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Ask Isaac Asimov is a series of small volumes released in the 1990s. The Books are the creation of Isaac Asimov, one of the greatest science fiction writers to ever live, produced with the intention of educating young minds about science.
Order of Ask Isaac Asimov Non-Fiction Series
| # | Read | Title | Published | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Where Does Garbage Go? | 1991 | Description / Buy | |
| 2 | Why Do We Have Different Seasons? (Short Story) | 1991 | Description / Buy | |
| 3 | What is a Shooting Star? | 1991 | Description / Buy | |
| 4 | What Happens When I Flush the Toilet? | 1992 | Description / Buy | |
| 5 | What's Happening to the Ozone Layer? | 1992 | Description / Buy | |
| 6 | How Do Aeroplanes Fly? | 1992 | Description / Buy | |
| 7 | What Causes Acid Rain? | 1992 | Description / Buy | |
| 8 | Why Are the Rain Forests Vanishing? (Short Story) | 1992 | Description / Buy | |
| 9 | Why is the Air Dirty? | 1992 | Description / Buy | |
| 10 | Is Our Planet Warming Up? (Short Story) | 1992 | Description / Buy | |
| 11 | Why Are Whales Vanishing? (Short Story) | 1992 | Description / Buy | |
| 12 | Why Are Some Beaches Oily? | 1992 | Description / Buy | |
| 13 | Why Are Animals Endangered? | 1992 | Description / Buy | |
| 14 | Why Do People Come in Different Colors? | 1993 | Description / Buy |
Born in 1919, Isaac Asimov was an American writer whose combined collection of hundreds of book and tens of thousands of letters have made him a mainstay of the science fiction arena.
Compared to the likes of Arthur C. Clarke, Asimov invented science fiction concepts that modern authors have continued to utilize. Best known for the Foundation and Galactic Empire series, the author started out as a producer of short stories and essays before moving on to full blown novels.
Asimov’s success was imputed to his ability to produce science fiction that felt grounded in reality. In fact, many an Asimov fan look at his novels as predictive works laying out the path humanity is likely to follow as they progress through time and space.
The Ask Isaac Asimov series would have surprised Isaac Asimov’s fans during the early years of his career because he was best known for his heavy science fiction works. The origins of the Ask Isaac Asimov books can be indirectly traced back to the 1950s and 1960s.
After a career largely steeped in science fiction, Asimov surprised his fans when he changed gears, cut the production of his fiction and instead began to inject most of his efforts into the writing of nonfiction works.
Asimov started to cement his reputation as an authority on science. He did this by writing a litany of articles and columns on popular science topics. The events playing out at the time brought about a realization that there was a science gap in the market, and Asimov’s publishers saw an opportunity to fill that gap with the author’s nonfiction material.
This particular trend in the author’s career lasted until the early 1980s, though Asimov did release a select few fictional works in that time. Most of the author’s work at the time could be seen in resources like Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and Venture Science Fiction Magazine.
On occasion, the columns and articles were collected into books which were sold separately by Doubleday, the author’s principal publisher. As a result, by the mid-1980s, Isaac Asimov gained a reputation as a great explainer of science.
Unlike his science fiction works which he wrote with science fiction audiences in mind, Asimov wrote his nonfiction works knowing that his readers were largely ignorant when it came to science’s most basic subjects. So he made it a point to bring science down to the layman, breaking it down in a way that every man and woman could understand.
And he succeeded immensely. One assumes that it was that success which drove him to eventually produce the Ask Isaac Asimov series. The Ask books are very small in size, rarely longer than thirty pages.
They are written for readers aged 6-9. The books tackle basic but relevant science topics such as why people have different skin color, how pollution works, why stars twinkle and so on and so forth.
The Ask books are the furthest thing from the hard science for which Asimov is best known. Rather, they explore the sorts of popular science issues that the average child is likely to be interested in.
Best Ask Isaac Asimov Books
This series is one of Asimov’s most obscure works, rarely ever referenced by the author’s fans but no less relevant, with some of the best books in the series including:
Why is the Air Dirty?: This book attempts to define air pollution to young readers. The simple discussion that plays out explores the causes of air pollution and its eventual effects. The book also tells readers how they can go about fighting and preventing further air pollution.
Why Do People Come in Different Colors?: This is a simple volume that attempts to explain to young readers what skin color is and why it varies in people. Asimov investigates the relevant environmental and hereditary factors that determine skin color.
Other Book Series You May Like
The “Foundation” Series by Isaac Asimov is one of the best Asimov series. This series follows the exploits of Hari Seldon, a mathematician who uses a new branch of math to predict the future. When he learns about a coming dark age that will plunge humanity into a state of desolation and misery, Hari creates a foundation of talented artisans and engineers to help safeguard humanity.
You may also like the “Robot” Series by Isaac Asimov. The Robot series constitutes roughly 43 works of fiction—both short stories and novels—that feature positronic robots.
What Is The Next Book in The Ask Isaac Asimov Non-fiction Series?
There doesn't seem to be an upcoming book in The Ask Isaac Asimov Non-fiction Series. The newest book is Why Do People Come in Different Colors? and was released on September, 1st 1993.
