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The Last Theorem: A Novel Audiobook
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(2.99) - 869 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Two of science fiction’s most renowned writers join forces for a storytelling sensation. The historic collaboration between Frederik Pohl and his fellow founding father of the genre, Arthur C. Clarke, is both a momentous literary event and a fittingly grand farewell from the late, great visionary author of 2001: A Space Odyssey. The Last Theorem is a story of one man’s mathematical obsession, and a celebration of the human spirit and the scientific method. It is also a gripping intellectual thriller in which humanity, facing extermination from all-but-omnipotent aliens, the Grand Galactics, must overcome differences of politics and religion and come together . . . or perish. In 1637, the French mathematician Pierre de Fermat scrawled a note in the margin of a book about an enigmatic theorem: “I have discovered a truly marvelous proof of this proposition which this margin is too narrow to contain.” He also neglected to record his proof elsewhere. Thus began a search for the Holy Grail of mathematics–a search that didn’t end until 1994, when Andrew Wiles published a 150-page proof. But the proof was burdensome, overlong, and utilized mathematical techniques undreamed of in Fermat’s time, and so it left many critics unsatisfied–including young Ranjit Subramanian, a Sri Lankan with a special gift for mathematics and a passion for the famous “Last Theorem.” When Ranjit writes a three-page proof of the theorem that relies exclusively on knowledge available to Fermat, his achievement is hailed as a work of genius, bringing him fame and fortune. But it also brings him to the attention of the National Security Agency and a shadowy United Nations outfit called Pax per Fidem, or Peace Through Transparency, whose secretive workings belie its name. Suddenly Ranjit–together with his wife, Myra de Soyza, an expert in artificial intelligence, and their burgeoning family–finds himself swept up in world-shaking events, his genius for abstract mathematical thought put to uses that are both concrete and potentially deadly. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to anyone on Earth, an alien fleet is approaching the planet at a significant percentage of the speed of light. Their mission: to exterminate the dangerous species of primates known as homo sapiens.
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"I found this story very compelling. It is clearly a work of FICTION. Several times, I had to suspend my disbelief at various things, e.g., that a poor son of a monk would be set up to room with the son of a wealthy, high-powered lawyer/politician and that they would be friends for life and the various ways this helps the protagonist to escape from various scrapes. There were other, equally preposterous things in the book. The end of the book left many questions unanswered. But I really found it very entertaining. Huh."
— Christen (5 out of 5 stars)
The Last Theorem Listener Reviews
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" This is a beautiful love story wrapped around the idea of equally beautiful mathematics. I loved it. "
— Douglas, 2/17/2014 -
" A few months ago I reread "Childhood's End" and I was disappointed in how poorly the book withstood the test of time. His vision of the future now seems very quaint. And I didn't remember how little story ther actually was. Much of the writing was simply spent describing the "big ideas." While this novel shared some of those same attributes he pulled it off much better. "
— Greg, 2/11/2014 -
" I almost didn't finish reading this book, which is pretty unusual for me, and especially for a science fiction novel. I thought it went on too long, and had far too many loose ends. Oh well "
— Nina, 1/27/2014 -
" If you want to read some Clarke, skip this. "
— Radu, 1/17/2014 -
" Arthur's last work, not his best, but interesting and well written, .... "
— Mike, 1/13/2014 -
" Two master authors, struggling to stay relevant in their dotage. "
— Jim, 1/8/2014 -
" Not as good as Variable Star. "
— Becca, 11/18/2013 -
" Not the best book by Clarke I have ever read and a couple of times I almost put it down. Fortunately there are several passages, mostly about number theory, that are gripping in the way that is unique to those old science fiction masters like Clark, Asimov and Heinlein. "
— Ed, 8/20/2013 -
" Just let me know when training begins for solar sailing. "
— Michele, 7/3/2013 -
" Arthur C. Clarke is a giant of Sci-Fi, deserving of every award he was ever given. Sadly, his last book is not worthy of the man, and should be avoided. "
— Dave, 12/16/2012 -
" Not one of Clarke's best. Only some marginally interesting species and nothing new in terms of imaginative science "
— Buddy, 10/6/2012 -
" Clever story, good seamless collaboration. Packed with lots of technology that is almost science-fact. Clarke remains interested in the big picture, the answers to the ultimate questions of our place in the universe, and this speculation is intriguing. "
— Scott, 7/23/2012 -
" there was maybe one whole page in this book that wasn't awful "
— Jesse, 3/12/2012 -
" This was ok, but I don't really think it went anywhere. There wasn't an ending so much as the story just seemed to fizzle out. I was expecting a lot more from this particular pairing of authors. "
— Vicky, 6/17/2011 -
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Ron, 6/14/2011
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" Arthur C. Clarke is a giant of Sci-Fi, deserving of every award he was ever given. Sadly, his last book is not worthy of the man, and should be avoided. "
— Dave, 5/17/2011 -
" (I don't usually read SciFi)<br/><br/>I really liked the stark contrast between the solid mathematics and science, and then every once in a while - surprise, life in outer space!<br/><br/>Slightly abrupt ending, but I enjoyed reading this scientific romance story. "
— Corien, 2/25/2011 -
" Many enjoyable plot lines, but overall too much thrown in and in some cases way too much information. Funny how once they are married the authors no longer feel a need to tell us about his sexual exploits. I would prefer they were all left to the bedroom and not the book. "
— Trent, 1/12/2011 -
" If you want to read some Clarke, skip this. "
— Radu, 12/10/2010 -
" Not one of Clarke's best. Only some marginally interesting species and nothing new in terms of imaginative science "
— Buddy, 6/22/2010 -
" I almost didn't finish reading this book, which is pretty unusual for me, and especially for a science fiction novel. I thought it went on too long, and had far too many loose ends. Oh well "
— Nina, 4/5/2010 -
" It's a little left leaning, and it ends abruptly, but the sentences are very well structured, the story seems original, and the characters are fascinating. "
— Russell, 3/5/2010
About the Authors
Arthur C. Clarke is considered one of the greatest science fiction writers of all time. He is best known for his novel 2001: A Space Odyssey, for which he also coauthored the screenplay with Stanley Kubrick for the 1968 Academy Award–winning major motion picture. Besides winning a number of Hugo and Nebula awards, he was awarded the Kalinga Prize, a UNESCO award for popularizing science. He was knighted by the British monarchy and is the only science fiction writer to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. He is an international treasure in many other ways: An article written by him in 1945 led to the invention of satellite technology. His books of both fiction and nonfiction have more than one hundred million copies in print worldwide.
Frederik Pohl (1919–2013) won the National Book Award in 1980 for his novel Jem. From about 1959 until 1969, he edited Galaxy magazine and its sister magazine, If, winning the Hugo Award for it three years in a row. His writing also won him four Hugos and multiple Nebula Awards. He became a Nebula Grand Master in 1993. In 2010 he won the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer, based on the writing on his blog, “The Way the Future Blogs.”
About Mark Bramhall
Mark Bramhall has won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration, more than thirty AudioFile Earphones Awards, and has repeatedly been named by AudioFile magazine and Publishers Weekly among their “Best Voices of the Year.” He is also an award-winning actor whose acting credits include off-Broadway, regional, and many Los Angeles venues as well as television, animation, and feature films. He has taught and directed at the American Academy of Dramatic Art.