In my history of science fiction series, I wrote last week about Robert A Heinlein. This week I’m
talking about some of his most famous books. My favourites are Stranger in a
Strange Land and Time Enough For Love. Goodreads ran a listopia poll and these were the top four:
1. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress
It is the year 2076, and the Moon is a penal colony for the rebellious and
the unwanted of Earth. The exiles have created a libertarian society in order to
survive in their harsh and unforgiving environment, their motto being TANSTAAFL:
"There ain't no such thing as a free lunch". Looming over them is the Luna
Authority, the heavy-handed Earth administration, who trades life necessities to
the "Loonies" in exchange for grain shipments to the starving populations of
Earth.
As the situation steadily deteriorates the inhabitants of Luna come to
realize that they have little choice but to revolt against Luna Authority in
order to save themselves from resource exhaustion and a subsequent environmental
apocalypse.
Many reviewers comment on Heinlein's libertarian politics which appear
throughout the novel, but in spite of this the novel is drawn in such detail
that it comes top of many Heinlein’s fan’s list.
2. Starship Troopers
In one of Robert Heinlein's most controversial bestsellers, a recruit of the
future goes through the toughest boot camp in the Universe--and into battle with
the Terran Mobile Infantry against mankind's most frightening enemy.
A military man himself, Heinlein knew the life he was writing about. He used
his novels to set out his philosophy, and in this one he uses the spacesuit to
point out how the soldier is isolated from the fight even while he is
fighting.
3. Stranger in a Strange Land
Valentine Michael Smith is a human being raised on Mars, newly returned to
Earth. Among his people for the first time, he struggles to understand the
social mores and prejudices of human nature that are so alien to him, while
teaching them his own fundamental beliefs in grokking, watersharing, and
love.
Heinlein used this novel as a vehicle to explore and to expound upon a great
many subjects, most notably theology, ideology, social and sexual mores, and
popular culture. Some readers enjoy the debate, some are repelled by it. In any
case, it is remarkable.
4. Time Enough for Love
The capstone and crowning achievement of Heinlein's famous Future History,
Time Enough for Love follows Lazarus Long through a vast and magnificent
timescape of centuries and worlds. Heinlein's longest and most ambitious work,
it is the story of a man so in love with Life that he refused to stop living
it.
As one reviewer said:
Time Enough for Love is set up as a series of tales told by the oldest
living man in the universe, Lazarus Long. Lazarus is confined to a rejuvenation
clinic, where he is being held against his will by a team of people dedicated to
preserving his knowledge. You see, they’ve “rescued” Laz from attempted suicide,
in order to record his life’s story and hopefully glean some of the wisdom he’s
accumulated in over two-thousand years of life. And Lazarus has agreed not to
try to take his own life again, until he’s told them about the most important
lessons learned in his long life. Time Enough for Love is like Arabian
Nights, but in reverse; Laz is telling his stories for his right to die.
Ann Marie Thomas is the author of three medieval history books, a
surprisingly cheerful poetry collection about her 2010 stroke, and the science
fiction series Flight of the Kestrel. Book one, Intruders, is out now.
Follow her at http://eepurl.com/bbOsyz
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