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Summary: This document answers frequently asked questions about Isaac Asimov and his work.
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2.8 What books and articles about Asimov have been written by others?

Books:

_Seekers_of_Tomorrow_, "Isaac Asimov", by Sam Moskowitz, World, 1966, pp.
249-265.

_The_Asimov_Science_Fiction_Bibliography_, compiled by M. B. Tepper,
Chinese Ducked Press, 1970.

_The_Universe_Makers_, by Donald A. Wollheim, Harper & Row, 1971.

_Asimov_Analyzed_, by Neil Goble, Mirage, 1972.

_Isaac_Asimov:_A_Checklist_of_Works_Published_in_the_United_States,
_March_1939-May_1972_, by Marjorie M. Miller, Kent State University Press,
1972.

_The_Science_Fiction_of_Isaac_Asimov_, by Joseph F. Patrouch, Jr.,
Doubleday, 1974.

_Asimov's_Foundation_Trilogy_and_Other_Works:
_Notes,_Including_Life_of_the_Author,_an_Overview_of_Asimov's_Science_Fiction,
_Categories_of_Science_Fiction,_Analyses_of_the_Works_, by L. David Allen;
consulting editor, James L. Roberts, Cliffs Notes, c1977

_Isaac_Asimov_, edited by Joseph D. Olander and Martin Harry Greenberg,
Taplinger Pub. Co., 1977.

_Isaac_Asimov_, by Jean Fiedler and Jim Mele. Ungar, c1982.

_Isaac_Asimov,_the_Foundations_of_Science_Fiction_, by James Gunn,  Oxford
University Press, 1982.

_Isaac_Asimov--Scientist_and_Storyteller_, by Ellen Erlanger, Lerner
Publications Co., c1986.

_Isaac_Asimov_, by Donald M. Hassler, Starmont House, 1989.

_Isaac_Asimov_, by William F. Touponce, Twayne Publishers, 1991.


_Isaac Asimov: an Annotated Bibliography of the Asimov Collection at
Boston University_, by Scott E. Green, Greenwood Press, 1995.

_Yours, Isaac Asimov: a Lifetime of Letters_, edited by Stanley Asimov,
Doubleday, 1995. (due in October)


Articles:

"You Can't Beat Brains", L. Sprague De Camp, _F&SF_, XXXI (Oct. 1966), 32-35.

_Magazine_of_Fantasy_and_Science_Fiction_, XXXI (October 1966), special
Asimov Anniversary edition.

"Translator", _Time_, XC (July 7, 1967), 55-56.

"The TV and Dr. A", Greg Bear, _Luna_, No. 1 (June 1969), 5.

"Isaac Asimov, Man of 7,560,000 Words", _New_York_Times_Book_Review_, Aug.
3, 1969, 8, 28.

"Asimov's Hundred", Nathan Paul, _Publishers'_Weekly_, CXCVI (Aug. 25,
1969), 270.

"A Thinking Woman's Philtre", Judy-Lynn Benjamin, _Luna_, No. 5 (Oct.
1969),  14-17.

"Coming of the Humanoids: Android Fiction", N. P. Huxley, _Commonweal_,
XCI (Dec. 5, 1969), 297-300.

"Scientific Enquiry" a _Boston_ Interview with Isaac Asimov", _Boston_,
LXI (Dec. 1969), 51-54, 82-86, 89-90.

"ESFA Open Meeting-1970", _The WSFA Journal_, No. 73 (Sept.-Nov. 1970), 11-22.

"Amazing Mr. Asimov", P. Farrell, _Writer's_Digest_, LIII (July 1973), 20-22.

"Keeping Posted", _Saturday_Evening_Post_, CCXLVI (Jan. 1974), 6.

"Backward, March!", _Forbes_, CXIX (Apr. 1, 1977), 74.

"Asimov, the Human Writing Machine", J. L. Collier, _Reader's_Digest_, CXI
(Aug. 1977), 123-126.

"What Makes Isaac Write?", _Time_, CXIII (Feb. 26, 1979), 79.

