Is There A Sequel To The Nightfall?

[Aike]

Is There A Sequel To Nightfall?

Is there a sequel to the novel Nightfall by Isaac Asimov and Robert Silverberg? I thought so, but can´t find any info about it. Does anyone know?

 

[Klaus]

Not that I know of... the novel wasn't very well received, especially compared to the original story.

 

[Christopher]

Well, "Nightfall" was originally a short story by Asimov; the novel is a much later, expanded version that's basically Silverberg's work with consultation and approval by Asimov. Since the novel adds material both before and after the events of the story, it kinda sorta is the sequel. And I can't find any references to followups to the book.

Really, if you've only read the novel version, you should track down the original Asimov story, which is widely regarded as his finest work.

 

[Aike]

Well, "Nightfall" was originally a short story by Asimov; the novel is a much later, expanded version that's basically Silverberg's work with consultation and approval by Asimov. Since the novel adds material both before and after the events of the story, it kinda sorta is the sequel. And I can't find any references to followups to the book.

Yeah, me neither. Still, I am almost certain I´ve read about a sequel that deals with the rebuilding of the world.

Really, if you've only read the novel version, you should track down the original Asimov story, which is widely regarded as his finest work.

I listened to a podcast version of the short story earlier this year. Both the short story and the novel are excellent.

 

[Mistral]

I didn't know R.S. expanded on the story. As for a sequel-some things should be left alone.

 

[Holdfast]

I never even realised there was a novel. I've only read the short story (and really liked it).

Worth reading the novel, I take it?

 

[Allyn Gibson]

I didn't know R.S. expanded on the story. As for a sequel-some things should be left alone.

Silverberg expanded three of Asimov's short stories into full-length novels -- Nightfall, The Ugly Little Boy, and "The Bicentennial Man" as The Positronic Man.

Of the three, I liked The Positronic Man the most. That's not to say the other two are without merit, because they're not. It was an interesting project, and three of Asimov's story got a fresh airing.

 

[Canadave]

I never even realised there was a novel. I've only read the short story (and really liked it).

Worth reading the novel, I take it?

I'd say so. I go back and forth on Silverberg's work, but I found it was generally a good exploration of the pre-Nightfall society and what would have happened to it afterwards. Maybe not as great overall as the original story, but still worth picking up.

 

[Starbreaker]

Dean McLaughlin's novel Dawn (serialized in the April–July 1981 issues of Analog magazine and republished in book form 25 years later as ISBN 978-1594143502) had been in several ways an answer to Asimov's short story. It posited a similar society on a similar planet surrounded by similarly named stars. But, as its title suggested, Dawn was a more optimistic story, wherein society advanced rather than collapsed.

...

 

[Rii]

^ Interesting. I'll have to look that one up.