Unlike in The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and the Lazarus Long tales, Heinlein presents his moral sentiments here rather poorly. In those books the value of the societies was demonstrated through the action of the story. Here, it is asserted as almost self-evident by the teacher of the narrator's History and Moral Philosophy Class.

The exception is with regard to the nobility of military service. Heinlein's idealized Mobile Infantry does present a plausible picture of a military in which competence is a baseline and nobility of action is valued greatly.

Heinlein's imagination is as bountiful as ever, and the book, though sometimes frustrating, is never boring. ( )

Starship Troopers is one of the finest examples of science fiction ever produced. It races through the career of Johnnie Rico from his internal debate about joining the military through his career to eventual officer status. The description of intergalactic warfare is one that has permeated science fiction thinking and there are numerous rip-offs that have made millions without altering a slice of the combat Henlein offers.

The story of Rico was originally written in serial format and to some extent that does show but the two combat sequences that form the introduction and conclusion of the story are as good as it gets. In between the extraordinary battlefield descriptions sits Rico's tale as he meets an enormous cast of characters most of whom only have a brief moment but for each is some exposition of the universe that Rico and the Mobile Infantry inhabit.

At it's heart Starship Troopers is more an exploration of an advanced society redesigned to cope with existential threats to the human race. Henlein takes shots at our current system of government and the way it promotes short-term populism over long-term collective interest. Henlein is right on the money and in the Starship universe, only those who are prepared to sacrifice for the good of the many have the right to vote.

Sacrifice happens frequently for the Mobile Infantry despite their advanced weaponry, armour, and tactics. Minor characters die off at world war one rates and the casual ease with which death is accepted is uncomfortable. It is not truly clear why Rico pursues his career in the military or really why most of the others involved do given their free choice and that only the very best of society make it into the ranks. The very few who are mentally and physically capable and who also are prepared to place the greater good above even their own lives are an aspiration far beyond anything in the current generation. ( )

Pre09:
Nothing like the movie people. Nothing. It's all about one man's journey through military school. Issues of right and wrong. And a little tiny bit of action.

All-in-all, it's okay but boring. ( )

I started to read this book as part of my 'read Sci Fi classics I somehow missed entirely in my adolescence' phase. Having seen the movie and enjoyed it for its campy fun, I was eager to dive in. (Although apparently the two bear very little resemblance.)

I was rather dumbfounded at how much I enjoyed it. I find it difficult to remember that this book was first published in 1959 - it reads like something fresh and fun and, save for a few instances where Heinlein's future/our past is mentioned, doesn't feel dated. Maybe this very fact says something about the nature of wars, and the people who fight them. I think Heinlein would be pleased with this in some ways, because it's a question he deals with in no small fashion.

Starship Troopers can be read as a fun romp in military sci-fi, an account of Johnnie Rico and his trip from high school to boot camp to interstellar soldier of the first order. You can pretty much leave it at that if you want - and it /is/ fun! Johnnie's voice reads well and his descriptions of military training, tech, and philosophy are frankly fascinating in places. Heinlein's world isn't anything terribly spectacular, but it /is/ solid, and his tech is neat and well-done.

More importantly, maybe, the lack of flash is part of the point - Heinlein uses this romp to explore questions about war, about fighting, about sacrifice and loyalty and basic human nature and what persists from century to century, as well as questions of societal organization and politics. There are a few times when it feels a bit heavy-handed, but they're rare, and I think that a canny reader can read this and find more questions than answers - which is just the way I like my sci fi.

The beauty of this story is that it says something significant about what it means to be a human, yesterday, today, tomorrow, next century. And it does it in a bright, shiny package filled with explosions and powered armor suits and spaceships and a protagonist interesting enough that I didn't mind at all spending a few hundred pages in his head.

Minor spoilers: The one downside is that this is a book without a strong and complete narrative - it's a character piece, used to reflect an event and a society and to ask big questions. Given that, it lacks a strong 'end' - by which I mean, a strong resolution. Strangely, though, I found I didn't mind this. It worked okay for me. I think that given what Heinlein was doing - that given the character he'd set up and the mentality he'd shown us - it made sense, and it lent itself well to the feeling of a war that never ends, of /war/ that never ends, of what humanity is with or without wars. The lack of ending fit well, I thought, but I could see how it might bug others.

This is my first Heinlein - now I can't wait to read more. ( )

One of Heinlein's top 5! ( )