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1mogwaigovroom
Hi! Just joined the group.
Reviving my love of Science Fiction these days. Latest books on the list are Robert Heinleins The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and Stranger in a Strange Land
Looking forward to hearing everyone's recommendations and some conversation!
Jessica
Reviving my love of Science Fiction these days. Latest books on the list are Robert Heinleins The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and Stranger in a Strange Land
Looking forward to hearing everyone's recommendations and some conversation!
Jessica
2jimmaclachlan
Welcome. I'm pretty new here myself. I try not to read any of Heinlein's stuff published after 1970, although I love his earlier stuff.
3Unreachableshelf
Welcome, and I like both of those.
4PortiaLong
I myself am a great fan of Heinlein (I must admit I love it all and read it over and over). SIASL is actually one of my least favorites - MIAHM is my absolute favorite - also greatly enjoyed To Sail Beyond the Sunset,Time Enough for Love and Starship Troopers.
Other favorite authors - Philip Jose Farmer, Orson Scott Card.
Recently have enjoyed - Wade Kimberlin, Scalzi.
Other favorite authors - Philip Jose Farmer, Orson Scott Card.
Recently have enjoyed - Wade Kimberlin, Scalzi.
5drmamm
Two very different books. Stranger in a Strange Land is religious commentary, while Moon is a Harsh Mistress is political commentary. "Stranger" is long and meandering, while "Moon" is much more linear and to the point. I liked "Moon" much better, but that's just me.
6aulsmith
Just reread "Moon" and thought it stood up well. I was more aware of the political essay this time around (must be at least my 5th reading). It's still one of my favorite books.
Tried to read the unedited "Stranger" some years ago and bogged down. Perhaps it's time to try again.
Tried to read the unedited "Stranger" some years ago and bogged down. Perhaps it's time to try again.
7kmartin802
My favorite has always been Time Enough for Love. Of course, I really enjoyed a lot of Heinlein's juveniles. My favorites are The Star Beast, Citizen of the Galaxy and Have Spacesuit, Will Travel.
8elleeldritch
I haven't read any of Heinlein's books but I want to. Where do I start? I checked out To Sail Beyond the Sunset but I had school constraints and didn't get around to reading it. I read online that there are characters from other novels stuck in it so I don't want to be confused or miss a back story.
9jimmaclachlan
I think his short stories are the best place to start, IMO. The Past Through Tomorrow has many of them. I enjoyed them the most.
His juveniles are good, but often a bit dated & more oriented for young males. A lot of scout stuff, but I just re-read The Star Beast earlier this year & thought it was great.
I pretty much detested To Sail Beyond The Sunset, but if you like that sort of thing, you should really start with Methuselah's Children, then read Time Enough for Love, The Number of the Beast & ... I'm not sure after that. 'MC' introduces Lazarus Long who is pretty much the main character in the rest. IMO, they're too preachy & sexually weird. He's always going on about how incest is fine & natural. Blech!
Oh, 'MC' & 'TEFL' were both pretty good, although he starts getting kinky at the end of 'TEFL'. He doesn't ram it down your throat too terribly in that one & there are a lot of good parts.
His juveniles are good, but often a bit dated & more oriented for young males. A lot of scout stuff, but I just re-read The Star Beast earlier this year & thought it was great.
I pretty much detested To Sail Beyond The Sunset, but if you like that sort of thing, you should really start with Methuselah's Children, then read Time Enough for Love, The Number of the Beast & ... I'm not sure after that. 'MC' introduces Lazarus Long who is pretty much the main character in the rest. IMO, they're too preachy & sexually weird. He's always going on about how incest is fine & natural. Blech!
Oh, 'MC' & 'TEFL' were both pretty good, although he starts getting kinky at the end of 'TEFL'. He doesn't ram it down your throat too terribly in that one & there are a lot of good parts.
10psybre
Time Enough for Love is my favorite Heinlein and should surely be read before To Sail Beyond the Sunset. I just finished The Moon is a Harsh Mistress myself and thoroughly enjoyed it. I agree with jimmaclachlan that his short stories are a good place to start, too.
11psybre
A reminder to those about to read The Number of the Beast that the book is a much richer read if you first read Gharlane's note.
12aqeeliz
I've never read Heinlein, just came across Friday on bookstore and picked it up, haven't got the chance to read it yet.
BTW how is Friday when compared with Heinlein's other work? If I like (or dislike) Friday is there higher chances of me liking (or disliking) his other work?
BTW how is Friday when compared with Heinlein's other work? If I like (or dislike) Friday is there higher chances of me liking (or disliking) his other work?
13geneg
Most people seem to feel the Heinlein they read before the age of eighteen was great. The Heinlein they read after forty is mostly atrocious.
