What is your favorite book? (Robert A Heinlein)

[MythingLink]

The one book that will always stand at the top of my list is Stranger In A Strange Land. It was the first Heinlein book I read and it fascinated me ... still does.

I loved the characters and the premise behind the book. It was a fantastic look into humanity. Well I think so at least.

Cheers,

 

[mnmwmnm]

My own personal favorite used to be Stranger in a Strange Land too, but then it was usurped for a brief time by The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. I think they have settled in a comfortable balance of character and emotion with SIAST, and ideas that I just can't help but to love in TMIAHM.
Of course, Time Enough for Love is running a dead heat with Expanded Universe for second on the (highly subjective) readability scale.
I think that I will reserve the right to retract any or all of these statements as I read mor Heinlein.

 

[rde]

No question: The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Stranger... comes a distant second. The latter is interesting because it's Heinlein's only chunky novel that isn't irredeemably sh*te. I've always found that the quality of a Heinlein novel is inversely proportional to its size. I still wake up screaming when I dream about The Number of the Beast.

 

[Prophet4Profit]

I must say that my personal favorite is Starship Troopers. Double Star is a not-so-close second to it... I cannot stand much of anything that he did in the 80's though... number of the beast... eeeesh:dead: ! The Cat That Walks Through Walls... ewwwwww:dead: ....

 

[Bayleaf48]

:blush: The only book that I've read of his is 'Starship Troopers' & I really enjoyed it :rolly2: :blush:

 

[degrams7320]

stranger or no

architect :rolly2: :rolly2: :rolly2: :rolly2: :rolly2: :rolly2: :rolly2: :rolly2: architect


Stranger in a strange land is Heinleins best work but the cat who walks through walls comes in straight behind it.

 

[captainneelix]

Stranger It Is

"Stranger In A Strange Land" has to be his best novel. I think that the one that would come in a close second would be "Time Enough For Love." I read that one in about 2 hours, it captivated me so much. "Starship Troopers" would be my third choice.

 

[SilverCaladan]

Wow I'm amazed that everyone likes Stranger in a Strange Land so much. It was a really good book but I like two of his others better. Podkayne of Mars was my second favorite; i really like the main character's brother . and my favorite was JOB: a Comedy of Justice. I like all the twists and turns in that book, as well as how he makes out Satan to be the good guy and the one willing to help Alex. It's very different from the books of this ilk, and I like it a lot.

 

[Tabitha]

Stranger was one of the first Heinlein's I read, and I was pretty dazzled by it. However, after a recent binge of his works, I think it pales in comparison to some of his other work. In particular I adored The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and Time Enough for Love - his future history series, partly surrounding Lazarus Long are my favourites overall, but I get frustrated when we only get a fleeting glimpse of Lazarus in some of the other book - To Sail Beyond the Sunset and Number of the Beast.

Job I found hard going - the resolution was interesting enough, but I doubt he was the first author to put Satan and God in these kind of roles - I seem to have come across quite a few stories that challenge the accepted 'wisdom' of christianity for fictional purposes.

I am quite the fan of his juveniles also - Tunnel in the Sky and Have Spacesuit, Will Travel are particular faves.

 

[SilverCaladan]

I Will Fear No Evil was very interesting.
There was a bit more sex and sexuality in there than I could have cared for, but that's alright.

 

[The DeadMan]

Glory Road is my favorite with Citizen Of The Galaxy a very close second.

 

[Cloud]

Time Enough for Love.

 

[Carolyn Hill]

The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress is my favorite.

My second favorite, for sentimental reasons, is Glory Road.

 

[manephelien]

The Cat Who Walks Through Walls, closely followed by Time Enough For Love. Although it must be said that I skipped parts of the latter in my teens, the Oedipus thing made me really uncomfortable.

 

[Spade]

Starship Troopers, followed by The Cat Who Walks Through Walls. Those are the only two I've read, granted... but still.

 

[Perpetual Man]

I'm going to agree with Cloud, I loved (ho ho) Time Enough For Love, particularly the character of Lazarus Long. Closely followed by The Man Who Sold The Moon (Short stories if I recall) and Methusalah's Children (That Long fellow appears again)

 

[Snowdog]

When I was younger, it was Starship Troopers, with Glory Road just behind. Having re-read most of them recently, I see Starship Troopers with a different eye and it has been relegated behind The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress. Glory Road still comes second.

 

[The Technophobe]

The Moon is Harsh Mistress is by far his best - it's the only one I still have -but, to be objective, I had better read them agian and report back-

 

[The Ace]

"The past through tomorrow," visionary, entertaining and thought-provoking, and as for, "The green, green hills of Earth," Sheer class!

 

[OldBrownShoe08]

First post here, seems life a good forum and I'm glad to find others who like Heinlein as well.

I've got to go with, "The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress" as his best. Heinlein's amazing inventiveness in creating the creole language is very refreshing. When I first picked up the book I had to reread a page a couple of times to figure out what was being said, but, by the end I found myself thinking in the choppy sentences in which the characters speak. It is also a very good example of Heinlein's overall message of freedom and, of course, TANSTAAFL.

On a slightly different track I have to say that, "The Number of the Beast" is my least favorite of Heinlein's stories. It seems like he is constantly preaching about his concept of the total authority of a captain in space and, while the idea seems correct, it often feels like he is beating a dead horse. The character of Hilda in particular seems very whiny until she goes over to the extraordinary authority way of thought, at which point everyone is convinced of the captain's authority, but there are even more speeches about it.

Does anybody have any differing opinions on "Moon" or "Number of the Beats" anything that could help me to enjoy "Beat" more?