Robert A. Heinlein

[Guy Fawkes]

I read "Stranger in a Strange Land" a few weeks ago. Since then, I've read "Starship Troopers" and I'm working on "Time Enough for Love." I have to say, Heinlein is GREAT! I must read all of his books! (You should, too!)

[flamingyouth]

1. Never thirst

;)

[La Lioness Priyanka]

2. i liked it too

bit of a male fantasy for me and slightly homophobic ...but i still liked it a lot.

[7th_Sephiroth]

5. for us the living

his first book, only published after his death

[redqueen]

3. I like his stuff too

Time Enough for Love is one of my favorites by him.

Definitely not for everyone, but if you're into Sci-Fi, he's worth a read.

[bloodyjack]

4. Stranger in a Strange Land IS great

I've been meaning to pick up The Cat Who Walks Through Walls on the strength of the title once I get through some other stuff

[jukes]

6. "farnham's freehold"

is another. he's odd; might have been a proto-libertarian.

[Guy Fawkes]

9. He definitely was a liberal.

[Zensea]

12. I somewhat disagree, he's more complex

I've read everything he wrote except for the last couple of things where I think he could have used an editor.
My favorite is Moon is a Harsh Mistress.

I don't think I would really say Heinlein was a liberal, politically.
He was definitely a libertarian, but that's different than being a liberal.
He does have aspects of being a social liberal.

Wikipedia has quite a bit on this complexity here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_A._Heinlein#Heinlein.27s_politics

& here

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_A._Heinlein

[ReadTomPaine]

31. I'd have to agreed here...

I preferred the satire in the film Starship Troopers over the politics of the book, myself.

RTP

[Wilber_Stool]

7. There was a Heinlein flood

on the newsgroup where I get my audio books. I didn't get any. They weren't read very well.

[Crachet2004]

8. 'Starman Jones'...my favorite; while not as weighty as some of his later..

Work, still my favorite Heinlein.

[redqueen]

10. I gotta say Star Beast is my favorite

Maybe it's just because it was one of the first I read by him as a kid, I dunno... I've always loved Sci Fi and started early... but that book has a special place in my heart. :)

[Az_lefty]

11. JOB: a comedy of justice. One of my favorites.

also, The Number of the Beast.

[liontamer]

13. I like his books

but I woulnd't say he is GREAT. While he's not a misogynist per se, I hate how he draws female characters(yes even Friday)

[redqueen]

14. I gotta agree with you there

I love his books, reading this thread has reminded me of some I haven't thought of in a while, and I loved them all. Still, his sexism rings out like a bell.

[absolutezero]

27. didn't he write in the 50s?

by modern standards he's sexist, back then he wasn't

Starship Troopers is still my favorite book of all time though

[La Lioness Priyanka]

17. and gay men

dont like his attitude toward them either

[HawkerHurricane]

15. Rah rah R.A.H.

While Heilien had some Libertarian/Ayn Rand-ian moments, he was NEVER a fascist. He had a fear that too much democracy would let the 'masses' vote themselves 'bread and circuses' but according to his friends and co-authors he believed democracy was the best system of government.

His juvenile's (Rocket Ship Galileo, Podkayne of Mars, Between Planets, Tunnel in the Sky, The Star Beast, Starman Jones, Space Cadet, Farmer in the Sky) are all still great reads, if getting dated... note how often he talks of Boy Scouts...

Starship Troopers is his most loved/hated novel... militaristic to be sure, it describes a system of government where the right to vote and hold public office (INCLUDING police!) requires public service (military service counts). To quote from memory "The ultimate power in a democracy is the right to vote; to earn it requires risking the ultimate sacrifice. Thus, the power to vote is balanced by the responsibility of public service."

Too much, incredible amounts of material and much of it flammable. I love Heinlein's work, nothing more need be said.

[tjwash]

16. Starship Troopers.

Not the movie, the book. He wrote it in 1959, and it was a showcase for his politics. Some examples are only those who have completed a term of military service get to have the right to vote. His theory is that military people have learned how to work together as a team, and so will vote for things that benefit the populous as a whole and not just themselves. Of course, anyone who has ever actually been in the military, and seen the shameless back-stabbing that goes on among officers at promotion time, will know better. He also likes corporal punishment, in the form of flogging, and sort of reminds me of Mel Gibson, in the way that this show's his unconscious urge to engage in S&M, much as some of his other books expressed his homophobia.

[Paladin]

20. The Movie Was Better Than The Book

Less crypto-fascism, more production values.

[achtung_circus]

24. I'm going to disagree

One could only vote IF one had performed a period of public service. It might be military service and Johnny ended up in the Mobile Infantry, but ANY public service qualified. Johhnny's friend was a physicist- that counted.

[absolutezero]

30. The idea was this

the right to vote is the right to exert power over the people. You only deserve that right if you were willing to serve the people and possibly die to protect them.
In the MI, all of the officers were promoted up from the lower ranks. No one can be a Lt without being a private first, the military was structured differently, and patriotism was the motivation to join in the first place so the officers probably don't have the politics of today's army

[EstimatedProphet]

18. I never did like him

I admit, aprtly because of his political views (he may not have been a fascist, but he was a militarist), but also because in my opinion his writing came of as glib. All his characters are glib-they know exactly what's right and are so sure of themselves.
Sorry, just doesn't appeal to me.

[kaitykaity]

19. Time Enough For Love is his best book, IMHO.

There's a separate caligraphy book of LL's saying.
You should get it.

Also don't miss Number of the Beast. LL and company
show up in it as well.

For humor, try "Friday."

edit: typo.

[lapislzi]

21. Hear, hear!

LL is among my favorite philosophers.

We could all do with a little polymorphous perversity.

:evilgrin:

[kaitykaity]

22. Like the name. Hee hee.

I know where it comes from. lol.

"Ever notice how much they look like orchids? Lovely."

He's the only philosopher whose quotes I could ever
remember.

:hi:

[Guy Fawkes]

26. is the LL saying book seperate from the "intermission" in the book?

(about page 200ish)

[kaitykaity]

29. Not separate. One and the same.

Nicely done, too, although mine's kinda old and worn
now.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

23. Although most of his stories were okay

Most of them were, on the whole, predictable. And I disliked his habit of writing himself into almost every story as a crusty old curmudgeon with all the answers. It was blatant and more than a bit tiresome.

[China_cat]

25. Read "Grumbles from the Grave"

It'll change your mind.

[Fleshdancer]

28. Time Enough For Love was wonderful

My husband is a Heinlein fanatic, but the only novel I've ever been able to complete is Time Enough For Love...I liked it although I'm not a big scifi person. I long to be Ishtar though. I bought him a first edition Stranger In A Strange Land a few years ago.

[BigMcLargehuge]

32. Starship Troopers is my favorite followed by

The Puppet Masters
Double Star
Time Enough for Love
Stranger in a Strange Land
Revolt in 2100
Job: A comedy of Justice

My least favorite is The Number of the Beast, that was just terrible.