The Lost Worlds of 2001

Cover of the 1972 Signet book

The Lost Worlds of 2001 by Arthur C. Clarke was published in 1972 by Signet as an accompaniment to the wildly successful 2001: A Space Odyssey.

The book itself consists, in part, of behind-the-scenes notes from Clarke concerning scriptwriting (and rewriting), as well as production issues. The meat of the book, however, is contained in excerpts from the novel and screenplay that served as the foundation for what would come later, but which were—in and of themselves—discarded for varying reasons.

Alternative settings for launch preparation, the infamous EVA scene where astronaut Frank Poole is lost, and varying dialogues concerning the HAL 9000 unit are all featured in the book.