"Asimov at 200", T. Lask, _New_York_Times_Book_Review_, Jan.  28, 1979, 43.

"Science and American Society", F. Jerome, _Current_, CCXXXVII (Nov.
1981), 3-10. Also _Environment_, XXIII (Sept. 1981), 25-30.

"A Conversation with Isaac Asimov", F. Kendig, _Psychology_Today_, XVII
(Jan. 1983), 42-47.

"Isaac Asimov: Modern-Day Renaissance Man", J. Walsh, _The_Humanist_, XLIV
(July/Aug. 1984), 5.

"Asimov Is Celebrating 300th Book's Publication", E. McDowell,
_The_New_York_Times_, Dec. 17, 1984, C13.

"The Protean Penman", S. Kaufer, _Time_, CXXXII (Dec. 19, 1988), 80-82.

"Isaac Asimov Speaks", _The_Humanist_, IL (Jan./Feb. 1989), 5-13.

"Requiem: Isaac Asimov 1920-1992", K. Ferrell, _Omni_, XIV (June 1992), 22.

"Giants Fall", L. David, _Ad_Astra_, IV (July/Aug. 1992), 11.

"Isaac Asimov", K. Frazier, _Skeptical_Inquirer_, XVII (Summer 1992), 351.

"Asimov's Vision", A. Dane, _Popular_Mechanics_, CLXIX (Aug. 1992), 96.

"Isaac Asimov", _Magazine_of_Fantasy_and_Science_Fiction_, LXXXIII (Aug.
1992), 5.

"A Celebration of Isaac Asimov: a Man For the Universe",
_Skeptical_Inquirer_, XVII (Fall 1992),   30-47.

"The Legacy of Isaac Asimov", P. D. Hutcheon, _The_Humanist_, LIII
(Mar./Apr. 1993), 3-5.

"Isaac Asimov: a One-Man Renaissance", B. Chambers, _The_Humanist_, LIII
(Mar./Apr. 1993), 6-8.

"Asimov's Laws of Robotics: Implications for Information Technology", part
1, _Computer_, Dec. 1993, 53-61.

"Asimov's Laws of Robotics: Implications for Information Technology", part
2, _Computer_, Jan. 1994, 57-65.

------------------------------

2.9 What religious beliefs did Asimov have?

Asimov had no religious beliefs; he never believed in either God or an
afterlife.  He considered himself a Humanist, one who believes that it is
humans who are responsible for all of the problems of society, as well as
the great achievements throughout history.  The Humanists believe that
neither good nor evil are produced by supernatural beings, and that the
solution to the problems of humankind can be found without the
intervention of such beings.  Asimov was a strong proponent of scientific
reasoning who adamantly opposed creationists, religious zealots,
pseudoscience, and mysticism.

Asimov did not oppose genuine religious feeling in others.  He did,
however, have little patience for intolerance or superstition masquerading
as religion.

Although he was an atheist, Asimov was proud of his Jewish heritage.  His
parents never made an effort to teach him religion.  He did study in
Hebrew school for several months while his father served as secretary for
the local synagogue, where he learned some Hebrew and how to read Yiddish.

Asimov did have a great interest in the Bible, and wrote several books
about it, notably the two volume _Asimov's_Guide_to_the_Bible_ and
_The_Story_of_Ruth_.

------------------------------

2.10 Did Asimov do anything other than write all day and all night?

Although famous for writing over eight hours a day, seven days a week,
Asimov found time to do a few other things beside writing.

He was a member of the Dutch Treat Club, a group that met for lunch every
Tuesday at the Regency Hotel in New York.  He joined the club in 1971 and
was made president in 1985.

He joined the Baker Street Irregulars in 1973, a group of avid Sherlock
Holmes fans that held an annual banquet to celebrate Holmes' birthday.
Asimov admitted that he was not a true Holmes enthusiast, but enjoyed
delivering banquet toasts, speeches, and singing sentimental songs.

