Pebble in the Sky
Asimov's first novel, set in a radioactive future Earth.
Isaac Asimov's first published novel, *Pebble in the Sky*, is a science fiction story that came out in 1950. The plot centers on Joseph Schwartz, a retired tailor from the mid-20th century, who is accidentally thrown tens of thousands of years into the future. In this era, Earth is radioactive and holds a low-status position within a massive Galactic Empire.
Asimov originally wrote the novel in the summer of 1946, calling it "Grow Old with Me" for *Startling Stories*. The title was taken from Robert Browning's poem *Rabbi Ben Ezra*, lines of which appear in the final book. Editor Sam Merwin, Jr. had asked Asimov for a forty-thousand-word short novel, but the magazine rejected it due to length and format issues. John W. Campbell, Asimov's usual editor, also turned it down. In 1949, Doubleday editor Walter I. Bradbury accepted the story on Frederik Pohl's suggestion, but only if Asimov expanded it to seventy thousand words and gave it a more science fiction–sounding title. It was published in January 1950 as *Pebble in the Sky*. The original "Grow Old with Me" draft later appeared in *The Alternate Asimovs* in 1986.
Asimov noted in *Before the Golden Age* that the novel was influenced by Murray Leinster's short story "Proxima Centauri." The book has been reprinted many times by various publishers, including Galaxy (1953), Bantam (1957, 1964), Corgi (1958, 1982, as the first British edition), Sidgwick & Jackson (1968), Sphere Science Fiction (1969, 1972, 1974, 1981), Fawcett Books (1971, 1975), Del Rey Books (1983), Grafton (1986), Doubleday (1990), and as part of the Empire series by Ballantine Books (1986), Spectra (1992), and Orb Books (2010, in print and Kindle). It also appeared in omnibuses: *Triangle* (1952, with *The Stars, Like Dust* and *The Currents of Space*), *The Far Ends of Time and Earth* (1978, with *The End of Eternity* and the story collection *Earth Is Room Enough*), and *The Empire Novels* (2002). A radio adaptation by Ernest Kinoy aired on *Dimension X* in 1951 and was released as an audio download in 2007 and again in 2011.
The story begins with Schwartz walking in Chicago when a nearby nuclear lab accident instantly sends him fifty thousand years into the future (a figure later retconned as a mistake in later Asimov works).
- Author
- Isaac Asimov
- Published
- 1950
- Genre
- Science fiction
- Original title
- Grow Old with Me
- Setting
- Galactic Empire universe
- Word count
- 70,000 (expanded from 40,000)
Lore & Background
Pebble in the Sky was originally written in the summer of 1946 under the title 'Grow Old with Me' for Startling Stories, whose editor Sam Merwin, Jr. had approached Asimov to write a forty thousand word short novel. The title was an adaptation of Robert Browning's Rabbi Ben Ezra. It was rejected by Startling Stories due to length and format issues and again by John W. Campbell. In 1949, Doubleday editor Walter I. Bradbury accepted the story on the suggestion of Frederik Pohl, on condition it was expanded to seventy thousand words and the title changed, and it was published in January 1950 as Pebble in the Sky. 'Grow Old With Me' was later published in its original form in The Alternate Asimovs in 1986. Asimov wrote that the novel was influenced by the short story 'Proxima Centauri' by Murray Leinster.
Reader's Guide
Pebble in the Sky is significant as Isaac Asimov's first published novel, marking the beginning of his long career in book-length science fiction. It established the Galactic Empire setting that would later connect to his Foundation series, with Earth as a radioactive, low-status planet. The novel explores themes of prejudice, aging, and human choice through an ordinary protagonist rather than a typical space opera hero. Its publication history reflects the evolving science fiction market of the late 1940s, moving from magazine serials to book form. The novel was well-received by some critics, with L. Sprague de Camp praising it as 'excellent' and 'one of the few really mature and professional jobs available in book form [in 1950].' It was later retroactively nominated for a Retro-Hugo Award in 2001, finishing second. The book has been reprinted many times and adapted for radio, demonstrating its lasting presence in the genre.
Did You Know?
- The original title 'Grow Old with Me' was adapted from Robert Browning's poem Rabbi ben Ezra.
- The novel was expanded from 40,000 to 70,000 words at the request of Doubleday editor Walter I. Bradbury.
- A 1951 radio adaptation on Dimension X cut the time travel element and changed the ending so the virus was released.
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