A Fall of Moondust

Not uncommonly for Clarke, there is little in the way of human drama.

However, the final section consists of an impressively tense, high-stakes rescue sequence, which to some extent resembles a miniature version of Clarke's earlier novel A Fall of Moondust from 1961.

The appeal of much of Clarke's fiction is in his fusion of hard science with a sense of optimism about humanity's future, not necessarily a commonplace combination.

The Fountains of Paradise is also one of his books which most clearly shows Clarke's sensitivity to spiritual perspectives.