Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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39 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Some of the Stories that Made Heinlein's Reputation, December 14, 2000
There are two ways to appreciate this collection of two short stories, a novella, and a novel.First is on its own merit. The novella "Revolt in 2100" stands at the beginning of a long tradition of undergrounds battling future tyrannys. Here Heinlein gives us a Masonic cabal subverting a future American theocracy. Its protagonist gradually finds himself, for the love of a woman, transformed from guard of the Prophet to a revolutionary and questioning his own most basic beliefs. "Coventry" is one of those stories about what happens when convicts are allowed to build their own societies without supervision. Its literary critic protagonist doesn't find the liberating anarchy he expects amongst society's outcasts. In the novel METHUSELAH'S CHILDREN, a group of long-lived humans flee a resentful Earth and head out to the stars. It's neatly divided between a first half featuring a chase thriller and the more philosophical second half with its multiple alien contacts and what they say about man's purpose in the universe. One story, "Misfit", is not that interesting in itself, but, like the entire collection, reveals a lot about Heinlein's appeal. It's detail-filled tale of a mathematical genius working on a futuristic Cosmic Construction Corps project to turn an asteroid into a space station probably inspired many a future aerospace engineer. Those familiar with the science fiction of the late thirties and forties, when Heinlein got his start, will be reminded, by these tales, why he was so appealing. His tales are filled with minutae of political thought, engineering, military tactics, biology, and human psychology. Almost as much a Renaissance man as his famous Lazarus Long, first introduced in METHUSELAH'S CHILDREN, Heinlein speculated on the future of many things. However, as this collection shows, he was also a man of his time. Think FDR's CCC for the Cosmic Construction Corps or note the references to Freud and Alfred Korzybski's General Semantics, remnants of the days when science fiction writers were convinced social sciences would soon produce the predictability of the physical sciences. Heinlein fans unfamiliar with this edition will appreciate notes by Heinlein on the Future History stories he didn't write and why. Those who have categorized Heinlein as a fascist or anarchist may want to rethink their opinions after reading this collection, especially "Coventry".
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
4 stories for the price of one..., April 25, 2003
These were some of Heinlein's earlier works, and as such, don't have the length and depth of some of his later, Hugo-Award winning works. Here's a short synopsis and review of each of the four stories. The first and the last are longer, multi-chaptered "short books", while the two in the middle can more appropriately be termed short-stories.Revolt in 2100 - America is now a theocratic dictatorship ruled by the "Prophet" who is really a corrupt leader dependent upon brutal suppression of dissidents to maintain power. John Lyle, the main character, is a graduate of West Point and a young officer who, through the love of a priestess, joins the Revolution and overthrows this dictatorship. The story is somewhat shallow for those who are familiar with Heinlein's later works, but it is still entertaining. One thing Heinlein never did well was write romance. The interactions between his male and female characters are awkward - had he developed the talent for it, he could really flesh out the motives of many of his characters. Coventry - Dave McKinnon, banished to "Coventry" for striking a man and refusing psycological adjustment, finds out just how brutal and uncivilized man can be when he enters the wall-less prison. A nice short story, but with an unresolved (and somewhat predictable) ending Misfit - Here we are introduced to A.J. Libby, who will play a part in the next story. He is a young man working in a space construction crew, but discovers that he has a remarkable talent for mathematics. Extremely short, its more like a preview for the last story included in the collection. Methuselah's Children - The Howard Families - 100,000 members strong, are having their civil liberties trod upon because their unnatural lifespans lead other humans to believe they possess the "fountain of youth" Lazarus Long, a rogueish character, leads the Families to steal an interstellar spaceship and pilots it to two alien planets before finally returning to earth. This was by far the best of the four, very entertaining, but in some parts, Heinlein delves a little too far into esoteric subjects that are of interest only to physicists and theoretical mathematicians - there are passages I skipped because they proved too difficult to understand for someone just looking for a fun fiction experience. Altogether, this is a worthwhile purchase.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The capstone of Heinlein's Future History, August 2, 2000
This volume is comprised of the two books that complete the original Future History series. More action-oriented than The Man Who Sold the Moon, and more focused than The Green Hills of Earth, the reputation of the Heinlein's Future History lies primarily with the longish story "If This Goes On -" and the short novel Methuselah's Children. "If This Goes On -" tells the story of John Lyle, a young legate in the temple guard of the army of the Prophet, head of the religious organization that has seized control of America's government. Lyle becomes enamored of Sister Judith, one of the Virgins of the Lord who personally serve the Prophet, and quickly becomes disillusioned with the politicking and corruption he discovers is commonplace there. He and his roommate, the cynical Zebediah Jones, soon find themselves embroiled in a plot to overthrow the Prophet himself. This story features plenty of action and suspense, as well as Heinlein's usual expertise in all matters military. The notion that American democracy might someday fall to religious fanatics is a powerful one, and provides a bold backdrop for Lyle's adventures. The short stories "Coventry" and "Misfit" serve to make the transition to the more mature civilization described in Methuselah's Children. This novel focuses on Lazarus Long of the Howard Families, a group which has for some generations been breeding for longevity, (i.e., longer lives). As a result, members of the Howards' bloodlines live nearly double the average expected life span. Having kept their existence secret for over a century, the Howards choose to make themselves known to the rest of humanity, with dire consequences. Only through the quick actions of Lazarus Long, the oldest living Howard, are the families able to escape with their lives, and try to find a new home among the stars. Lazarus Long is very significant in Heinlein's oeuvre, being featured prominently in the sexually charged Time Enough for Love among others. In fact, it can be argued that towards the end of his career, Heinlein himself began to identify very closely with Lazarus Long. In any case, Long is a wonderful creation - tough, crotchety, smart, but not super-smart, capable, confident, always ready for trouble, but never looking for it, sometimes crude, but always gallant with ladies, always looking out for number one, but not afraid to stand up for innocents when the odds merit the attempt - this is the Lazarus Long that Heinlein fans know and love. This book is an absolute must for Heinlein fans, and a fine selection for science fiction readers who are more interested in social patterns than in physics and engineering.
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