Have Spacesuit - Will Travel (Mass Market Paperback)

by Robert A. Heinlein (Author) "You see, I had this space suit..." (more)
Key Phrases: chin valve, mother thing, touched helmets, Tombaugh Station, Professor Reisfeld, Skyway Soap (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up-Robert Heinlein's 1958 story comes to life and is still timely almost half a century after it was published.. Teenager Kip Russell, infatuated with the idea of traveling to the Moon, enters a contest to win such an opportunity. However, his dream becomes a nightmareâ€"and a space soap operaâ€"when he comes upon a race of space creatures who have kidnapped a little girl from Earth's Moon Station. Rescuing Pee Wee lands Kip with a traveling companion who is very smart but much in need of protection. Fortunately, or so the kids believe at first, another alien being, whom they call the "Mother Thing," is available as both advisor and space guide. Their travels take them to Pluto, where they escape the clutches of Bronx-gangster humans, and then out to galaxies beyond our own. Eventually, Kip and Pee Wee stand trial in the stead of all humanity, a race charged with its rampant disregard for peace and environmental justice. Bruce Coville's young audiobook company treats this tale handily, with each character well acted by an age-appropriate reader. Pee Wee's childish voice sometimes requires adjustment to the volume level, but she and Kip carry the major portion of the tale between them, with interesting and appropriate musical effects added during chapter breaks and to the voice of the Mother Thing. Heinlein's writing stands the test of time, and contemporary youth will be inspired by the visions of space travel their own grandparents might have had at their age.-Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Review
Full Cast Audio continues its tradition of family-friendly audio with this title from science fiction great Robert A. Heinlein, in which a boy enters a contest with hopes of winning a trip to the moon. Instead, he wins a genuine used space suit that turns out to be his ticket to interstellar adventure. Narrator Will McAuliffe is supported by a full cast. In this audio program, some dialogue attribution ("he said," "she said") has been deleted since it's unnecessary in full-cast narration. This makes for a thoroughly enjoyable listening experience. Heinlein's classic YA novel and Full Cast Audio are a perfect match. S.D. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to the Audio CD edition. --AudioFile --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Del Rey (May 12, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345324412
• ISBN-13: 978-0345324412
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (96 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #666,019 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars great book, March 28, 1999

By	Patricia O'Tuama "rissa" (Illinois) - See all my reviews

This was the first science fiction book I ever read, I found it in the public library when I was 12 years old, was intrigued by the title and took it home to read. I enjoyed it immensely and went on to devour Heinlein's other kid's classic, "Podkayne of Mars" which I thought was equally wonderful.

Thirty-five years later, Kip, Peewee and the Mother Thing have lost none of their charm. What I found most interesting about this book, however, was how very much things have changed since this it was first published: the story begins with Kip's attempting to win first prize in a soap slogan contest (he sends in 5,000+ entries) the grand prize for which is a trip to the moon. He doesn't win the trip but he does win Oscar-the-Traveling-Spacesuit, which turns out to be the best prize after all. Back to the contest: Kip can send in the actual contest form included with each bar of soap or he can send in a "reasonable facsimile." He entertains the idea of photographing the form 5,000 times before deciding that's impractical, so he settles instead for collecting the forms from the people who have bought the soap. I kept thinking, so why doesn't he just use the photocopier when it occured to me there weren't any photocopiers when this book was written. There weren't any intergrated circuits either, never mind microprocessors, which would have been necessary to achieve colonization of the moon in the first place. I also found it interesting that although when Kip graduates from high school he is reasonably well-educated in sciences and math (thanks to self-teaching -- and a diatribe from Heinlein on what he considers to be the sorry state of 1950's high school education) because he doesn't get a scholarship, he is faced with having to work while attending the local (read mediocre) state college. This book predates the arrival of college loans and grants as well.

I did like the fact that the other main character in this book is a girl -- it was good of Heinlein to provide his readers such an intelligent and resourceful role model.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't Be Fooled By The Intended Age..., October 21, 2000

By	VoodooLord7 (Oklahoma, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Have Space Suit, Will Travel (School & Library Binding)

This book is good reading for anyone. I reccommend it especially to young science fiction fans, or younger readers who want a good first taste of sci-fi. However, this book is excellent no matter who you are. I am an experienced science fiction reader, and I put this book right up there with anything else by Heinlein. Sure, it doesn't have the free love bits and controversial stuff of RAH's later works, but that's not why you started reading Heinlein in the first place anyway, is it?

This book is a science fiction classic, period.

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A showcase of Heinlein's storytelling prowess, February 13, 2002

By	Daniel Jolley "darkgenius" (Shelby, North Carolina USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Have Space Suit--Will Travel represents Heinlein at his storytelling best. Free of the esoteric themes that would appear in his later writings, this book is pure science fiction seemingly written solely for the enjoyment of the reader. Originally published in 1958, the story stands up well even today and will surely be read and enjoyed by untold generations to come. I am sure that many a young person read this book and yearned to reach the moon in the decade before the Eagle finally landed.

This is generally classified as one of Heinlein's juvenile books, but Heinlein's writing is for all ages. I am sure the book appeals to many young people because its protagonists are themselves young people: Kip is a high school senior, and Peewee is a girl of about twelve. Kip develops an overpowering urge to go to the moon, and he is lucky enough to win a real space suit in a contest. Heinlein's description of the many different features of the suit is fascinating. Resigning himself to selling the suit for college tuition money, Kip goes for one last walk; somewhat playfully calling out on the radio, he is surprised to hear an answer to his call. He is amazed when a space ship soon lands in his backyard and a decidedly alien creature comes out and collapses. A second ship lands, an entity gets out and conks Kip on the head, and the next thing Kip knows he is trapped inside a space ship on his way to the moon, suddenly in the company of a little girl. His captors are "Wormfaces," a species of alien that has been in hiding on the moon, looking at the earth with evil intentions. Peewee introduces Kip to the "Mother thing," a Vegan entity (and interstellar policeman) who radiates love and warmth, effectively communicates with the pair in a bird song type of speech, and inspires undying love and devotion. The book revolves around the youngsters' attempt to rescue the Mother Thing from the Wormfaces and eventually return to earth. Along the way, they endure captivity on Pluto, stare death in the face a few times, and ultimately find themselves representing Earth in an interstellar courtroom, the very future of earth shakily balanced in their own young hands.

There are juvenile elements here, such as Kip's tendency to hold back-and-forth conversations with his space suit (whom he dubs "Oscar"), but Robert Heinlein does throw in several sections full of mathematical formulas, high-level theorizing, and advanced scientific concepts. I dare say that these areas of tecnospeak will turn off some young readers and may well stymie a good number of adults. Aside from the mathematics of the thing, Heinlein can make any kind of scientific notion sound feasible and believable, and that is part of his magic and effectiveness. Most of all, though, Heinlein presents vividly real characters doing exceedingly interesting, heroic things. Heinlein's couple of technical forays may be literary speedbumps, but young readers will revel in and be inspired by this book. Adults who have not yet lost all of their imagination will also relate to the main characters well and delight in a good story line which takes the reader from the earth to the moon to Pluto to another galaxy and back again.