The book opens up in 1949 on the day of a mysterious accident at Chicago’s Institute of Nuclear Research. Joseph Schwartz, while walking around on the other side of Chicago is somehow caught in an expanding beam of energy that transports him into an unfamiliar place. Actually, he has not traveled to another place but another time. Earth’s land is largely covered in radioactive soil, so that it can only support 20 million people. The result of this is the common practice of terminating anyone that cannot work or when they reach the age of sixty as a form of strict population control. Most people don’t resent this practice but rather look at as a way for making room for the young.

Joseph Schwartz knows none of this yet because all he sees is a dark empty world with a glimmering horizon with no cars or houses to be seen where there once was a thriving city. Initially he thinks he is on another world because everyone speaks a very odd language. As it turns out, he was transported thousands of years to a future Earth at a time that a Galactic Empire reigned and Earth was only one of 200 million planets. Schwartz wanders around and eventually finds the house of a family of three that takes him in. The young husband and wife have been working extra hard secretly supporting their father which isn’t yet sixty but can’t contribute working the farm because he can’t walk.

They seize the opportunity to use Schwartz, seemingly an idiot to them due to the language barrier, to take up some of the slack for work. They take Schwartz to Chica (Chicago in the future) to volunteer for a procedure which should increase his intelligence. The only problem is that the “Synapsifier” device invented by Dr. Shekt could end up killing the patient. In a somewhat cold statement, the husband assures the wife that if Schwartz dies they won’t be any worse off than before.

In the meantime, Dr. Bel Arvardan is embarking on an archaeological expedition in an attempt to verify the claims that Earth is the original world, the cradle of humanity. At the time the official theory is that groups of humans evolved separately and eventually converged after independently discovering interstellar travel. The Galactic Empire can’t bear to admit that humanity originated from this small dying world.

Dr. Arvardan is anxious to see the people of earth in their native environment, so he schedules a tour of the major cities of Earth, travelling to Chica first. By chance, while eating lunch he encounters a girl named Pola which is searching for a man, Schwartz, which has escaped the lab she works for (which happens to be where Dr. Shekt’s used the Synapsifier on Schwartz although Arvardan doesn’t know this yet). She describes an older man which he just saw at the same place he was eating lunch at. He helps her track down Schwartz, but they find themselves caught in a “Radiation Fever” scare. During the chase Dr. Arvardan finds himself strangely attracted to this Earthgirl. Arvardan sticks up for Pola when an Imperial officer treats her badly and finds himself on the wrong end of a neuronic whip. From this point forward the plotlines of Arvardan and Schwartz become intertwined.

One of the main themes in this book is the general distain that “Galactic Citizens” have for “Earthers”. While Earthers are not slaves of any sort, they are considered inferior and poisonous due to the radiation which is spread across most of Earth. Bel Arvardan likes to think of himself as progressive and tolerant of Earthers, but deep down he still has some problems coping with his romantic feelings for Pola Shekt throughout the novel. I think that Asimov handles Arvadan’s transformation quite well.

Earth, although part of the Empire, has a group of citizens called the Ancients which serve as rulers. Ancients enforce the various customs such as the “Sixty” harbor and avoiding the highly radioactive areas. Most Earthers, especially the “Ancients” harbor as much if not more hatred toward the rest of the Galaxy. They are resentful of their place in the Empire, isolated on a dying world with limited resources, resulting in three previous attempts to revolt. This hatred drives a new plot to revolt, but this time they might have the power to exterminate the rest of the galaxy. Dr. Arvardan, Dr. Shekt, Pola Shekt, and Joseph Schwartz must all work together to stop this plot.

Asimov does a good job of building up the main plot lines then intertwining them at just the right moment. The way he does this seems to pack quite a bit of events into just 230 pages. Most of the dialog is philosophical and engaging while moving the plot forward. One of the more amusing plots was the suspicion of the Ancients that Arvardan and Schwartz were working under Imperial direction while they were actually innocently associated (initially) with Dr. Schwartz. In the end their motives turned out to be the same, but the means was far from it. I found it a bit interesting that Joseph Schwartz is prominent on the back cover synopsis. Schwartz’s part isn’t insignificant by far, but the novel seems to be more about Dr. Bel Arvardan and his transformation.

