Ohh, Willis! How little we know about you and your fellow Martians! I read this story through in one sitting. It's that good. The only hint at Heinlein's future explosive perversity in the book are the two clergymen that share a house. His readers will find the allusion entertaining. The characters are beautifully and simply woven. The antiquarians will find the boys manner of speaking quite retronique. Doc MacRae is my favorite character; and I believe Heinlein has shown the most of himself in this character. Solipsism is a beautiful philosophy. You will find Doc's hatred of "progression" to be most eloquently stated. The story is about 2 boys who hail from a Martian colony--the head of which is one of them's father. Bureaucratic Earth is struggling for control over these untamed revolutionaries who have taken a "manifest destiny" approach to Mars. Think of them as the blaster wielding Libertarians of the future. They share the mostly unexplored-as-of-yet Mars with various native creatures--the most interesting being the mysterious giant tripodal Martians who dwell deep within their ancient and emptied cities, and strange fluff-ball creatures called "bouncers". By the end of the book Heinlein has shown us an extrordinary alien civilization, an emancipated Human-Martian colony, and the fall of the corrupt incestual elite powers of Earth. Inbetween is a grand adventure. ( )

Not a bad read, but there are other Heinlein young adult novels that are a bit better. ( )

http://www.amazon.com/review/R249ZLI0... ( )

Another juvenile that I keep coming back to as an adult. This one is set on Mars and how a young man learns about growing up from his friend, a martian. ( )

This is another typical early Heinlein - full of plucky youngsters fighting against the odds and making unlikely friends. In this case, the bad guys are evil Company henchmen who want to steal the plucky lad's friend, a Martian "bouncer" and prevent colonists from migrating with the seasons to avoid the bitter Martian winter. This book would have read a lot better before we received detailed footage from the Mars rover that conclusively proved there were no 'canals' or free standing water on Mars. Still, it was an enjoyable read for a Heinlein fan, gross factual impossibilities notwithstanding. After all, science fiction is not about truth, is it? ( )