2010: Odyssey Two

Arthur C. Clarke

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Nine years later the abandoned ship Discovery is still in space near Jupiter. It appears that its orbit is failing and it is being drawn slowly into the Jovian atmosphere. The Soviet Union has a space ship ready to meet the launch window that can rescue the mine of secrets. The United States does not want to give up their property. Finally, the two warring countries compromise - three American scientists are allowed to join the Russian flight although they will be in hibernation for the outgoing and return trips.

One of the flight objectives is to discover what happened to the HAL 9000 computer that opposed the ill-fated men on the first flight. Another is to examine "Big Brother", the monolith type object also orbiting in Jovian space. Nothing had been discovered from Tyco, the smaller monolith on the Moon, so they are hoping to find information here, further out in our Solar System. The third is to delve into the mystery of David Bowman's disappearance. What happened after his cryptic comment, "It's full of stars."?

Dr. Heywood Floyd was the head of the the National Council of Aeronautics when Tyco was discovered. Due to ensuing politics, he has retired from that very politcal position. He now returns to the space program to become part of the crew. He is the link between the two countries who can help bring about a successful mission. He does not realize how critical he will be before the journey is completed.

This is Clarke's sequel to 2001 - A Space Odyssey. At first Clarke did not believe he could have a follow up to 2001. Fortunately for us science fiction lovers, he had a chance and way to develop the story further after all. This is a first-rate novel that continues the saga well. I don't know if I can recommend it without reading the first book in the series because the two are intertwined in my head.

Since it was written in the 1980's, Clarke still has the Sovient Union united and a major world space power. While not enemies, the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. are wary of each other. The joining of the crews for this mission is a positive step. Although political history has taken a different turn than Clarke used, this novel still holds force and believability. Since our space program has not kept up, the reader can instead change the years of the stories and still have a work that stands up for itself in the science fiction field.

2001: A Space Odyssey
2010: Odyssey Two
2061: Odyssey Three
3001: The Final Odyssey

Gateway by Frederick Pohl