Asimov was a Gilbert & Sullivan enthusiast since his youth, when he
listened to the plays on the radio.  In 1970 he joined the Gilbert and
Sullivan Society, and attended almost all of their meetings.  He regularly
attended G & S productions in Manhattan, and occasionally served as
toastmaster at benefit shows.  He loved to sing songs from the shows, and
was quite proud of his singing voice (among other things).

He belonged to an all-male club called the Trap Door Spiders, which met
for dinner one Friday night every month, treating a guest invited by the
host to dinner in return for the privilege of grilling him about his life
and work.  The club formed the basis for the Black Widower mystery short
stories.  The characters were loosely modeled on actual club members as
follows:

Black Widower      Trap Door Spider
=============      ================
Geoffrey Avalon    L. Sprague de Camp
Emmanuel Rubin     Lester del Rey
James Drake        Doc Clark
Thomas Trumball    Gilbert Cant
Mario Gonzalo      Lin Carter
Roger Halsted      Don Bensen
Henry              fictional

Asimov joined Mensa, the high-IQ society, in the early 1960's, but found
that many of the members were arrogant about their supposed intelligence,
so he let his membership lapse.  However when he moved back to New York,
he became an active member once again, and gave speeches to groups of
Mensans on a number of occasions.  Yet once again membership became a
burden for him, so he resigned from the group.

Asimov was a member of the Explorers Club, and served as master of
ceremonies for two years at their annual banquet.

------------------------------

2.11 Is it true that Asimov had a fear of flying?

Yes, the same author who described spaceflights to other worlds and who
argued valiantly for the cause of rationality suffered from an irrational
fear of heights and flying.  This had the consequence of limiting the
range over which he travelled throughout much of his life.

Asimov discovered that he was acrophobic at the New York World's Fair in
1940, when he took his date and first love Irene on a roller coaster,
expecting that it would cause her to cling to him in fear and give him a
chance to kiss her.  Instead it was he who was terrified while his date
remained perfectly calm.  Two years later, his wife-to-be Gertrude
convinced him to ride on a roller coaster at Coney Island, and he was once
again terrified.

Asimov did in fact fly on an airplane twice in his life.  The first time
he did so while working at the Naval Air Experimental Station in
Philadelphia during World War II.  While working on dye markers that made
ditched pilots more visible to rescue searchers, he developed a test to
compare dye visibility that did not require a plane flight, but in order
to validate his test he volunteered to fly in a small plane to observe the
markers.  He was so absorbed in his observations that he didn't suffer
from any undue fear.  His second plane flight took place on his return
from his army station in Hawaii, in which he flew aboard a DC-3 to San
Francisco.

After his military service in Hawaii in 1946, Asimov never ventured so far
from home, and did not often travel great distances.  When he did need to
travel significant distances, he usually took a train, or rode in someone
else's car, until he learned to drive in 1950.  Oddly enough, he found
that he felt quite comfortable behind the wheel of an automobile.  In the
1970's he and Janet travelled by train to Florida and California, and they
took several several sea cruises to such places as the Caribbean, West
Africa, England, and France.

------------------------------

2.12 What other notable quirks, fears, and pet peeves did Asimov have?

Asimov was a teetotaler in later life, mainly because in all of his
experiences with drinking alcoholic beverages, just one or two drinks were
sufficient to get him drunk.  On the day he passed the oral examination
for his Ph.D., he drank five Manhattans in celebration, and his friends
had to carry him back to school and try to sober him up.  His wife told
him that he spent that entire night in bed giggling every once in a while
and saying "*Doctor* Asimov".

He was completely inept at any athletic activity that required any
coordination; he never learned how to swim or ride a bicycle.  Spending
even ten minutes in the summer sun turned his skin a bright red.  In the
army he had the worst score in his company on the physical-conditioning
test (though he had the highest score on the intelligence test).  He was
afraid of needles and the sight of blood.

Asimov discovered that he was claustrophiliac, meaning that he was fond of
enclosed places.  He was quite comfortable in small rooms with no windows,
and always insisted on using artificial lighting when he worked.  He
considered the underground cities on Earth in _The_Caves_of_Steel_ as the
ultimate windowless enclosures.

