its simplest stage. He often provides and mentions well nationalities, birth, and death dates for persons and etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Guide to Science, the tripartite set Understanding Physics, and Chronology of Science and Discovery exemplify these books.
Asimov, a long-time member, reluctantly served as vice president of Mensa international and described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs." He took more pleasure as president of the humanist association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, an elementary school in Brooklyn in New York, and two different awards honor his name.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...
Isaac Asimov, a professor of biochemistry, wrote as a highly successful author, best known for his books.
Asimov, professor, generally considered of all time, edited more than five hundred books and ninety thousand letters and postcards. He published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey decimal classification but lacked only an entry in the category of philosophy (100).
People widely considered Asimov, a master of the genre alongside Robert Anson Heinlein and Arthur Charles Clarke as the "big three" during his lifetime. He later tied Galactic Empire and the Robot into the same universe as his most famous series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those that Heinlein pioneered and Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson previously produced. He penned "Nightfall," voted in 1964 as the best short story of all time; many persons still honor this title. He also produced well mysteries, fantasy, and a great quantity of nonfiction. Asimov used Paul French, the pen name, for the Lucky Starr, series of juvenile novels.
Most books of Asimov in a historical way go as far back to a time with possible question or concept at its simplest stage. He often provides and mentions well nationalities, birth, and death dates for persons and etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Guide to Science, the tripartite set Understanding Physics, and Chronology of Science and Discovery exemplify these books.
Asimov, a long-time member, reluctantly served as vice president of Mensa international and described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs." He took more pleasure as president of the humanist association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, an elementary school in Brooklyn in New York, and two different awards honor his name.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 612 reviews
December 30, 2022
Don’t blame ME for my gushing Five Stars. They come from my sixteen-year-old self!
Yeah, you got THAT right. I had a rather sequestered childhood - just me and my Books and my Beatles. And Mom and Dad and Sis and Bro.
Sure, I dated... but my intense shyness obviated anything serious developing.
And besides, it was only a mere three years earlier that Time Magazine had shocked us sleepers by trumpeting something called the Sexual Revolution!
You know, Kids, in 1966 the world was still half-asleep - thank goodness.
And gunshots woulda been summarily dismissed as backfires. Crime? In some places. But not much wild stuff in Tory-blue Ontario the Good.
You had to have been there to have believed it.
We couldn’t even wear jeans in school - and skirts could be not longer than an inch above the knee - and NO SMOKING within high school precincts.
But in 1966 we noticed things - like Raquel Welch in Fantastic Voyage!
My pals would stand around outside their lockers tracing figure eights with the heels of their hands...
Yep, we noticed. And around 1966, I noticed some girls in school bore a striking resemblance to Raquel, once I got my nose outta my books long enough!
And she CARRIED the whole film to Instant Fame for us.
When they had advertised the movie in our papers, my mom told me there was a book out too. I was confused and disappointed to learn Isaac Asimov had written it after the fact. But I read it first.
A few scant years later the same thing happened with the film 2001, though the book was more polished.
And like dominoes, my literary icons started to fall from their pedestals.
And that has continued unabated ever since then:
A fact that has sharpened any critical acumen I may possess, thank heaven.
Well...
Do you think Raquel had something to do with my maturing?
If you do, I’d agree with you.
For she sure helped.
Yeah, you got THAT right. I had a rather sequestered childhood - just me and my Books and my Beatles. And Mom and Dad and Sis and Bro.
Sure, I dated... but my intense shyness obviated anything serious developing.
And besides, it was only a mere three years earlier that Time Magazine had shocked us sleepers by trumpeting something called the Sexual Revolution!
You know, Kids, in 1966 the world was still half-asleep - thank goodness.
And gunshots woulda been summarily dismissed as backfires. Crime? In some places. But not much wild stuff in Tory-blue Ontario the Good.
You had to have been there to have believed it.
We couldn’t even wear jeans in school - and skirts could be not longer than an inch above the knee - and NO SMOKING within high school precincts.
But in 1966 we noticed things - like Raquel Welch in Fantastic Voyage!
My pals would stand around outside their lockers tracing figure eights with the heels of their hands...
Yep, we noticed. And around 1966, I noticed some girls in school bore a striking resemblance to Raquel, once I got my nose outta my books long enough!
And she CARRIED the whole film to Instant Fame for us.
When they had advertised the movie in our papers, my mom told me there was a book out too. I was confused and disappointed to learn Isaac Asimov had written it after the fact. But I read it first.
A few scant years later the same thing happened with the film 2001, though the book was more polished.
And like dominoes, my literary icons started to fall from their pedestals.
And that has continued unabated ever since then:
A fact that has sharpened any critical acumen I may possess, thank heaven.
Well...
Do you think Raquel had something to do with my maturing?
If you do, I’d agree with you.
For she sure helped.
April 14, 2010
You know those tedious shows where they tell you to imagine you've been sent to a desert island, and what will you bring with you? For example, which book? As it happens, I have direct information to supply here. When I was about 9, we went off on an extended visit to Italy. My mother is Italian, but, for various complicated reasons, I have never learned to speak the language, even though it would probably have been the easiest thing in the world. So, I was already a book addict, and I was going to spend several months in a place where English books were almost impossible to find.
My well-meaning parents reminded me that I should pack plenty of reading material. But, with somewhat unfortunate timing, I had just discovered Isaac Asimov. Specifically, I had just discovered Fantastic Voyage. I was a geeky, junior-scientist kind of 9 year old, and I thought this book was the most amazing thing I had ever read. I mean, they - wow! - they, like, shrink this submarine down to the size of a blood corpuscle and they inject it into this guy's bloodstream and they have to get into his brain and zap the clot with a laser (lasers had just been invented) before it kills him, but they take a wrong turn and need to go though his heart and then his lungs and then...
