Heinlein

bayonetbrant · August 12, 2015, 04:21:51 PM

Favorites from Heinlein?

I read Stranger in a Strange Land as my first Heinlein book at the same time I was reading Cat's Cradle for school. Talk about a pair of book to attack someone's faith in God... wow.

Pushed to choose, I'd take Past Through Tomorrow as my favorite, which is kind of cheating, since it's a collection of stories. But I love the way he built his universe with story on top of story and kept them consistent even as the real world advanced in a different direction.

That said, I really enjoy a lot of the non-narrative pieces of Time Enough For Love. I liked the description of all the pioneer stuff they set off with when he and Dora headed over the pass. I liked the stories of trying to piece together a new settlement on Tertius. There's a lot there I really enjoy that's not necessarily a part of the narrative arc of Laz.

Of the non-'history' novels, I enjoyed Glory Road and Tunnel in the Sky. Between Planets was good, but by the time I read it I was old enough that it wasn't as appealing as it would've been in 10th grade. I did not like Farnham's Freehold, as it felt too 'preachy' to me. And try as I might several times, I never got more than 50 pages or so into I Will Fear No Evil before giving up.

What are your favorites and why?

mirth · August 12, 2015, 05:09:50 PM

I started with his "juvenile" novels. Rocket Ship Galileo will always have a place in my heart. It was one the first sci-fi novels I read as a kid. I'm sure it would seem juvenile today, but for a 10 year old, it was great stuff and was my gateway into the genre.

Stranger in a Strange Land and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress are two of my all-time favorite science fiction works. Immersive, well-written and they explore some "big ideas" that I found intriguing.

I know most folks would put Starship Troopers at the top of the list. I enjoyed it, but it didn't pull me in quite the way some of the others did.

bbmike · August 12, 2015, 05:20:37 PM

I'll probably loose geek points for this, I've owned several Heinlein novels but never read any of them. :o

mirth · August 12, 2015, 07:36:07 PM

Quote from: bbmike on August 12, 2015, 05:20:37 PM
I'll probably loose geek points for this, I've owned several Heinlein novels but never read any of them. :o

As penance, you must watch all three Starship Troopers movies.

Steelgrave · August 12, 2015, 07:38:27 PM

Quote from: mirth on August 12, 2015, 07:36:07 PM
Quote from: bbmike on August 12, 2015, 05:20:37 PM
I'll probably loose geek points for this, I've owned several Heinlein novels but never read any of them. :o

As penance, you must watch all three Starship Troopers movies.

Cruel, this man.....

Staggerwing · August 12, 2015, 07:45:26 PM

It was always interesting to see some of the members of the Howard Families keep popping up in Heinlein's various books. Sometimes they even changed gender...

BTW, my favorite Heinlein quote:

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."
-Robert A. Heinlein

bayonetbrant · August 12, 2015, 07:53:32 PM

you guys all know mine :)

Steelgrave · August 12, 2015, 07:57:26 PM

The first sci-fi or fantasy I read was Edgar Rice Burroughs John Carter series. I segued from there into "Alas, Babylon" before discovering Heinlein my first year of junior high. "The Door Into Tomorrow" was my introduction to Heinlein and remains a beloved favorite. After "Door", I couldn't read enough Heinlein. "Starship Troopers" knocked my socks off and is perhaps the single Heinlein novel I've reread most often. The concept of the military attempting to turn people away....while the Vietnam war was raging on the news in my home every night....stuck in my imagination. It was years before the deeper tones of "Starship Troopers" were realized by me. I think Heinlein would have a lot to say about our decade plus of war today.

Then there was "Stranger in a Strange Land". When I read "Stranger" Playboy was still naughty and my juvenile pals were gossipping about how Penthouse magazine actually showed girls "down there". "Stranger" was amazing science fiction, social commentary and erotica all in one. I think it has to be Heinlein's most controversial and defining novel and is certainly (along with Troopers) what most people think of first when his name comes up.

My all time favorite, however, is "Time Enough for Love". A massive novel, adventure, even a love story that spoke to me on several levels, "Time" should bookcase any Heinlein collection along with "Stranger".

Great thread, BB.

bayonetbrant · August 12, 2015, 08:03:05 PM

Quote from: Steelgrave on August 12, 2015, 07:57:26 PMbefore discovering Heinlein my first year of junior high.

Wait, Heinlein was alive back then?!?

Staggerwing · August 12, 2015, 08:08:12 PM

Actually, he was alive until 1988 and thus even during my first year of junior high. :))

And my second... and high school.. and first years of college...

Damn, now I feel old. Thanks... :(

Steelgrave · August 12, 2015, 08:09:12 PM

Quote from: bayonetbrant on August 12, 2015, 08:03:05 PM
Quote from: Steelgrave on August 12, 2015, 07:57:26 PMbefore discovering Heinlein my first year of junior high.

Wait, Heinlein was alive back then?!?

Socrates had passed, if that makes you feel any better.........

mirth · August 12, 2015, 09:33:46 PM

Quote from: Steelgrave on August 12, 2015, 08:09:12 PM
Quote from: bayonetbrant on August 12, 2015, 08:03:05 PM
Quote from: Steelgrave on August 12, 2015, 07:57:26 PMbefore discovering Heinlein my first year of junior high.

Wait, Heinlein was alive back then?!?

Socrates had passed, if that makes you feel any better.........

airboy · August 15, 2015, 01:40:38 PM

Moon is a Harsh Mistress
Citizen of the Galaxy
Starship Troopers
in no particular order.

I have copies of many of the books. I was no a fan of his hugely long books focusing on sex or religion (including Stranger in a Strange Land).

The juveniles are wonderful short reads that often work in hard science, logistics, and other topics.

DoctorQuest · August 15, 2015, 02:01:52 PM

Quote from: Staggerwing on August 12, 2015, 07:45:26 PM
It was always interesting to see some of the members of the Howard Families keep popping up in Heinlein's various books. Sometimes they even changed gender...

BTW, my favorite Heinlein quote:

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."
-Robert A. Heinlein

Mine, too. I have a copy hanging on my office wall.

Dammit Carl! · September 02, 2015, 06:42:34 PM

Job: A Comedy of Justice has to be one of Heinlein's books that I've read more than once. As a youngster, it did get me to thinking and questioning the particular tenets of the faith I was being brought up in.

I did read more Heinlein stories, as well as Asimov, Clarke, etc. as well; more of a Pournelle fan myself...makes a fellow wonder if the Silver Age science fiction stories still hold an attraction for the younger folk.