He did not allow anyone to call him by any nicknames, except for a few old
friends who had been calling him Ike for years.

Asimov hated it when his name was misspelled in print or mispronounced by
others.  His desire to have his name spelled correctly even resulted in a
1957 short story, "Spell my Name with an 's'".

(Notable instances of his name being misspelled occurred on the cover of
the November 1952 issue of _Galaxy_, which contained "The Martian Way",
and on his 1976 Nebula Award for "The Bicentennial Man".)

When in 1939 he wrote a letter to _Planet_Stories_, which printed it and
spelled his name "Isaac Asenion", he quickly fired off an angry letter to
them.  (His friend Lester Del Rey took great delight in referring to him
as "Asenion" for many years afterward.  On the other hand, Asimov himself
referred to positronic robots with the Three Laws as "Asenion" robots in
_The_Caves_of_Steel_.)

Asimov was quite perturbed when Johnny Carson, host of the Tonight Show,
pronounced his first name as I-ZAK, with equal emphasis on both syllables,
during an appearance on the television show in New York in 1968.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

3. Biographical (literary)

------------------------------

3.1 When did he start writing?

When he was eleven years old he began writing
_The_Greenville_Chums_at_College_, which he planned to be the first book
in a series.  After writing only eight chapters about the adventures of
boys living in a small town, he gave up after recognizing the fact that he
didn't know what he was talking about.  However he made a very important
discovery in the process.  After he wrote the first two chapters, he told
the story he had written so far to a friend at school during lunchtime.
When he stopped, his friend demanded that he continue.  When Asimov
explained that he had told him all that he had so far, the friend asked to
borrow the book when he was finished reading it.  Asimov was astonished to
discover that his friend thought that he was retelling a story that he
read.  The implied compliment impressed him so much that, from that day
on, Asimov took himself seriously as a writer.

Asimov's first published writing was a column he did for his high school
newspaper.  His first accepted piece was a humorous essay entitled "Little
Brothers", which appeared in _The_Boys_High_Recorder_, his high school's
semi-annual literary publication, in 1934, and is reprinted in
_Before_the_Golden_Age_.  He wrote it in a creative writing class he took
that year; a class which almost convinced him to give up writing.

------------------------------

3.2 What was his first published story?

After John Campbell, editor of Astounding Science Fiction, rejected his
short stories "Cosmic Corkscrew", "Stowaway" and "This Irrational Planet"
in June, July, and September of 1938, "Marooned Off Vesta" was accepted
for publication by Amazing Stories in October and was published January
10, 1939.

------------------------------

3.3 What awards did he win for his writing?

Asimov was presented a special Hugo award in 1963 for "adding science to
science fiction" for his essays in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science
Fiction.

The Foundation Series was awarded the Best All-time Novel Series Hugo
Award in 1966.

_The_Gods_Themselves_ won both the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award for
best novel in 1973.

"The Bicentennial Man" was awarded the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award for
best novelette in 1977.

_Foundation's_Edge_ was presented with the Hugo for best novel in 1983.

"Gold" was presented with the Hugo for best novelette in 1992.

He received the James T. Grady Award of the American Chemical Society in 1965.

He was presented with the Westinghouse Science Writing Award in 1967.

He was awarded fourteen honorary doctorate degrees from various universities.

------------------------------

3.4  What is Asimov's last book?

Asimov's publishers have on more than one occasion published the Good
Doctor's "last" book as a marketing ploy.  The five titles most often
so-described are:

_Asimov_Laughs_Again_ (the last book he saw published before his death,
published in 1992)

_Forward_the_Foundation_ (his last Foundation novel, published in 1993)

_Frontiers_II_ (his last -- to date -- essay collection, published in 1993)

_I._Asimov:_A_Memoir_ (his last autobiographical volume, published in 1994)

_Gold_ (his last -- to date -- anthology of science fiction stories,
published in 1995)

All this, however, does not preclude the possibility of more books by
Asimov being published in the future.  There are, for example, enough
uncollected F&SF science essays for one more collection, and probably
enough uncollected Black Widower stories.  Additional volumes could be
published in the "Complete Stories" series, as well as other anthologies
(e.g., "The Honest-to-goodness Complete Robot Stories Book").