Anyway, you probably don't want all the details, but there's even a hot chick in there. I had recently noticed that the world, among many other interesting things, contained hot chicks, and Cora, who's quite appropriately played by Raquel Welch in the movie, made the book completely perfect. I decided that I was only going to take Fantastic Voyage with me. No other book was necessary. I could never get tired of this masterpiece.
Alas... I'm afraid to say I was wrong. Wonderful though it was, on the third re-reading I no longer liked it as much, and I don't think I even finished it the fifth time around. So, first of all, if you're being sent to a desert island, try and bribe someone to let you bring at least half a dozen books. But, second, if you have a geeky 9 year old kid and you're stuck for birthday present ideas, consider giving them a copy of Fantastic Voyage. Even though they'll probably change their mind after a while, they may think it's the greatest book they've ever read for at least a month.
My well-meaning parents reminded me that I should pack plenty of reading material. But, with somewhat unfortunate timing, I had just discovered Isaac Asimov. Specifically, I had just discovered Fantastic Voyage. I was a geeky, junior-scientist kind of 9 year old, and I thought this book was the most amazing thing I had ever read. I mean, they - wow! - they, like, shrink this submarine down to the size of a blood corpuscle and they inject it into this guy's bloodstream and they have to get into his brain and zap the clot with a laser (lasers had just been invented) before it kills him, but they take a wrong turn and need to go though his heart and then his lungs and then...
Anyway, you probably don't want all the details, but there's even a hot chick in there. I had recently noticed that the world, among many other interesting things, contained hot chicks, and Cora, who's quite appropriately played by Raquel Welch in the movie, made the book completely perfect. I decided that I was only going to take Fantastic Voyage with me. No other book was necessary. I could never get tired of this masterpiece.
Alas... I'm afraid to say I was wrong. Wonderful though it was, on the third re-reading I no longer liked it as much, and I don't think I even finished it the fifth time around. So, first of all, if you're being sent to a desert island, try and bribe someone to let you bring at least half a dozen books. But, second, if you have a geeky 9 year old kid and you're stuck for birthday present ideas, consider giving them a copy of Fantastic Voyage. Even though they'll probably change their mind after a while, they may think it's the greatest book they've ever read for at least a month.
November 29, 2017
Fantastic Voyage, Isaac Asimov
Fantastic Voyage is a 1966 American science fiction film directed by Richard Fleischer and written by Harry Kleiner. Bantam Books obtained the rights for a paperback novelization based on the screenplay and approached Isaac Asimov to write it. Because the novelization was released six months before the movie, many people mistakenly believed the film was based on Asimov's book.
Four men and one woman reduced to a microscopic fraction of their original size, boarding a miniaturized atomic sub and being injected into a dying man's carotid artery. Passing through the heart, entering the inner ear where even the slightest sound would destroy them, battling relentlessy into the cranium. Their objective...to reach a blood clot and destroy it with the piercing rays os a laser. At stake...the fate of the entire world.
عنوانها: سفر معجزه آسا؛ سفر شگفت انگیز؛ نویسنده: آیزاک آسیموف؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش: ماه آگوست سال 1992 میلادی
کتاب با عنوان: «سفر معجزه آسا» نیز با ترجمه: شاهرخ وزیری؛ توسط نشر ونداد در سال 1363 منتشر شده
عنوان: سفر شگفت انگیز؛ نویسنده: آیزاک آسیموف؛ مترجم: احمد اخوت؛ تهران، نشر شقایق، 1368؛ در 386 ص؛ چاپ دیگر 1371؛ و ...؛
سفر شگفتانگیز در واقع فیلمنامه ی یک فیلم علمیتخیلی نوشته ی هری کلاینر است به نام بنتام. انتشارات حق تبدیل فیلمنامه به یک رمان علمیتخیلی را خریداری و از آیزاک آسیموف درخواست میکند تا از روی آن رمانی بنویسد. از آنجایی که این رمان شش ماه پیش از پخش عمومی فیلم منتشر میشود، همگان ایده ی اولیه ی کتاب را به اشتباه از خود آسیموف میدانند. ا. شربیانی
Fantastic Voyage is a 1966 American science fiction film directed by Richard Fleischer and written by Harry Kleiner. Bantam Books obtained the rights for a paperback novelization based on the screenplay and approached Isaac Asimov to write it. Because the novelization was released six months before the movie, many people mistakenly believed the film was based on Asimov's book.
Four men and one woman reduced to a microscopic fraction of their original size, boarding a miniaturized atomic sub and being injected into a dying man's carotid artery. Passing through the heart, entering the inner ear where even the slightest sound would destroy them, battling relentlessy into the cranium. Their objective...to reach a blood clot and destroy it with the piercing rays os a laser. At stake...the fate of the entire world.
عنوانها: سفر معجزه آسا؛ سفر شگفت انگیز؛ نویسنده: آیزاک آسیموف؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش: ماه آگوست سال 1992 میلادی
کتاب با عنوان: «سفر معجزه آسا» نیز با ترجمه: شاهرخ وزیری؛ توسط نشر ونداد در سال 1363 منتشر شده
عنوان: سفر شگفت انگیز؛ نویسنده: آیزاک آسیموف؛ مترجم: احمد اخوت؛ تهران، نشر شقایق، 1368؛ در 386 ص؛ چاپ دیگر 1371؛ و ...؛
سفر شگفتانگیز در واقع فیلمنامه ی یک فیلم علمیتخیلی نوشته ی هری کلاینر است به نام بنتام. انتشارات حق تبدیل فیلمنامه به یک رمان علمیتخیلی را خریداری و از آیزاک آسیموف درخواست میکند تا از روی آن رمانی بنویسد. از آنجایی که این رمان شش ماه پیش از پخش عمومی فیلم منتشر میشود، همگان ایده ی اولیه ی کتاب را به اشتباه از خود آسیموف میدانند. ا. شربیانی
April 3, 2024
I've never read a lot of science fiction, perhaps that is a pitty. But this one, read when I was 15, was very appealing. Asimov has composed a very concise and exciting story about a voyage, in a miniaturized submarine, through the human body. It is fiction with a very high scientific and educational message. I remember seeing the 1966-movie, but that was far less captivating. Now, apparently (I only read this in the other reviews on this site) the book was based on the script of the movie; Asimov mostly added the scientific touch!