14DugsBooks
Anyone read Variable Star written by Heinlein and Spider Robinson who used found notes of H. after his death? I saw a copy on sale at a book store for $6 but thought I would try the library first.
Looking at reviews on LT I see the entire spectrum from PortiaLong's 5 stars to Robertweaver's "Worse than either author could ever have written separately" ;-)
My curiosity is roused a bit by why folks start reading SF again, like our current topic host Mogwaigovroom & also Etrainer. I think my recent interest was piqued by escapism mostly since I enjoy reading nonfiction science zines as much as fiction these days {and both are supplanted now by my new "big" cable TV package}
Looking at reviews on LT I see the entire spectrum from PortiaLong's 5 stars to Robertweaver's "Worse than either author could ever have written separately" ;-)
My curiosity is roused a bit by why folks start reading SF again, like our current topic host Mogwaigovroom & also Etrainer. I think my recent interest was piqued by escapism mostly since I enjoy reading nonfiction science zines as much as fiction these days {and both are supplanted now by my new "big" cable TV package}
15etrainer
#14 - For me, unemployment and resulting time on my hands caused me to want to have several books ready to distract from the unending rejections from my job search! I had been reading mysteries for some time - a few a year, not voraciously. Now, with more time and more books being read, I wanted to have some variety. Science fiction was an interest from many years ago. I had been lurking in this LT group for some time. I decided to ask for some recommendations from this group, and I got some really good suggestions.
I suppose a more interesting question (at least in my case) is why I stopped reading SF in the first place. I have no answer for that.
I suppose a more interesting question (at least in my case) is why I stopped reading SF in the first place. I have no answer for that.
16AHS-Wolfy
@12, Friday is one of my favourites along with Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Hope you enjoy it when you get to it.
17jimmaclachlan
#12 > Friday is OK, but not one of his best works, IMO. Like so many of his adult novels, he gets preachy like most of those after 1970, his sexual attitudes are pretty weird. Still, I'd say Friday was one of the better ones after 1970.
I couldn't get through Variable Star, supposedly the first novel he ever wrote, it was very reminiscent of his last few.
His YA books & most of his short stories are still quite good reading after 40, IMO, & The Moon is a Harsh Mistress is a perennial favorite of mine. I don't think Stranger in a Strange Land aged as well as it could have. Much of what made it stand out when it was written is old hat now.
I couldn't get through Variable Star, supposedly the first novel he ever wrote, it was very reminiscent of his last few.
His YA books & most of his short stories are still quite good reading after 40, IMO, & The Moon is a Harsh Mistress is a perennial favorite of mine. I don't think Stranger in a Strange Land aged as well as it could have. Much of what made it stand out when it was written is old hat now.
18PortiaLong
>17 jimmaclachlan:
I couldn't get through Variable Star, supposedly the first novel he ever wrote, it was very reminiscent of his last few.
I think you mean For Us the Living here and not Variable Star. For Us the Living was the first novel he wrote which was published posthumously - it contains the seeds of many of his future ideas but I wouldn't recommend it to any but a hard-core RAH fan. Variable Star was written by Spider Robinson based on a novel outline that Heinlein never completed - I thought it was quite enjoyable (with a few quibbles I mentioned in my review). (Psst! >14 DugsBooks: - I only gave it 4 stars, not 5.)
I couldn't get through Variable Star, supposedly the first novel he ever wrote, it was very reminiscent of his last few.
I think you mean For Us the Living here and not Variable Star. For Us the Living was the first novel he wrote which was published posthumously - it contains the seeds of many of his future ideas but I wouldn't recommend it to any but a hard-core RAH fan. Variable Star was written by Spider Robinson based on a novel outline that Heinlein never completed - I thought it was quite enjoyable (with a few quibbles I mentioned in my review). (Psst! >14 DugsBooks: - I only gave it 4 stars, not 5.)
19jimmaclachlan
>18 PortiaLong: Oh! Whoops! Thanks for the correction. I guess I haven't tried Variable Star I had it confused with We the Living which I did try to get through.
20RobertDay
>12 aqeeliz:: Just watch out for the "Spung"!
21Unreachableshelf
>8 elleeldritch:
To Sail Beyond the Sunset is one of the last of the related books that you should read if you want to get all the backstory.
I found Friday rather blah, and for some bizarre reason that goes against all my normal taste in literature, I *like* the weird preachy Heinlein novels.
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress is probably the best "starter" novel.
To Sail Beyond the Sunset is one of the last of the related books that you should read if you want to get all the backstory.
I found Friday rather blah, and for some bizarre reason that goes against all my normal taste in literature, I *like* the weird preachy Heinlein novels.
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress is probably the best "starter" novel.
22StormRaven
For Heinlein novels that are not juveniles, but don't get into the later sexual experimentation phase, there are a couple: The Puppet Masters, The Door into Summer, and Double Star are all pretty good, although the social mores of the characters are a bit dated now.
