2001: A Space Odyssey (novel) 2001: A Space Odyssey (novel) 2001: A Space Odyssey is a 1968 science fiction novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke. It was developed concurrently with Stanley Kubrick's and published after the release of the film. Clarke and Kubrick worked on the book together, but eventually only Clarke ended up as the official author. The story is based in part on various short stories by Clarke, including "The Sentinel" (written in 1948 for a BBC competition, but first published in 1951 under the title "Sentinel of Eternity"). By 1992, the novel had sold three million copies worldwide. An elaboration of
Interpretations of 2001: A Space Odyssey in the film calls attention to the purpose of the satellites. James John Griffith, in a footnote in his book "Adaptations As Imitations: Films from Novels", wrote "I would wonder, for instance, how several critics, commenting on the match-cut that links humanity's prehistory and future, can identify—without reference to Clarke's novel—the satellite as a nuclear weapon". Arthur C. Clarke, in the TV documentary "2001: The Making of a Myth", described the bone-to-satellite sequence in the film, saying "The bone goes up and turns into what is supposed to be an orbiting space bomb, a weapon in space. Well, that isn't