August 7, 2023
Fantastic Voyage was Asimov's only novelization, I believe, and though it was ironically among his best-selling science fiction titles, he never liked it, according to what he says in his autobiography. It's based on a screenplay by Harry Kleiner that was adapted by David Duncan that had been based on a story written by Otto Klement and Jerome Bixby. Part of Asimov's regret was probably due to his never getting full royalties for his work since the property was owned by such a long line of others. For some reason, the novelization was published six months before the release of the film in 1966, so many readers believed the film was based on what they assumed to be an Asimov novel. It's a good adaptation of the screenplay, and though he changed a few details to correct some scientific inaccuracies, he still felt it was deeply flawed. I enjoyed the action and the story in the book more than the film; it's an intriguing inner-space journey.
March 19, 2023
"The passenger didn’t look particularly striking or impressive, but at the moment, he was the most important man in the world."
― Isaac Asimov, Fantastic Voyage
I first read Fantastic Voyage when I was a boy. I have never been a big fan of Sci-Fi or Fantasy but I rember I really enjoyed this book and back then I probably would have rated it 4 stars. I have been thinking about reading it again for a while now and finally did. I have gotten older and times have changed. The book is somewhat dated but I still enjoyed it.
The story opens on a plane where a scientist with a secret that could change the balance of something is being brought to "us". A agent has successfully extracted him from "them". The countries are never identified by name but the book was published in 1966 during the Cold War so the reader can make a guess. The plane lands successfully but on the car ride to headquarters there is an attack and the scientist is injured. He has a brain clot. If he dies then his secret dies with him.
The clot cannot be removed externally. It can only be done internally. Fortunately we have the technology to miniaturize things. Even people. But only for 60 minutes. The scientist supposedly held the secret to indefinite miniaturization. To save the scientist and learn the secret the decision is made to miniaturize four men and one woman and send them in a miniaturized atomic sub through the carotid artery to the brain so that the clot can be destroyed with a laser.
Of course things are not that easy. There are accidents ... or are they sabotage? Is there a spy among them? They wind up taking several detours that takes them, and the reader,through the heart and inner ear. There are encounters with white and red blood cells. They have to refuel with oxygen along the way. An interesting twist when you are in an atomic sub and in a man's body.
This was an enjoyable story and I am glad I reread it but as mentioned it is somewhat dated. I found myself thinking it would be nice if someone would update the story. Perhaps Andy Weir?
― Isaac Asimov, Fantastic Voyage
I first read Fantastic Voyage when I was a boy. I have never been a big fan of Sci-Fi or Fantasy but I rember I really enjoyed this book and back then I probably would have rated it 4 stars. I have been thinking about reading it again for a while now and finally did. I have gotten older and times have changed. The book is somewhat dated but I still enjoyed it.
The story opens on a plane where a scientist with a secret that could change the balance of something is being brought to "us". A agent has successfully extracted him from "them". The countries are never identified by name but the book was published in 1966 during the Cold War so the reader can make a guess. The plane lands successfully but on the car ride to headquarters there is an attack and the scientist is injured. He has a brain clot. If he dies then his secret dies with him.
The clot cannot be removed externally. It can only be done internally. Fortunately we have the technology to miniaturize things. Even people. But only for 60 minutes. The scientist supposedly held the secret to indefinite miniaturization. To save the scientist and learn the secret the decision is made to miniaturize four men and one woman and send them in a miniaturized atomic sub through the carotid artery to the brain so that the clot can be destroyed with a laser.
Of course things are not that easy. There are accidents ... or are they sabotage? Is there a spy among them? They wind up taking several detours that takes them, and the reader,through the heart and inner ear. There are encounters with white and red blood cells. They have to refuel with oxygen along the way. An interesting twist when you are in an atomic sub and in a man's body.
This was an enjoyable story and I am glad I reread it but as mentioned it is somewhat dated. I found myself thinking it would be nice if someone would update the story. Perhaps Andy Weir?
April 3, 2024
Fantastic Voyage (1966) was a movie tie-in book that was commissioned to accompany the movie or, as it turns out precede it by about six months. It’s a combination Cold War espionage story and a fascinating science fiction tale. The new wave of science is miniaturization and, here, a brilliant scientist carrying secrets is on the edge of life following an attack on his automobile. He has a blood clot deep in his brain and the only way to reach it is to send a surgeon and his sexy assistant (played in the movie by Raquel Welch) into the man’s bloodstream.
All of a sudden the pathways through the body are like a haunted maze with danger around every corner. The submarine, the Proteus, heads out in a journey it’s builders could never imagine. To add to the drama, the clock is ticking. Not only will the patient not live long if the blood clot is not dealt with, but the five hardy souls journeying through his body are going to deminiaturize in an hour and the patient ( for obvious reasons) won’t survive that process.
What’s fascinating about the story is how well-thought out it is with regard to the processes of the human anatomy. Additionally, a lot of thought went into the concept of what things in the bloodstream would do to the Proteus and it’s passengers. Like what would white blood cells do.
All of a sudden the pathways through the body are like a haunted maze with danger around every corner. The submarine, the Proteus, heads out in a journey it’s builders could never imagine. To add to the drama, the clock is ticking. Not only will the patient not live long if the blood clot is not dealt with, but the five hardy souls journeying through his body are going to deminiaturize in an hour and the patient ( for obvious reasons) won’t survive that process.
What’s fascinating about the story is how well-thought out it is with regard to the processes of the human anatomy. Additionally, a lot of thought went into the concept of what things in the bloodstream would do to the Proteus and it’s passengers. Like what would white blood cells do.
