This is a gift but it came very promptly. And it was exactly what I ordered.

The most realistic depiction of space travel I have ever seen or read (if you don't count the NASA documentaries). The incredible meets the mundane every day. It isn't better than the movie, but neither is it worse. Personally, I prefer it to the movie because Clarke can actually explain to you what is happening during Bowman's transformation, whereas in the film you are stuck with some crazy surrealism and a guess as to what has become of Bowman.

This is a long lost classic for the true scifi fan. For having been written 40 decades ago the book is surprisingly accurate in terms of technology. Other then Hal's brain taking up an entire room Arthur C was very close to current trends in technology. I loved it and right away read 2010. I have 2065 and 3001 on order.

I found 2001: Space Odyssey the Movie to be confusing, boring at times, and vastly overrated. The book, however, is fantastic. Plot details that I feel you couldn't possibly glean from the movie are clear in the book. The story actually makes sense. Questions like, "Why did HAL go crazy?", "What exactly happened at the end?", and "What was the significance of the ape-men at the beginning?" all become clear.

Besides the plot, the book was quite satisfying for me on a technical level. Clarke describes many technical aspects of spaceflight in prophetically accurate detail.

Amazingly prophetic book, depicting technologies that were unheard of at the time of publishing yet, are reality today. Space stations, space travel, artificial intelligence, the quest for knowledge at a cosmic scale. Wonderful and  fascinating.

I don't know that I would classify Clark as a creator of great fiction; as mentioned in other reviews, the "human equation" in his works is largely missing. Clark excels and creating vivid descriptions of technology and alien grandeur, but his books are a bit lifeless at they have almost no character developement or interesting dialog.

I've read most of his books, and find he is a great alternative in those times I would find myself reaching for an atlas or a National Geographic. Honestly, I think AC Clarke is one of those sacred cow authors--praised by those who think it raises their intellectual profile, and read mainly when bored by those who can see that the emperor, while not entirely naked, could do with more than a loincloth.

A great book which is better than the Film (In my opinion anyway), although identical in plot (they were developed by Kubrick / Clark together). The plot involves a mysterious obelisk that is discovered in the outer solar system and the ship crew that is sent to investigate it. On the way the ships computer starts to malfunction. This is the best part of the book with HAL's descent into madness and then reduction to child like status particularly effective.

Over-rated series. Just average.

Overrated book, can not get over the fact that it is too over the top for readers to really enjoy.

Great book. Interesting as it gets close to the year in the title.

The book is just as good as the movie. It really makes you think about time, space and physics.