ISAAC ASIMOV: Writer of the Future

An unadorned entry in the World Writer series takes on Isaac Asimov, who wrote or edited over 450 books in his lifetime, and published an average of 1,000 words a day. Born in Russia in 1920, he arrived with his family in America when he was only three. He discovered science-fiction pulp magazines in his father's store and began writing his own stories; he later left a post teaching biochemistry at Boston University Medical School to write. The account wavers between sketchiness (e.g., his relationship with his son is barely mentioned) and verbosity (e.g., medical details on him and various family members), but Boerst is sympathetic and admiring in recounting the private life of the eccentric Asimov.