October 4, 2021
Patetico, scontato, deludente. Personaggi insulsi, stereotipati ai limiti dell’inversosimile, antipatici, a dir poco odiosi.
La trama promette bene ma lo sviluppo è terribile.
Grant e Cora, forse, i personaggi più patetici che abbia mai incontrato in un libro, insopportabili. Lui che non fa altro che provarci con lei, anche in momenti decisamente inopportuni (missione all’interno del corpo di uno scienziato). Ma insomma, hai sorpassato i quindici anni, dovresti farcela a tenere a freno l’ormone in particolari situazioni, no? Decisamente fuori luogo. Lei che non ha occhi per Duval, ma ovviamente il bel giovane che le fa una corte spudorata cancella in un attimo (il tempo della missione, ovvero un’ora) anni di un amore platonico e impossibile. Le battute finali che si scambiano: imbarazzanti.
La profondità dei personaggi è carta velina; basterebbero un paio di aggettivi per descriverli a pieno, non hanno sfumature di carattere, i loro contorni sembrano disegnati con pennarello indelebile.
Ho capito che la spia, il traditore, era Michaels appena sono entrati nel sommergibile, addirittura prima della miniaturizzazione.
Per concludere: noioso, semplicemente noioso. Un viaggio del genere dovrebbe tenerti incollato alle pagine del libro finché non ne vedi la fine, ma non è stato così. Grande delusione.
La trama promette bene ma lo sviluppo è terribile.
Grant e Cora, forse, i personaggi più patetici che abbia mai incontrato in un libro, insopportabili. Lui che non fa altro che provarci con lei, anche in momenti decisamente inopportuni (missione all’interno del corpo di uno scienziato). Ma insomma, hai sorpassato i quindici anni, dovresti farcela a tenere a freno l’ormone in particolari situazioni, no? Decisamente fuori luogo. Lei che non ha occhi per Duval, ma ovviamente il bel giovane che le fa una corte spudorata cancella in un attimo (il tempo della missione, ovvero un’ora) anni di un amore platonico e impossibile. Le battute finali che si scambiano: imbarazzanti.
La profondità dei personaggi è carta velina; basterebbero un paio di aggettivi per descriverli a pieno, non hanno sfumature di carattere, i loro contorni sembrano disegnati con pennarello indelebile.
Ho capito che la spia, il traditore, era Michaels appena sono entrati nel sommergibile, addirittura prima della miniaturizzazione.
Per concludere: noioso, semplicemente noioso. Un viaggio del genere dovrebbe tenerti incollato alle pagine del libro finché non ne vedi la fine, ma non è stato così. Grande delusione.
April 20, 2011
Isaac Asimov agreed to write the novelization of Fantastic Voyage on the condition that he be allowed to make it as scientifically accurate as possible. He successfully achieves this, while preserving—nay, magnifying—the sexual tension between our hero, Hunk Heartthrob, and the Frigid Highly Professional but Properly Subordinate Beautiful Assistant to the Temperamental Genius. Moreover, Dr. Asimov sews up several glaring plot holes and answers many of the crucial questions the movie leaves open, such as "What's the name of the structure in the inner ear that holds the sensory hair cells?" (Spoiler: it's the organ of Corti.) An intriguing mix of Asimov, the pedantic scientist and Asimov, the horny old goat, this story will earn you two credits of human anatomy at your local college, yet will still warm your heart, just as H.H. finally warms Beautiful Assistant's, uh, heart. (Oops—another spoiler, but only if you haven't seen the movie.)
October 15, 2017
Caro Asimov, questo non me lo dovevi fare, si vede lontano un miglio che questo romanzo non è tuo, non c'è empatia verso i personaggi, non c'è quell'atmosfera particolare che solo tu puoi ricreare e poi non posso credere che un grande scrittore, quale tu eri, ti sia fatto convincere a scrivere un romanzo su una sceneggiatura di un film, non ci credo!!
Comunque sia ne sono rimasto delusissimo, troppi dialoghi ed anche, per la maggior parte, banali, caratterizzazione dei personaggi carente.
Però, ho letto che ne sei rimasto insoddisfatto del risultato finale (e come non potevi) e hai deciso, dopo 20 anni, di scriverne uno tutto tuo, sullo stesso argomento: "Destinazione cervello", è lì che mi attende e so che non mi deluderai... lo spero :-D
Comunque sia ne sono rimasto delusissimo, troppi dialoghi ed anche, per la maggior parte, banali, caratterizzazione dei personaggi carente.
Però, ho letto che ne sei rimasto insoddisfatto del risultato finale (e come non potevi) e hai deciso, dopo 20 anni, di scriverne uno tutto tuo, sullo stesso argomento: "Destinazione cervello", è lì che mi attende e so che non mi deluderai... lo spero :-D
August 29, 2012
Fantastic Voyage by Isaac Asimov was actually a re-read for me. But it has been many moons since I was in my hard-core science fiction phase (like 30 years or so) and so I couldn't resist adding this one to the list when I saw that it would fit into the Birth Year Challenge that I'm doing.
Fantastic Voyage is not an original Asimov story. That tells--just a bit. It is a novelization of the movie and it involves the minaturization of a crew of scientists and doctors in an atomic sub who are then injected into a dying man's carotid artery. They make a dangerous journey through the heart and lungs and even the inner ear where the slightest sound may be enough to destroy them. It's not enough that they have to make this journey battling against the defenses of the man's body...but there seems to be within their midst a traitor. Equipment begins to fail and there are a string of "accidents"--is it just coincidence or is there someone who would prefer that the mission fail? Forstanding in the balance is not just one man's life....but possibly the fate of the world. The dying man is a great scientist who has defected from "The Other Side" of the Cold War (it's amazing how Russia is never named) and who holds a great secret in his brain. The crew's mission is to operate on a blood clot that threatens that secret--a blood clot that cannot be reached from the outside.
