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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
The good, the bad, and .. you decide,
By
This review is from: Heinlein in Dimension, a Critical Analysis. (Paperback)
I waited a long time before deciding to to buy and read this book. Heinlein was the author of the first SF I ever read; I didn't read anything by Panshin until twenty years later. However, I like them both, in different ways and for different reasons. While I cannot say I agree with all of the observations, criticisms, and conclusions Panshin has made about Heinlein -- I don't -- "Heinlein in Dimension" *did* make me think a bit more about the Heinlein I've read. Seeing how Panshin viewed him and his work has made me consider my own opinions on the matter. If you're looking for an RAH cheerleading book, this isn't it. If you're looking for a completely objective and unbiased book about Heinlein and his work, I don't think this is it either. If, however, you're familiar with Heinlein (even a fan), are looking for someone *trying* to be objective about the subject, and can read it with the continual remembrance that you're reading someone's *opinion*, then you might find "Heinlein in Dimension" worthwhile -- in viewpoint-stretching ways if not as pure analysis.
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A Place to Start,
By
This review is from: Heinlein in Dimension: A Critical Analysis (Hardcover)
For anyone looking for background or critical information on Heinlein and his works, this book is a good place to start. It is well written, informative, interesting, and also attempts to explain what is meant by "Science Fiction." Panshin also reveals his views on what a story should consist of. However, as a work of criticism, the book is very flawed. Panshin often makes assertions that cannot be backed up by fact, and his anyalysis is many times far to narrow to be taken seriously. If nothing else, Panshin's book is a good place to find key issues of contention that are often brought up by Heinlein critics. It is not, however, a place to find praise of Heinlein as an author or final answers to any questions regarding his works. Heinlein himself claimed that he never read the book nor met Alexei Panshin.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Heinlein as literature: A serious, worthy critical exercise,
By
This review is from: Heinlein in dimension,: A critical analysis (Paperback)
Frankly, I don't understand why this book does not have a higher rating here at Amazon, since it is a worthy effort that merits close study and thoughtful reflection. Panshin's work was the first close reading of any modern science fiction writer and stands as a serious--and largely successful, in my view--attempt to consider Heinlein's work to that date (1968, through "The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress"). As he writes in his introduction, Panshin's goals included tracing Heinlein's development as a writer, analyzing the characteristics of his writing, and teasing out both what makes his works successful _as literary works_ and fail _as literary works_. I suspect it is non-recognition of this latter point that accounts for some of the less-than-favorable reviews here; if you are looking for a book that says, "Gee, what neat ideas Heinlein had!" you're better off looking elsewhere. This is a work of literary criticism; its goals are to (1) consider Heinlein's work as a whole and tease out those characteristics that make it "Heinlein's work" and not someone else's and (2) probe and reflect on the works that comprise the whole and what makes them work well or not as science fiction and and as works of fiction more generally.
Panshin lays out his biases at the start--not about Heinlein, but rather about what he feels constitutes good science fiction, good storytelling, and good writing. He then runs through Heinlein's works up to the time of writing and assesses them in light of the standards he has laid out. Heinlein's writing, he argues, may be broken down into three periods: the period of his apprenticeship as a writer, lasting to 1942; the period of his greatest success--both monetarily and, in Panshin's view, artistically--lasting to 1958; and a period of "confusion" still ongoing at the time of writing, in which Heinlein seemed to forget, as Panshin would have it, that the goal of his writing was to tell a story rather than lecture. Following this chronologically themed overview/review, Panshin then takes up Heinlein's craft and concludes with a section addressing a number of problematic thematic issues that recur in his work (sexual relations, libertarian politics, mysticism) and why Panshin believes they are problematic. The thrust of his comments here is generally guided NOT by whether Panshin agrees with Heinlein's apparent views on the matters at hand, but again more on how Heinlein's handling of these themes enhances or more often detracts from his fiction _as fiction_. Personally, I find most of Panshin's assessments to be quite on the mark and even those places where I disagree with him, it is largely only a matter of degree. It does not lessen my enjoyment of Heinlein's work--if anything I think it will enhance it. At the same time, I believe he puts an unerring finger on many aspects of the late writer's output that I have variously found interesting, troubling, pleasing, perplexing, or simply dumbfounding (in both the positive and negative senses) over the years. The book is quite fair-minded, meaning that Panshin adheres rather rigorously to the program he has laid out for himself. He gives this particular emperor credit where credit is due, and tells him he is naked on those occasions when his R.A.H. forgot to put on his robe (or silk bathrobe, which apparently in Heinlein's case would have been more appropriate according to those who knew him). If your interest in Heinlein goes beyond the "gee, what neat ideas!" or "gee, riproaring adventures!" level and you are interested in considering Heinlein's output in terms of craft and as a body of work, then this book is recommended.
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