A book published by HarperPrism, titled
_Magic:_the_Final_Fantasy_Collection_, is the most recent "last book".

All we can say for certain is that with his death, Asimov appears to have
stopped writing.  He has, by no means, stopped publishing.  It is
therefore probably meaningless to refer to Asimov's "last" book in
absolute chronological terms.

------------------------------

3.5  Of his own work, what were Asimov's favorite and least favorite
novel?  What were his favorite and least favorite stories?

Asimov's favorite novel was _The_Gods_Themselves_, largely because of the
middle section, which was both absolutely brilliant and included
non-humans and sex (Asimov had often been accused of being unable to write
stories with non-humans or sex and therefore leaving them out of his
work.)

His least favorite novel was _The_Stars_Like_Dust_.  It was scheduled for
serialization in _Galaxy_, then edited by Horace Gold.  Gold absolutely
insisted on including a subplot about the characters ransacking the Galaxy
for an ancient document which would utterly revolutionize their political
order.  In the end, it turns out that the document is "gur Pbafgvghgvba bs
gur Havgrq Fgngrf" (rot-13 coding added as spoiler protection, as if this
sub-par novel could be truly "spoiled" by giving away plot points).

Asimov loathed the subplot and bitterly resented being forced to add it.
He offered to his editor at Doubleday, Walter Bradbury, to remove it for
the hardcover publication, but Bradbury liked the subplot and insisted it
be left in.

Then to add insult to injury, when the first paperback edition was
published by Ace, they changed the title (for the worse) and totally
gutted the novel, to the point that Asimov could hardly recognize it.

Asimov's three favorite stories were (in order):  "The Last Question",
"The Bicentennial Man", and "The Ugly Little Boy" (all found in
_The_Best_Science_Fiction_of_Isaac_Asimov_, among other places).

Among his least favorite stories were:

"Black Friar of the Flame" (found in _The_Early_Asimov_).  The story was
his first attempt at a "future historical" and was bounced around from
editor to editor until it was finally published.  It was revised a
half-a-dozen times and rejected ten times in a two-year-period.  Asimov
was so bitter over the story's history that he swore never again to revise
anything more than twice, and he would even fight over having to do a
second revision.

(This is his least favorite story among those that most Asimov fans are
likely to have ever read.  He also implies in _The_Early_Asimov_ that it
is his least favorite story of all time, but this is clarified in
_In_Joy_Still_Felt_.)

His all-time least favorite story was "The Portable Star"
(_Thrilling_Wonder_Stories_, Winter 1955).  As with "A Woman's Heart,"
Asimov never authorized its anthologization.  He describes it as a sleazy
attempt to cash in on the new interest in sex in sf started by Philip Jose
Farmer's 1952 story, "The Lovers."

He also published a story, "A Woman's Heart" in the June 1957 _Satellite_
which he considered so trivial that he never included it in any of his
collections.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

4. The Foundation/robot Series

4.1 What is this _Forward_the_Foundation_ I keep hearing about?

_Forward_the_Foundation_ is the last-written of the Foundation books.  It
was near completion at the time of Asimov's death and published a year
later.  It is currently available in both hardback and paperback.

------------------------------

4.2 Did Asimov *really* write _Forward_the_Foundation_?  Didn't he die
    before it was done, so somebody else really wrote it up from notes?

Yes, Asimov really wrote all of _Forward_the_Foundation_.

_Forward_the_Foundation_ was originally planned to be a series of five
novellas, bridging the chronological gap between _Prelude_to_Foundation_
and _Foundation_.

The first three were completed long before Asimov died and published in
_Isaac_Asimov's_Science_Fiction_Magazine_.