There is plenty of action and a little bit of romance between the token female and the hero (feminists might have a problem with some of the dialogue and action, but one would do well to remember that it is a product of its time). The identity of the possible traitor is a well-kept secret until the end and the reader is left to guess until then. And, if one didn't know that this was written during a time of "happy endings," one might even wonder if the mission were going to be successful.
Asimov rarely disappoints--particularly when the material is all his--and has not done so here. Even though I can tell that this is not pure Asimov, it is still a very good story and a fun and exciting read. I gave it four stars when I read it before...three and a half now.
This review was first posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
Fantastic Voyage is not an original Asimov story. That tells--just a bit. It is a novelization of the movie and it involves the minaturization of a crew of scientists and doctors in an atomic sub who are then injected into a dying man's carotid artery. They make a dangerous journey through the heart and lungs and even the inner ear where the slightest sound may be enough to destroy them. It's not enough that they have to make this journey battling against the defenses of the man's body...but there seems to be within their midst a traitor. Equipment begins to fail and there are a string of "accidents"--is it just coincidence or is there someone who would prefer that the mission fail? Forstanding in the balance is not just one man's life....but possibly the fate of the world. The dying man is a great scientist who has defected from "The Other Side" of the Cold War (it's amazing how Russia is never named) and who holds a great secret in his brain. The crew's mission is to operate on a blood clot that threatens that secret--a blood clot that cannot be reached from the outside.
There is plenty of action and a little bit of romance between the token female and the hero (feminists might have a problem with some of the dialogue and action, but one would do well to remember that it is a product of its time). The identity of the possible traitor is a well-kept secret until the end and the reader is left to guess until then. And, if one didn't know that this was written during a time of "happy endings," one might even wonder if the mission were going to be successful.
Asimov rarely disappoints--particularly when the material is all his--and has not done so here. Even though I can tell that this is not pure Asimov, it is still a very good story and a fun and exciting read. I gave it four stars when I read it before...three and a half now.
This review was first posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
March 25, 2020
È il primo libro di Asimov che leggo esclusi due volumi per ragazzi con protagonista Norby, un piccolo robottino. D'altra parte direi che forse non è neanche il primo visto che è una trasposizione letteraria dell'omonimo film di Richard Fleischer del 1966. Il romanzo fu scritto a partire dalla sceneggiatura cinematografica di Harry Kleiner, adattata da David Duncan, che era a sua volta basata sulla storia omonima di Otto Klement e Jerome Bixby (come riportato da Wikipedia)
Ricordo benissimo il film che vidi in giovane età e devo dire che il libro me lo ha ricordato molto. La storia è bella ma i dialoghi sono tremendi, piuttosto scontati e troppi tanto che ho fatto molta fatica ad entrare nella storia all'inizio del libro.
Da metà libro la storia prende vigore ma ormai mi sono gia annoiata per metà.
Le trasposizioni dei film non valgono mai la pena di essere lette ed inoltre la storia come ho scritto prima non è neppure di Asimov. Peccato aver scoperto l'origine solo alla fine del libro.
Ricordo benissimo il film che vidi in giovane età e devo dire che il libro me lo ha ricordato molto. La storia è bella ma i dialoghi sono tremendi, piuttosto scontati e troppi tanto che ho fatto molta fatica ad entrare nella storia all'inizio del libro.
Da metà libro la storia prende vigore ma ormai mi sono gia annoiata per metà.
Le trasposizioni dei film non valgono mai la pena di essere lette ed inoltre la storia come ho scritto prima non è neppure di Asimov. Peccato aver scoperto l'origine solo alla fine del libro.
February 1, 2023
داستان خیلی متوسطی بود، در لحظهای خیلی خوب و جذاب و در لحظهای دیگه کاملاً تکراری و چجوری بگم غیرضروری بود.
گویا باید ترمز بگیرم اینقدر آثار آسیموف رو پشت سرهم نخونم.
گویا باید ترمز بگیرم اینقدر آثار آسیموف رو پشت سرهم نخونم.
July 23, 2016
I actually ended up liking this more than I thought I would. The book sometimes feels its age with its Cold War undertones and occasionally clumsy dialogue but, nevertheless, I was genuinely caught up in the misadventures of the Proteus crew as they journeyed into the human body.
February 1, 2022
اینو ضمیمه ی علوم کلاس پنجم باید میدادن بخونیم :)))
December 27, 2023
Me, yelling from the upstairs library* on Christmas Eve: Daaaad, which book by Isaac Asimov should I read if I want to try science fiction for the first time?
My dad, hurrying up the stairs: Let me go over all of them with you! Which ones have I got again? Oooh what about this one? This one? This one? ... I think 'Fantastic Voyage' is a good place to start.
I actually really enjoyed this book! Is it high quality literature? Not particularly. Is it frustratingly sexist because it was written in the 1960s? Yep. Is it a fascinating story written by a legendary author with an incredible mind and a great imagination, who is considered one of the founding fathers of a new genre in the previous century? Absolutely! Lots of fun, would recommend, would read more stories by Asimov. Luckily, my dad still has a bunch of them from back when he was a teenager :))
*This makes it sound as if my parents have at least two libraries of which one happens to be upstairs. That is incorrect. They have one (1) library and it is really just a room with a bunch of IKEA shelves and the collections of four people who love or used to love escaping the real world through stories. There is also a pink sofa (my doing) and a constant pile of laundry that needs to be ironed (my mum's doing).
My dad, hurrying up the stairs: Let me go over all of them with you! Which ones have I got again? Oooh what about this one? This one? This one? ... I think 'Fantastic Voyage' is a good place to start.
I actually really enjoyed this book! Is it high quality literature? Not particularly. Is it frustratingly sexist because it was written in the 1960s? Yep. Is it a fascinating story written by a legendary author with an incredible mind and a great imagination, who is considered one of the founding fathers of a new genre in the previous century? Absolutely! Lots of fun, would recommend, would read more stories by Asimov. Luckily, my dad still has a bunch of them from back when he was a teenager :))
*This makes it sound as if my parents have at least two libraries of which one happens to be upstairs. That is incorrect. They have one (1) library and it is really just a room with a bunch of IKEA shelves and the collections of four people who love or used to love escaping the real world through stories. There is also a pink sofa (my doing) and a constant pile of laundry that needs to be ironed (my mum's doing).
