A Crusade in Asimov's name

Note: This is just one of the many arbitrary quests I embark upon. Life would be boring without them.

The Graal

In the twenty-second century Earth obtains limitless, free energy from a source science little understands: an exchange between Earth and a parallel universe, using a process devised by the aliens. But even free energy has a price. The transference process itself will eventually lead to the destruction of the Earth's Sun--and of Earth itself.

Upon reading the synopsis, Isaac Asimov’s The Gods Themselves strikes as unique -- there are aliens, which is almost unheard of in his literature. The plot intertwines mystery and science fiction: how could Tungsten spontaneously transform in the unstable Plutonium 186, which defies our physical laws? Turns out this was not spontaneous at all, but the result of contact between parallel dimensions and a source of seemingly infinite power. What's more, this contact brings forth new dangers as enigmatic signals of warning emerge from the other side.

The Hunt

Here’s the kicker: the book is rare, especially in Italian. The publishing house Mondadori, which is not small at all, holds all of Asimov's rights but hasn't reprinted almost anything. My only chance was finding a vintage edition.

Why don't you just buy a digital copy?

It would be easy indeed, but don't let your crusading spirit go astray. The point of a good crusade is bringing home a beautiful artifact (or isn't it?). Searching we shall, and searching we will.

Against Greed...

When the crusade started, I naively thought finding an old edition would be simple. Turns out, it’s anything but that. The publishing house Mondadori doesn't print them again — some believe this is to inflate the prices of future reprints. Conspiracies aside, it's a fact that they are printing a lot of books, even by Asimov. But not this one... There are English editions, but I prefer to read fiction in Italian. Perhaps I associate english to research papers.

... the Readers Themselves...

Mondadori's bookstore confirmed it to be out of print. However, I tracked down all bookstores in the city. Used book fairs were fair game too, but they did not yield results. Soon, all the city’s booksellers knew me by name. (I wish I was joking here.) After a dozen bookstores it was time for heavier artillery: tracking down old issues from the Urania Collezione science fiction series, one of those series sold at news kiosks. It turned out that the book was included in Urania Collezione #222 of July 2021. Alas, their online service confirmed that it was sold out. Resigned, I ordered an English edition, which arrived in under 24 hours.

... Contend in Vain?

After a Pyrrhic victory, I shifted my focus to other Asimov works. By April 2023, I had read the Empire and Foundation series. Naturally, the next target was the Robot series — but guess what? Mondadori hasn’t reprinted it in decades, despite teasing its release with a cover back in 2020. They’ve reprinted almost all of Asimov’s works, even minor ones, but the Robot series? Nowhere to be found. I frankly lost hope in that publishing house, and dusted off my old trusty Kobo e-reader.

The Crusade Ends

This was't necessarily a bad conclusion. I had too many physical books anyway, and moving towards digital e-books was indeed warranted. I still prefer physical copies, but the advantages of digital are undeniable. Alas, in some crusades you just go home empty-handed. In others, you go home with the spoils of a razed Byzantium. That's life.