A first draft of the fourth was completed before Asimov's death; since
Asimov's typical writing methodology was to write a first draft, polish it
slightly and use the polished version as the final draft, we can feel
fairly confident that the fourth novella is reasonably close to what
Asimov intended.

The fifth novella didn't make it beyond the rough outline stage.  This is
why the final book consists of four novellas and an epilog.

------------------------------

4.3 What about the contradictions between _Forward_the_Foundation_ and
    other Foundation books?

The whole Foundation series is rife with contradictions.  There are two
main reasons for this.

First of all, Asimov simply didn't enjoy sweating over details in his
fiction.  There are a number of things Asimov enjoyed about writing --
that's why he wrote so much -- but purging his fiction of contradictions
was not one of them.  As early as 1945, he was finding it more effort than
it was worth to keep up consistency in the Foundation stories and tried
(three times) to end the series so that he wouldn't have to deal with it.

Secondly, Asimov's overall plan for the series changed.  For example, the
robot stories and Foundation stories were originally conceived as existing
in separate fictional universes.  It wasn't until the 1980's that he
started to tie them together explicitly.  Other examples would involve
major spoilers for some of the later books.

(Also, the stories were written over the course of fifty years, starting
from a time when Asimov was at the unspectacular beginning of his career
and the Golden Age was a year old, to a time when Asimov was one of
science fiction's Big Three and John Campbell, for whom the earliest
stories were written, dead for twenty years.  It should not be surprising
that the seventy-year-old Grand Master should find some of the ideas of
the twenty-year-old apprentice not quite up to snuff and not worth
preserving.)

------------------------------

4.4 Is it true that a new Foundation Trilogy written by three different
    authors is being published? How could the publisher be allowed to
    do such a thing?

Yes, The Second Foundation Trilogy is being published by HarperPrism.  The
first novel, _Foundation's_Fear_, by Gregory Benford, was published in
March 1997.  The other two novels are _Foundation_and_Chaos_, by Greg
Bear, scheduled to be released in March 1998, and _Third_Foundation_, by
David Brin, slated for March 1999.  According to the afterword in
_Foundation's_Fear_, although the three novels are being developed as
stand-alone books, they will "carry forward an overarching mystery to its
end."

The novels were written at the suggestion of Janet Asimov and the
representative of the Asimov estate.  They approached Gregory Benford and
asked him to write a Foundation book.  After giving it some thought, he
agreed to do so, and suggested that Bear and Brin write additional books
to form a new trilogy.

------------------------------

4.5 What is the chronological order of the Foundation books?

In the Author's Note at the beginning of _Prelude_to_Foundation_, Asimov says:

"In any case, the situation has become sufficiently complicated for me to
feel that the readers might welcome a kind of guide to the series, since
they were not written in the order in which (perhaps) they should be read.

"The fourteen books, all published by Doubleday, offer a kind of history
of the future, which is, perhaps, not completely consistent, since I did
not plan consistency to begin with.  The chronological order of the books,
in terms of future history (and _not_ of publication date), is as follows:

"1.  _The_Complete_Robot_ (1982).  This is a collection of thirty-one
robot short stories published between 1940 and 1976 and includes every
story in my earlier collection, _I,_Robot_ (1950).  Only one robot short
story has been written since that collection appeared.  That is 'Robot
Dreams,' which has not yet appeared in any Doubleday collection.
[_Robot_Dreams_ (1986) does contain it; see also _Robot_Visions_ (1990)]

"2.  _The_Caves_of_Steel_ (1954).  This is the first of my robot novels.

"3.  _The_Naked_Sun_ (1957).  The second robot novel.

"4.  _The_Robots_of_Dawn (1983).  The third robot novel.

"5.  _Robots_and_Empire_ (1985).  The fourth robot novel.

"6.  _The_Currents_of_Space_ (1952).  This is the first of my Empire novels.

"7.  _The_Stars,_Like_Dust--_ (1951).  The second Empire novel.

"8.  _Pebble_in_the_Sky_ (1950).  The third Empire novel.

"9.  _Prelude_to_Foundation_ (1988).  This is the first Foundation novel
(although it is the latest written, so far).