March 29, 2021
Me gustó la historia, el planteamiento y todo en general. Aunque me quedé con algunas dudas que me generó el planteamiento sobre las posibilidades científicas, y si pudiera ser posible que se avance tanto. Fue clara la referencia al suceso histórico después de la 2° Guerra Mundial. Aunque me pareció forzada la historia de "amor" en el libro.
August 14, 2017
Me encantó el libro (aún no he visto la película), pero DIOS, GRANT 😠 La relación de acoso con Cora y sus chistes terribles me hacían pesada la lectura. Además ¿qué con ese final de telenovela?
En todo lo demás se sentía tan fresco como si hubiese sido escrito en pleno siglo XXI. Me encantó y ya quiero leer la segunda parte.
En todo lo demás se sentía tan fresco como si hubiese sido escrito en pleno siglo XXI. Me encantó y ya quiero leer la segunda parte.
May 30, 2019
VOTO: 4
Opera di Asimov divertente, originale e godibilissima, sebbene estremamente ingenua sotto il profilo dell'anatomia e della biologia umana. Ma non trattandosi di un saggio scientifico la cosa è ampiamente giustificabile.
Opera di Asimov divertente, originale e godibilissima, sebbene estremamente ingenua sotto il profilo dell'anatomia e della biologia umana. Ma non trattandosi di un saggio scientifico la cosa è ampiamente giustificabile.
November 9, 2017
Sempliciotto, ma interessante proprio per il viaggio.
March 3, 2018
Il mio primo Asimov risale a più di dieci anni fa e a un'estate calda e pigra: era un tomo rigido tutto nero e oro in cui erano raccolti i quattro libri del ciclo della Fondazione. Era immenso, sembrava un ostacolo insormontabile - ed è stato un ottimo compagno nelle mie giornate estive.
Il bello di Isaac Asimov è che parla di cose apparentemente complicatissime in modo semplice, chiaro, pulito - e così ti trascina con sé nel suo mondo, qualunque esso sia. Asimov è uno di quegli autori che spesso vengono etichettati e racchiusi in una categoria - e in questo caso, la categoria è "fantascienza, noiosa e complicata, roba da nerd". E sorvolando sul fatto che la "roba da nerd" sia in realtà qualcosa di spettacolare - Asimov non è solo viaggi spaziali e macchine robotiche: Asimov era un biochimico, un divulgatore scientifico prolifico, un appassionato dello studio del corpo umano.
Tra i suoi libri dedicati al corpo umano c'è Il cervello umano , un saggio di fisiologia pazzesco, e Il corpo umano, che sto cercando in ogni libreria dell'usato che mi capita a tiro. E c'è anche uno dei suoi romanzi più famosi: Viaggio allucinante.
Viaggio allucinante è la storia di un mondo in guerra, diviso tra "noi" e "loro" - e la storia di un mondo che si contende una scoperta scientifica che può rivoluzionare tutto, che può salvare o rovinare il mondo stesso. Un famoso scienziato è il custode di questa scoperta scientifica incredibile - ma durante un attentato viene ferito e sviluppa un embolo al cervello.
Non c'è modo di operare il famoso scienziato senza rischiare di comprometterne l'intelletto - e non si può rischiare di perdere per sempre la scoperta che può rivoluzionare il mondo. Per questo motivo si decide di compiere qualcosa mai sperimentato prima: miniaturizzare un sottomarino e raggiungere l'embolo tramite i vasi sanguigni.
Cinque persone salgono a bordo del sottomarino: un fisiologo, esperto del sistema circolatorio; un ingegnere, progettista del sottomarino; un neurochirurgo, che dovrà rimuovere l'embolo; l'assistente del neurochirurgo, per garantire un minimo di quota rosa in questo team; e un agente segreto, il cui compito è sorvegliare gli altri membri dell'equipaggio per prevenire ogni possibile tentativo di sabotaggio.
Affascinante seguire le vicende per capire chi sia il traditore a bordo della navicella - ma ancora più affascinante è vedere il corpo umano dall'interno, nelle descrizioni di Asimov: il circolo sanguigno, gli alveoli polmonari, il circolo linfatico, il tessuto nervoso non sono più semplici cellule sdraiate su un vetrino, ma diventano lo sfondo delle vicende di questo libro. E sebbene sia uno dei libri meno riusciti di Asimov (a detta dello scrittore stesso, che lo ha scritto su commissione seguendo la sceneggiatura del film omonimo), Viaggio allucinante è stato per me una piacevolissima lettura - e credo sia un ottimo punto di partenza per incuriosirsi verso il corpo umano, o verso le opere di Asimov.
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Trovi altre mie letture su Escherichia libri: https://escherichialibri.wordpress.co...
April 7, 2020
Cassandra Gold - per RFS
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Benvenute care Fenici vicine e lontane, oggi tratteremo una tematica legata alla fantascienza classica: la miniaturizzazione e l’esplorazione del corpo umano. Dopo la scoperta delle stelle, il grande Asimov ci propone una trama che ci porterà all’interno del sistema circolatorio di un essere umano; come il Nautilus con Nemo, il Proteus condurrà il suo intrepido equipaggio alla ricerca di un problema da risolvere in un emisfero cerebrale di un elemento politico fondamentale nel periodo della guerra fredda.
Benes è un importante scienziato “dell’altra parte” e nella sua mente risiede la chiave della miniaturizzazione definitiva. Grant viene incaricato di condurlo al CMDF, un istituto di ricerca governativo, già impegnato in quella ricerca.
