The Novels of Arthur C. Clarke

Waldstein: 1953. The first classic, godlike aliens, paranormal forces and all. Holds up very well after all those years. Part 1 originally published separately as "Guardian Angel" (1950).

Waldstein: 1968. The ultimate science-fiction experience which gave birth to the ultimate example of cinematic boredom.

Waldstein: 1975.

Waldstein: 1982. A sequel to what needed none. A fine story nonetheless, daringly Russian-American in Cold-War times.

Waldstein: 1973. The most likely scenario of the First Contact. We'll be ignored as the ignorant ignoramuses we in fact are.

Waldstein: 1990. Only for Clarke fans. Rambling and disjointed plot(s), loose ends and underdeveloped characters. But beautifully written and with plenty of erudite diversions which Clarke aficionados would appreciate.

Waldstein: 1951. Written in the summer of 1947 for exactly 20 days, "a record I have never since approached" as Arthur confides. Pure space propaganda, but an excellent achievement for a guy not yet 30 with very little experience in writing fiction.

Waldstein: 1951. Rather ambitious second novel. Meticulous description of a Martian colony when Mars was a little red dot in the telescopes.

Waldstein: 1952. A sightseeing tour of manned space stations in Earth's orbit written for the juvenile market, that is for people who have yet to lose their spirit of adventure.

Waldstein: 1953. Later expanded, or rather transformed, into The City and the Stars. The early version is rather different and quite self-sufficient. For a brief summary of the differences, see this review.

Waldstein: 1955. Expanded from the eponymous story, first published in Thrilling Wonder Stories for August 1951, but not collected in book form until The Collected Stories (2000).

Waldstein: 1956. See #5. The eternal city Diaspar, whether considered as utopian or dystopian (or a mixture of both), is one of Arthur's supreme creations.

Waldstein: 1957. Arthur's finest "sea novel". Expanded from the eponymous story, first published in Star Science Fiction Stories No. 3, Ballantine, 1955, ed. Frederick Pohl, but not collected in one of Clarke's books until Tales from Planet Earth (1989).

Waldstein: 1961. Claustrophobic thriller buried in the selenic sands. Rather unusual for Arthur, but certainly one of his masterpieces.

Waldstein: 1963. Lyrical story for the juvenile market but quite suitable for all ages. Marine mammals steal the show.

Waldstein: 1963. The only non-SF novel Arthur ever wrote. Heavily autobiographical, based on his experience as an RAF radar officer during WWII.

Waldstein: 1979. A marvellously realistic novel with two protagonists, the mad scientist Vannevar Morgan and His Majesty the Space Elevator.

Waldstein: 1986. Arthur's favourite among his novels and one of his masterpieces. Completely realistic interstellar story of epic dimensions.

Waldstein: 1988. A separate story rather than a sequel.

Waldstein: 1993. Expanded from the eponymous short story (1992), or "decompressed" as Arthur likes to put it. More than usual all over the place, but brimming with exciting scenes and ideas.

Waldstein: 1997. Philosophical novel. Lacklustre and unconvincing as "final odyssey", but otherwise thoroughly compelling exercise in futuristic speculation.