The Complete Robot
by Isaac Asimov · first published 1982
71% recommend29% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Short, self-contained robot stories that feel like a window into a near future, with the Three Laws central to many plots. Readers love it as a favorite to re-read and as a collection of robot stories in one volume.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
The complete collection of Isaac Asimov’s classic Robot stories. In these stories, Asimov creates the Three Laws of Robotics and ushers in the Robot Age – when Earth is ruled by master-machines and when robots are more human than mankind. The Complete Robot is the ultimate collection of timeless, amazing and amusing robot short stories from the greatest science fiction writer of all time, offering golden insights into robot thought processes. Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics were programmed into real computers thirty years ago at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology – with surprising
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
Related books
2010–2025The Art of Seduction
Robert Greene, Joost Elffers, Robert Greene / Joost Elffers
Recommended by 4 · mentioned by 74 recommend · 7 mention4 recommend · 74 recommend
2016–2026Farmer in the Sky
Robert A. Heinlein
Recommended by 3 · mentioned by 63 recommend · 6 mention3 recommend · 63 recommend
2010–2026Olympos
Dan Simmons
Recommended by 7 · mentioned by 117 recommend · 11 mention7 recommend · 117 recommend
2008–2025The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay
Michael Chabon
Recommended by 10 · mentioned by 1310 recommend · 13 mention10 recommend · 1310 recommend
2010–2024The chronicles of Amber
Roger Zelazny
Recommended by 15 · mentioned by 2215 recommend · 22 mention15 recommend · 2215 recommend
2012–2026Illusions
Richard Bach
Recommended by 15 · mentioned by 1915 recommend · 19 mention15 recommend · 1915 recommend
2010–2026Perdido Street Station
China Miéville
Recommended by 13 · mentioned by 1813 recommend · 18 mention13 recommend · 1813 recommend
2009–2026The Sirens of Titan
Kurt Vonnegut, William Teason, Richard M. Powers
Recommended by 40 · mentioned by 6140 recommend · 61 mention40 recommend · 6140 recommend
Complete Robot by Isaac Asimov When frustrated by technology, it's pretty cool to read some things in this collection of short stories and think "We're actually in the future. We just aren't great at making robots…
on “Ask HN: Which non-technology book has influenced you the most and why?” ↗Farmer in the Sky by Robert Heinlein [1] The Complete Robot by Isaac Asimov [2] The Wrong Unit [3] wasn't a bad little humorous tale. Pretty much anything by Timothy Zahn (sans Star Wars novelisations) [4] or Robert Sawyer [5] floats my boat. The First Fifteen…
on “Ask HN: What are the best Sci-Fi books you've ever read?” ↗The Complete Robot by Issac Azimov. Well actually, I couldn't decide between "I-Robot" and "The rest of the robots", but luckily there's a compendium with them both in.
on “Ask HN: What is your comfort book?” ↗…dislike the rest of the series) Farmer in the Sky by Robert Heinlein The Crysalids by John Wyndham I've probably read these three books at least twice a decade since the 80s when I was a teenager. The Complete Robot from Isaac Asimov would be a close forth. The Tripod Trilogy by John Christopher would be fifth on the list. Hadn't read since a teenager, but about ten years ago tracked down copies of them (and the…
on “Ask HN: What is your comfort book?” ↗1. The Body Keeps the Score (Bessel van der Kolk); 2. CPTSD: From Surviving to Thriving (Peter Walker); 3. Whole Again (Jackson McKenzie); 4. The Complete Robot (Isaac Asimov); 5. Outliers: The Science of Success (Malcolm Gladwell); 6. The Compound Effect (Darren Hardy).
on “Ask HN: Which books you have read till now that were worth investing time in?” ↗The Complete Robot has a lot of stuff about this and it is interesting. The person above I would argue is flat wrong about the three laws. Asimov wrote his robot short stories in which the three laws played a primary role…
on “Uncensor any LLM with abliteration” ↗…(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foundation_series#List_of_books...). Right now I am reading "The Robots of Dawn", the third book in Asimov's Robot Series. I have gone in a kind of a strange order, first reading The Complete Robot, then the Foundation Series, the Empire Series, and now the Robot Series. I have enjoyed them all, I like Asimov's style. I also enjoyed Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card and will be reading the next…
on “Ask HN: What are you reading right now?” ↗…is pretty much chronological for characters, I think, which would spoil some narrative twists. Kind of like how watching the Star Wars prequels first would spoil The Empire Strikes Back. Either The Complete Robot (1982) *or* I, Robot (1950) The Caves Of Steel The Naked Sun The Robots Of Dawn Robots And Empire The Currents Of Space (1952) The Stars, Like Dust (1951) Pebble In The Sky (1950) Prelude…
on “Apple confirms TV series order of Asimov’s Foundation” ↗