It is obvious after the first few chapters that this novel is on a whole different level than “The Stars, Like Dust.” There are more characters, deeper development, and various plot lines are explained through flashbacks. It seemed like Asimov spent a lot more time on this book than the last one. It is just a tad bit longer at 230 pages in my paperback copy, but quite bit more happens. There is still the medieval feel with Sark ruling Florinia and the various class struggles that go with that.

The book prologue starts out with a conversation between a spatio-analyst from Earth and another unknown man about the eminent destruction of the planet Florinia which is controlled by the planet Sark. After questioning the delays in warning Sark and the Florinians, the spatio-analyst finds himself drugged and on the wrong end of a psychic probe.

Rik, the psycho-probed spatio-anlalyst, was reduced to a babbling idiot and dumped on the planet Florinia. After a period of recuperation, he gains enough skills to be somewhat productive. One year later while working at a kyrt factory on Florinia his memories start to return. This marks the beginning of an action packed adventure. Florinia is the only place that a special fiber called kyrt can be grown, which has many uses from clothing to space travel. Efforts have been made to transplant this product to other worlds, but with no success. The Trantorian Empire, which controls about one half of the inhabited worlds, would like to control over this monopoly over the kyrt trade which Sark enjoys.

Valona, which has been given the responsibility of keeping Rik out of trouble, immediately takes her friend to the Myrlyn Terens, the Townman in charge of their village. All Rik can seem to remember is that he “analyzed Nothing” and that that Florinia was in extreme danger. The Townman takes Rik to the library to hopefully jog his memory when they find out there is a special hold on all texts related to spatio-analysis. This spooks the Townman and as he tries to get Rik out of the library they are stopped by a Patroller. Valona comes out from nowhere and knocks the Patroller out and suddenly the three of them are on the run.

This opening sets up quite bit of mystery which gets deeper as the novel progresses. Some of the flashbacks get a bit confusing a times because sometimes there really isn’t any transition between the present and the past. I found in many cases I wasn’t sure what time frame the story was in until a few paragraphs later. Aside from this annoyance, the flashbacks offer a good way to develop the new characters that are constantly being added throughout the novel. Again, I’m amazed at how little of the plot I remembered from reading this several years ago. I’m glad to say that I enjoyed this quite thoroughly for a second time.

Timeline discussion:
Here are a couple quotes — “Atomic warfare had done its worst to Earth. Most of it was hopelessly radioactive and useless.” and “The radioactivity of the soil was a vast sea of iridescent blue, sparkling in strange festoons that spelled out the manner in which the nuclear bombs had once landed, a full generation before the force-field defense against nuclear explosions had been developed, so that no other world could commit suicide in just that fashion again.” — The Stars, Like Dust

This explanation contradicts what took place at the end of Robots and Empire, which was written 35 years later. I guess Asimov has the right to change history, or we can attribute the discrepancy to historical inaccuracies within the world he created. After all, the Horsehead Nebula in the book is named after “Horace Hedd” rather than for looking like a horse’s head. About 50 years before, the Nebular Kingdoms have been conquered by the Tyranni. They rule thousands of worlds from the home planet of Tyrann.

The main plot in this novel revolves around Biron Farrill, son of the Rancher of Widemos. The Rancher is implicated in a conspiracy against the Tryranni. Biron had been sent to Earth on a mission to recover a mysterious and dangerous ancient document which is supposed to be the key to the rebellion. Biron is thrust into a whirlwind of action and mystery after there is a failed attempt to kill him with a micro radiation bomb. He finds himself being guided to Rhodia, one of the strongest worlds in the Nebular Kingdoms, to plead for asylum with the planetary Director. From there he learns about a “Rebellion World” which might be the only hope of defeating the oppressive Tyranni.

At 200 pages this book is rather short, and the pacing moves pretty quickly. The overall feel of the book seems like it could happen in medieval times, except for the fact that there are thousands of worlds and ships that use hyperatomic motors. It seemed pretty obvious when Asimov shifted into Sci-Fi mode when explaining how much of the technology and concepts about planetary systems and space travel. I think that his later books are integrated better, but considering this book was written in 1950, it seems to hold up rather well.