When I watched 2001: A Space Odyssey (the movie), about ten years ago, I found it dull, boring, and deeply depressing. I also didn't understand what was going on. I decided a couple months ago to give the book a try. It's much better!

The story is split into four parts (technically six, but I disagree with Clarke's seperation, and I only perceived four):

In the first part of the book, there is what I thought of as somewhat of an extended prologue. We meet Moon Watcher, a member of a prehistoric tribe of Men as he uses his primitive brain to help himself, his family, and his tribe survive.

The second part starts three million years after the first part ends off, and is about a mission to the Moon to investigate a strange phenomenon that has been discovered there.

This second part ends abruptly, when the reader is vaulted into the scene of a space ship destined for Saturn. The second and third parts do tie together, but I won't give away how.

Throughout these first three parts, I was torn between giving the book four stars, or five. The fourth part was what finally decided me on three. It's about the last 10% or so of the book, and it's definitely not the ending I had in mind! It's deeply psychological, philosophical, and just plain weird. I considered it a real anticlimax to a great story!

Still, it's an epic, interesting, and engaging tale, and I certainly think that any fan of Science Fiction should read this book at least once!