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Stranger in a Strange Land

by Robert A. Heinlein

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Showing 1-5 of 81 (next | show all)
2.5 for an interesting concept, but... This book is SO outdated, it read like a sexist, anti-homosexual, communist manifesto. I read the "original uncut" version & now know why they took out 50,000 or so words when they published it the first time, my God, what a slog! The only character I liked was Michael Valentine, and only until he found his "human-ness"...he then, as well as all the rest, were incredibly smug & annoying. Jubal in particular would pontificate for pages about everything from religion to art, in a way I found extremely clunky, writing-wise. That's my main beef, in fact, I found the writing style workman-like at best. The ending was so falsely cheerful, like a Monty Python skit making fun of the upper classes - "It's so, you know, sunny!!!" Or like a young adult novel where everything turns out exactly as it should & the people who SHOULD get together, DO, and then all the ladies have babies & are so fucking happy AAAAARGH. SO glad I'm finally finished, now I can read "Game of Thrones!" ( )
  stacey2112 | Apr 22, 2013 |
Dash and King...well, I have finished the book and damn both of you for putting me through that! Honestly I was thinking at the end of section two, "I really am enjoying this, I don't know what King's problem is!" Then I turned the page! Part three was supreme torture and Part four wasn't much better. By part five, I just wanted it to end!

*************Extreme Spoiler Alert**************************

Dash told me I wouldn't like the end, he was wrong. By the end of section five I was more than ready for Michael Valentine Smith to DIE! Had Jubal died, I would have been upset, but MVS dying actually made the book that much better and more satisfying for me.

I gave it three stars with this in mind, by the end of section two I was thinking four stars, section three I was thinking one, section four it was two, section five was still a two...but then they killed the annoying bastard and I thought that deserved a bump. It wasn't badly written, the author is sexist (it was written in the 50's and published in 1961), but I didn't think over much for the time. His almost psychic vision of the "Free Love", communal living, of the later 60's was impressive if a little nauseating. I compromised on all points and called it a three. If I had to agree with one of you I am more toward King's opinion however. (sorry darlin) As it happens, I agree completely with Rindis.

I have to add that I loved this bit:

"Jubal shrugged, 'abstract design is all right - for wallpaper or linoleum. But ART is the process of evoking pity and terror. What modern artists do is pseudo-intellectual masturbation. Creative art is intercourse, in which the artist renders emotional his audience.'" Interesting way to look at it I thought...

But:

"Nine times out of ten, if a girl gets raped, it's partly her fault." Made me almost stop reading and put the bloomin' book in the wood stove! ( )
  Ameliapei | Apr 18, 2013 |
Can't say I grokked this one in fullness.
Interesting, nonetheless! This book went from being 5 stars as I started out, and then after a couple hundred pages, 4 stars, and then it really started to get tiresome and ended up at 3 stars for me. I kept it at 3 stars just because of a lot of fascinating dialogue throughout. The plot was so-so. I couldn't tell if this book was truly supposed to be set in the future because it really felt like it was still in the 60's with the not so feminist friendly (for lack of a better term) treatment of women and the fact that some of the "futuristic" technology was incredibly outdated compared to what we actually have today. Anyway, this book is a lot deeper than the little I've said so far, but I don't want to give anything away by going any further into it.
( )
  __Lindsey__ | Apr 17, 2013 |
putting aside all of the sexist, homophobic, and gender stereotyping commentary throughout this book (and a bit of racism as well, but not nearly as overt), i found this a fun read. for the first 2/3 of the book. (a book that is supposed to be a major work of sci-fi, however, should be able to see past things like sexism. i give him a pass because of when it was written, but i still find that disappointing, for a 'forward thinker.') i didn't agree with a lot that he has to say, and make a reader think about, but it was interesting, and kept me reading.

the last 1/3 of this book was awful. the writing, which hadn't been stellar to begin with, over-utilized all of the lameness that was easier to excuse through the first 2/3. (there are a lot of long monologues, where heinlein gets to use a character to expound upon a point he wants to make. usually, other characters around the speaker will simply say 'huh?' to keep the talker going. got old.) his diatribes became less and less interesting to me, and more and more filled with holes, in my opinion. much of the culmination of all of it (not just the ending, but the entire last third) was predictable, and didn't add to the questions he wanted us to be probing.

i'm left with a feeling of 1 star for this book, but i'm giving it 2 because of the first part.

and, utterly inexcusable, is this quote that i simply cannot abide, in the last third, spoken by the main character woman:

"'Nine times out of ten, if a girl gets raped, it's at least partly her own fault.'" ( )
  elisa.saphier | Apr 2, 2013 |
Admit it, this book is pretty boring. ( )
  AlCracka | Apr 2, 2013 |
Showing 1-5 of 81 (next | show all)
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Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Robert A. Heinleinprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Heinlein, VirginiaPrefacesecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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Once upon a time when the world was young there was a Martian named Smith.
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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Please do not combine with the originally published, edited, edition of Stranger in a Strange Land.
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Amazon.com Amazon.com Review (ISBN 0441788386, Paperback)

Stranger in a Strange Land, winner of the 1962 Hugo Award, is the story of Valentine Michael Smith, born during, and the only survivor of, the first manned mission to Mars. Michael is raised by Martians, and he arrives on Earth as a true innocent: he has never seen a woman and has no knowledge of Earth's cultures or religions. But he brings turmoil with him, as he is the legal heir to an enormous financial empire, not to mention de facto owner of the planet Mars. With the irascible popular author Jubal Harshaw to protect him, Michael explores human morality and the meanings of love. He founds his own church, preaching free love and disseminating the psychic talents taught him by the Martians. Ultimately, he confronts the fate reserved for all messiahs.

The impact of Stranger in a Strange Land was considerable, leading many children of the 60's to set up households based on Michael's water-brother nests. Heinlein loved to pontificate through the mouths of his characters, so modern readers must be willing to overlook the occasional sour note ("Nine times out of ten, if a girl gets raped, it's partly her fault."). That aside, Stranger in a Strange Land is one of the master's best entertainments, provocative as he always loved to be. Can you grok it? --Brooks Peck

(retrieved from Amazon Wed, 02 Jan 2013 14:57:17 -0500)

(see all 3 descriptions)

A young man from Mars comes to Earth & must learn our strange ways. Annotation. One of the greatest science fiction novels ever published, Stranger in a Strange Land's original manuscript had 50,000 words cut. Now they have been reinstated for this special 30th anniversary trade edition. A Mars-born earthling arrives on this planet for the first time as an adult, and the sensation he creates teaches Earth some unforgettable lessons. "A brilliant mind-bender".--Kurt Vonnegut… (more)

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