Il Dr. Duval e assistente, la Dr.ssa Peterson, Cora Peterson, bellissima e dalla spiccata personalità, che vive in adorazione del Dr. Duval, sono personale di rilievo.
Un attentato, durante il trasporto, vedrà però vittima il Dr. Benes. A questo punto un ristretto gruppo di professionisti, tra cui Duval, Peterson, Grant, Michaels e Owens, il proprietario del sottomarino e suo pilota, dovranno essere miniaturizzati e iniettati nel corpo di Benes, per salvarlo da un embolo cerebrale, permettendogli così di rivelare le informazioni in suo possesso. Il generale Carter, alla guida della missione, sente che tra di loro si nasconde un traditore e inserisce l’ufficiale Grant per scoprire l’arcano. Cosa accadrà? Quali incredibili meraviglie si riveleranno davanti ai nostri occhi?
La scoperta e l’esplorazione dell’invisibile rappresentano la seconda tematica molto cara alla fantascienza classica e per Asimov, egli stesso un eminente studioso, era del tutto naturale dedicare a esse uno dei suoi meravigliosi e particolari manoscritti. In questo libro si affrontano gli argomenti più eviscerati nei famosi anni Sessanta come lo spionaggio, la ricerca scientifica, la guerra fredda, la meraviglia per la scoperta dell’impossibile.
La ricchezza dei particolari, dati da una peculiare ricerca scientifica e lo studio dell’introspezione umana, garantita da una spiccata sensibilità e da un’empatia senza pari, sono garanzia di qualità e di successo. Nei suoi scritti l’autore non ha soltanto trattato la fantascienza classica come un genere a sé stante, i suoi scritti in effetti sono sempre stati ricchi di sentimento, carichi di quella riflessione emotiva che da sempre li ha distinti dalla letteratura media dell’epoca. Questo lavoro in particolare vede la sua nascita in concomitanza con la premiazione del famoso “Ciclo delle Fondazioni”, lavoro unico nel suo genere, che lo consacra nella storia della fantascienza come padre della robotica. Un libro da leggere sicuramente nonostante la sua datazione, in grado di aprire una finestra su di un’epoca troppo in fretta dimenticata, con le sue ansie e le sue aspettative, con le sue paranoie e le sue speranze, con le sue paure e le sue potenzialità.
Care Fenici, pronte a salire a bordo del Proteus?
.
Benvenute care Fenici vicine e lontane, oggi tratteremo una tematica legata alla fantascienza classica: la miniaturizzazione e l’esplorazione del corpo umano. Dopo la scoperta delle stelle, il grande Asimov ci propone una trama che ci porterà all’interno del sistema circolatorio di un essere umano; come il Nautilus con Nemo, il Proteus condurrà il suo intrepido equipaggio alla ricerca di un problema da risolvere in un emisfero cerebrale di un elemento politico fondamentale nel periodo della guerra fredda.
Benes è un importante scienziato “dell’altra parte” e nella sua mente risiede la chiave della miniaturizzazione definitiva. Grant viene incaricato di condurlo al CMDF, un istituto di ricerca governativo, già impegnato in quella ricerca.
Il Dr. Duval e assistente, la Dr.ssa Peterson, Cora Peterson, bellissima e dalla spiccata personalità, che vive in adorazione del Dr. Duval, sono personale di rilievo.
Un attentato, durante il trasporto, vedrà però vittima il Dr. Benes. A questo punto un ristretto gruppo di professionisti, tra cui Duval, Peterson, Grant, Michaels e Owens, il proprietario del sottomarino e suo pilota, dovranno essere miniaturizzati e iniettati nel corpo di Benes, per salvarlo da un embolo cerebrale, permettendogli così di rivelare le informazioni in suo possesso. Il generale Carter, alla guida della missione, sente che tra di loro si nasconde un traditore e inserisce l’ufficiale Grant per scoprire l’arcano. Cosa accadrà? Quali incredibili meraviglie si riveleranno davanti ai nostri occhi?
La scoperta e l’esplorazione dell’invisibile rappresentano la seconda tematica molto cara alla fantascienza classica e per Asimov, egli stesso un eminente studioso, era del tutto naturale dedicare a esse uno dei suoi meravigliosi e particolari manoscritti. In questo libro si affrontano gli argomenti più eviscerati nei famosi anni Sessanta come lo spionaggio, la ricerca scientifica, la guerra fredda, la meraviglia per la scoperta dell’impossibile.
La ricchezza dei particolari, dati da una peculiare ricerca scientifica e lo studio dell’introspezione umana, garantita da una spiccata sensibilità e da un’empatia senza pari, sono garanzia di qualità e di successo. Nei suoi scritti l’autore non ha soltanto trattato la fantascienza classica come un genere a sé stante, i suoi scritti in effetti sono sempre stati ricchi di sentimento, carichi di quella riflessione emotiva che da sempre li ha distinti dalla letteratura media dell’epoca. Questo lavoro in particolare vede la sua nascita in concomitanza con la premiazione del famoso “Ciclo delle Fondazioni”, lavoro unico nel suo genere, che lo consacra nella storia della fantascienza come padre della robotica. Un libro da leggere sicuramente nonostante la sua datazione, in grado di aprire una finestra su di un’epoca troppo in fretta dimenticata, con le sue ansie e le sue aspettative, con le sue paranoie e le sue speranze, con le sue paure e le sue potenzialità.
Care Fenici, pronte a salire a bordo del Proteus?
July 20, 2014
This is not truly an Asimov novel -he was talked into novelizing the film script with the lure of an unrefusable offer -this, I believe is according to his autobio "I Asimov". None the less, it is a sort of story that he would have been likely to have written had he thought of it first. The "Good Doctor" was a professor of biochemistry after all. He makes it very clear that the story and novel is seriously flawed -I bet he could easily have written a book about why the "Fantastic Voyage" was utterly implausible. He did however, over a decade later, write a second version of the novel, having spent more time to consider the idea and not have been confined by a pre-written film script. -I have not yet read "Fantastic Voyage II ('82)".