[9a.  _Forward_the_Foundation_ (1993).]

[9b. _Foundation's_Fear_ (1997).] The first novel in the Second Foundation
Trilogy, it was written by Gregory Benford.  Takes place after the first
chapter of _Forward_the_Foundation_.

[9c. _Foundation_and_Chaos_ (scheduled for 1998).] By Greg Bear.

[9d. _Third_Foundation_ (scheduled for 1999).] By David Brin.

"10.  _Foundation_ (1951).  The second Foundation novel.  Actually, it is
a collection of four stories, originally published between 1942 and 1944,
plus an introductory section written for the book in 1949.

"11.  _Foundation_and_Empire_ (1952).  The third Foundation novel, made up
of two stories, originally published in 1945.

"12.  _Second_Foundation_ (1953).  The fourth Foundation novel, made up of
two stories, originally published in 1948 and 1949.

"13.  _Foundation's_Edge_ (1982).  The fifth Foundation novel.

"14.  _Foundation_and_Earth_ (1983).  The sixth Foundation novel."

Note that this order is slightly wrong, in that _Currents_of_Space_
actually takes place *after* _The_Stars,_Like_Dust--_.  Also _Foundation
and Earth_ was published in 1986, not 1983.

------------------------------

4.6 What is the order in which the Foundation books should be read?

There are actually three answers to this question.

A) Read them in the order of action, as listed by Asimov.
B) Read them in the order of publication.

There is no real reason why (A) or (B) is the better order.  If you're
more interested in seeing the development of Asimov's universe, writing,
and ideas, you may prefer (B).  If you are more interested in the course
of events in Asimov's universe, you may prefer (A).  Note, also, that some
of the more recent books contain spoilers for some of the earlier ones, so
the impact of some stories may be lessened if you choose (A).

Note that Asimov in the Author's Note quoted does not actually suggest one
order over the other, but does suggest chronological order as a
possibility.

C) Just read the ones published in the 1950's (plus _The_Complete_Robot_),
because the later ones all suck.

No true Asimov fan, of course, would agree that any of the Good Doctor's
books "suck," but there is pretty broad feeling that the later books are
not as good as the earlier ones.  (There is also pretty broad disagreement
with this assessment.)  In particular, _Foundation_and_Earth_ is
considered one of the weaker books in the series.  Of course, your mileage
will vary, and you may be one of those who prefers the later books over
the earlier ones.

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4.7 What is the significance of the ending of _Foundation_and_Earth_?

_Foundation_and_Earth_ ends with a "hook" for a sequel -- the main problem
of the novel itself has been solved, but a new problem is introduced in
the last few pages which threatens the future of mankind.

Asimov fully intended to write a sequel to _Foundation_and_Earth_,
continuing the story chronologically.  He had, however, no specific plans
for how he would develop the problem with which _Foundation_and_Earth_
ends, let alone how to resolve it.  His next (and final) two Foundation
books were stories of the life of Hari Seldon, written largely because he
couldn't figure out what would happen after _Foundation_and_Earth_.

He died before he had any specific plans for what would happen next.

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4.8 Why do Asimov's books give two reasons why the Earth becomes
    radioactive?

Asimov introduced the idea of the Earth becoming radioactive in
_Pebble_In_the_Sky_.  It is also a plot element in the other two "Empire"
books, _The_Stars,_Like_Dust_ and _The_Currents_of_Space_.  In these three
books, it is always assumed that the Earth became radioactive as a result
of a nuclear war.  These books were all written in the early 1950's, when
it was commonly felt that there would be a nuclear war between the United
States and Soviet Union in the next few years.

Later on, Asimov realized that this explanation wouldn't wash.  The
effects he described would not be possible as the result of a nuclear
war.  He therefore provides a different explanation in _Robots_and_Empire_
and _Foundation_and_Earth_.

Within the fictional universe, the explanation is that the *characters* in
the three Empire novels thought that the Earth became radioactive as a
result of a nuclear war, but that they were wrong.

------------------------------