Orphans of the Sky might be classified as a juvenile too, but Heinlein's juveniles are generally better than many people's adult oriented books. It is also useful to remember that the juvenile market wasn't quite as juvenile as it is now, and science fiction authors could get away with a lot, so other than having young characters, his juveniles tend to tackle some reasonably heavy stuff. In that grouping, I always liked Tunnel in the Sky, Citizen of the Galaxy, and Between Planets, (in addition to the juvenile novels that everyone will recommend like Red Planet, Have Spacesuit Will Travel, and Starman Jones) but pretty much all the juveniles are good.
Orphans of the Sky might be classified as a juvenile too, but Heinlein's juveniles are generally better than many people's adult oriented books. It is also useful to remember that the juvenile market wasn't quite as juvenile as it is now, and science fiction authors could get away with a lot, so other than having young characters, his juveniles tend to tackle some reasonably heavy stuff. In that grouping, I always liked Tunnel in the Sky, Citizen of the Galaxy, and Between Planets, (in addition to the juvenile novels that everyone will recommend like Red Planet, Have Spacesuit Will Travel, and Starman Jones) but pretty much all the juveniles are good.
23usnmm2
As much as I like Heinlein, I'll admit that starting with the publication of I Fear No Evil and The Number of The Beast, his works took a turn in a very strange direction.
If I had come across him at that point rather than The Green Hills Of Earth, I might not have enjoyed him as much.
With the exception of J.O.B. A comedy of Justice most of Heinleins later works I tend not to recomend to many people.
I do have the SFBC four volume editions of his "juveniles"
which I read and re-read.
"Four Frontiers"
---"Rocket Ship Galileo" (1947)
---"Space Cadet" (1948)
---"Red Planet" (1949)
---"Farmer in the Sky" (1950)
"To the Stars"
---"Between Planets" (1951)
---"The Rolling Stones" (1952)
---"Starman Jones" (1953)
---"The Star Beast" (1954)
"Infinite Possibilities"
---"Tunnel in the Sky" (1955)
---"Time for the Stars" (1956)
---"Citizen of the Galaxy" (1957)
"Outward Bound"
---"Have Spacesuit---Will Travel" (1958)
---"Starship Troopers" (1959---not quite a Juvenile)
---"Podkayne of Mars" (1963)
Throw in Double Star, Starship Troopers and The Past Through Tomorrow and I'm in Heinlein heaven
If I had come across him at that point rather than The Green Hills Of Earth, I might not have enjoyed him as much.
With the exception of J.O.B. A comedy of Justice most of Heinleins later works I tend not to recomend to many people.
I do have the SFBC four volume editions of his "juveniles"
which I read and re-read.
"Four Frontiers"
---"Rocket Ship Galileo" (1947)
---"Space Cadet" (1948)
---"Red Planet" (1949)
---"Farmer in the Sky" (1950)
"To the Stars"
---"Between Planets" (1951)
---"The Rolling Stones" (1952)
---"Starman Jones" (1953)
---"The Star Beast" (1954)
"Infinite Possibilities"
---"Tunnel in the Sky" (1955)
---"Time for the Stars" (1956)
---"Citizen of the Galaxy" (1957)
"Outward Bound"
---"Have Spacesuit---Will Travel" (1958)
---"Starship Troopers" (1959---not quite a Juvenile)
---"Podkayne of Mars" (1963)
Throw in Double Star, Starship Troopers and The Past Through Tomorrow and I'm in Heinlein heaven
24iansales
I plan to reread Stranger in a Strange Land this month, and blog about it. Should be interesting...
25jimmaclachlan
#23> Excellent list! I agree, except I didn't care that much for 'Job'.
#24> 'Stranger In a Strange Land' was very liberal for its time, but it hasn't aged well. I read it not too long ago & I didn't enjoy it nearly as much. Most younger people that read it now seem to think there is a lot of sexism & homophobia, even though Heinlein was writing against both. I read it for a group read on another board & it was pretty amazing how badly it went over with some people.
#24> 'Stranger In a Strange Land' was very liberal for its time, but it hasn't aged well. I read it not too long ago & I didn't enjoy it nearly as much. Most younger people that read it now seem to think there is a lot of sexism & homophobia, even though Heinlein was writing against both. I read it for a group read on another board & it was pretty amazing how badly it went over with some people.
26davidberry
I used to read and re-read all of Heinleins books avidly especially (Starship Troopers), don't hold that against me please.
The one book I could never re-read was (Farnhams Freehold) And I don't know why as I enjoyed it first time round. Of course for a completely different R A H you could try (Glory Road)
The one book I could never re-read was (Farnhams Freehold) And I don't know why as I enjoyed it first time round. Of course for a completely different R A H you could try (Glory Road)
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