This 1966 novelization (which was released 6 months before the film) reads rather well. Asimov is an expert fiction writer and did as perfect a job of this as anyone could have. To commission a master science fiction author to novelize such a film was a smart move. Not business as usual for most big budget Hollywood projects at the time.
It is a Jules Verne type adventure story set in the heart of the cold war era. As in most cases, I preferred the book to the film.
This 1966 novelization (which was released 6 months before the film) reads rather well. Asimov is an expert fiction writer and did as perfect a job of this as anyone could have. To commission a master science fiction author to novelize such a film was a smart move. Not business as usual for most big budget Hollywood projects at the time.
It is a Jules Verne type adventure story set in the heart of the cold war era. As in most cases, I preferred the book to the film.
February 21, 2021
No sé si haya sido porque este no fue un trabajo 100% de Asimov, o porque quizá él no decidió aplicar tantos tecnicismos a la historia, pero hasta el momento es la obra más ligera que he encontrado del autor.
Esto tuvo su gran ventaja, ya que no se me hizo tan pesada, además de que es un libro corto, así que todo avanza rápido y realmente no hay espacio para mucho relleno.
Me interesó mucho esta historia por ser parte de un clásico de la ciencia ficción que sentó bases para muchas otras historias, además de todas las referencias y guiños que se han inspirado gracias a este clásico, y que podemos ver en muchas cosas hoy en día.
Este libro es un viaje ligero y rápido, una aventura dentro del mismo cuerpo humano. Realmente no tiene mucho que se pueda destacar, salvo la precisión de Asimov para dar detalles basándose en la ciencia.
Pero lo que realmente se puede apreciar de la historia, es ese aire de ciencia ficción de la vieja escuela, la cual generó un movimiento que nos ha traído un sinfín de historias increíbles.
Esto tuvo su gran ventaja, ya que no se me hizo tan pesada, además de que es un libro corto, así que todo avanza rápido y realmente no hay espacio para mucho relleno.
Me interesó mucho esta historia por ser parte de un clásico de la ciencia ficción que sentó bases para muchas otras historias, además de todas las referencias y guiños que se han inspirado gracias a este clásico, y que podemos ver en muchas cosas hoy en día.
Este libro es un viaje ligero y rápido, una aventura dentro del mismo cuerpo humano. Realmente no tiene mucho que se pueda destacar, salvo la precisión de Asimov para dar detalles basándose en la ciencia.
Pero lo que realmente se puede apreciar de la historia, es ese aire de ciencia ficción de la vieja escuela, la cual generó un movimiento que nos ha traído un sinfín de historias increíbles.
January 31, 2021
Non leggo mai libri di questo genere e ho scelto questo per l'argomento trattato. Avevo paura di annoiarmi, invece è stato come essere catapultata in una puntata di Siamo fatti così, cartone che ha accompagnato la mia infanzia. Grazie agli studi che ho fatto, tutte le nozioni più tecniche mi erano già note e ho potuto procedere velocemente nella lettura. Rimane sempre qualcosa di molto lontano da quello che adoro leggere ma come salto nella fantascienza non è stato per niente male!
February 28, 2022
Well written but somehow simultaneously very irritating. The one character I could empathize with was a white blood cell and I think that says a lot. A good enough story, if formulaic - not unexpected since it's a movie-to-book adaptation.
January 14, 2019
Fun and short!
October 5, 2023
Leído: 8,5/10. De 1966, obra que me ha recordado a una de las películas favoritas de mi infancia: "El chip prodigioso".
Con cierto sabor a Verne, Asimov nos adentra en un "Viaje alucinante" al interior del cuerpo de un científico en coma, que conoce un secreto de vital importancia, al que sólo se puede salvar desde dentro.
No llega a 240 páginas, y es ciencia ficción asequible a todos los públicos.
Como profesional sanitario la he disfrutado quizás más que alguien que haya estudiado menos el cuerpo humano, pero si de pequeño disfrutaste de "Érase una vez la vida", apreciarás esta novela.
Solo un "pero". De lo que he leído hasta ahora de Asimov me llevo la impresión de que le falta un poco de "alma". Una idea brillante de hace más de 50 años, que habría deslumbrado más con una prosa más emocional y emocionante.
Aun así, merecido 8.5 😉
Con cierto sabor a Verne, Asimov nos adentra en un "Viaje alucinante" al interior del cuerpo de un científico en coma, que conoce un secreto de vital importancia, al que sólo se puede salvar desde dentro.
No llega a 240 páginas, y es ciencia ficción asequible a todos los públicos.
Como profesional sanitario la he disfrutado quizás más que alguien que haya estudiado menos el cuerpo humano, pero si de pequeño disfrutaste de "Érase una vez la vida", apreciarás esta novela.
Solo un "pero". De lo que he leído hasta ahora de Asimov me llevo la impresión de que le falta un poco de "alma". Una idea brillante de hace más de 50 años, que habría deslumbrado más con una prosa más emocional y emocionante.
Aun así, merecido 8.5 😉
June 11, 2019
Using shrinking technology, a submarine is reduced to microscopic size in order to repair damage in a scientist's brain (and save the world). They encounter a whole array of obstacles related to their size.
A nice idea, in some cases silly dialog and events.
Some of the technology is very old fashioned in modern eyes.
After reading the book, I found out that it was based on a Movie by the same name. Asimov was only asked to Novelize the screenplay.
A nice idea, in some cases silly dialog and events.
Some of the technology is very old fashioned in modern eyes.
After reading the book, I found out that it was based on a Movie by the same name. Asimov was only asked to Novelize the screenplay.
August 7, 2019
Needed a sci fi book for summer reading program. Caught my eye on shelf. I must have seen this movie half dozen times on tv on the Saturday afternoon matinee. It read exactly like the movie as book was written after as tie in to original story and movie, from what I understand. The library copy was even an original old hardcover.
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