The foundation trilogy! And the “I, robot” novels in smaller part.
I loved how everything Asimov write about had rational explanations, how every action had a cause and a consequence. I also loved the idea that no single person can change the fate of a society, but only big societal movements can determine history. I now find fun how he gives his own counter example in the Mule plot, thus showing that something extraordinary can sometimes happen.
In this thread, I really show my age… Most of the books talked about here came out when I was “too old” for them and I didn’t enjoy them much.