best heinlein story . . . ?

[jockdoubleday]

Hi,
I'm new to the group.
I'm a huge Heinlein fan, and I saw the post: "Best Robert Heinlein Novel." Wondered what you all thought his best story was.
Jock

 

[Lillyanna]

I haven't read many of his short stories; but, and I'm sure I mentioned this in the other, I've always liked The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag. My other favorite is the one about the tasty dino-chicken.

 

[cape_royds]

My favourite of his short stories is "Year of the Jackpot."

 

[Rodders]

I've not read too much Heinlein, but Stranger in a Strange land was a thought provoking classic.

 

[Urlik]

I haven't read many of his short stories; but, and I'm sure I mentioned this in the other, I've always liked The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag. My other favorite is the one about the tasty dino-chicken.

that's also one of his strangest stories and one that I really enjoy reading but I'm torn between the already mentioned Stranger in a Strange Land, Glory Road, Time Enough For Love, The Door into Summer and The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress.

 

[j d worthington]

Um, guys... I think the poster was meaning "short story", not simply "story" of any length.....

 

[dask]

"Goldfish Bowl" is probably my my favorite.

 

[Connavar]

Um, guys... I think the poster was meaning "short story", not simply "story" of any length.....

What do you think of this content table for Expanded Universe ? Is it a good place to start on the masters short stories ? I haven't read read his short stories yet.

Life-Line
Successful Operation
Blowups Happen
Solution Unsatisfactory
The Last Days of the United States
How to Be a Survivor
Pie from the Sky
They Do It With Mirrors
Free Men
No Bands Playing, No Flags Flying
A Bathroom of Her Own
On the Slopes of Vesuvius
Nothing Ever Happens on the Moon
Pandora's Box
Where To?
Cliff and the Calories
Ray Guns and Rocket Ships
The Third Millennium Opens
Who Are the Heirs of Patrick Henry?
"Pravda" Means "Truth"
Inside Intourist
Searchlight
The Pragmatics of Patriotism
Paul Dirac, Antimatter, and You
Larger Than Life
Spinoff
The Happy Days Ahead

 

[Urlik]

Um, guys... I think the poster was meaning "short story", not simply "story" of any length.....

in that case it would have to be Jonathan Hoag, Coventry or Misfit (although Universe and Common Sense are also way up on the list of favourites)

 

[j d worthington]

What do you think of this content table for Expanded Universe ? Is it a good place to start on the masters short stories ? I haven't read read his short stories yet.

To be honest, Connavar, no, I don't think it's the best place to start. While I like the book, it is more than a little uneven. It is also a combination of short stories and essays, not fiction exclusively. My suggestion would be The Past Through Tomorrow, The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag, Assignment in Eternity, or Waldo & Magic, Inc..... (Yes, I realize this covers a large portion, if not the bulk, of his shorter fiction, but -- with the exception of the first named -- none is particularly long, and this would offer a variety of types of fiction he wrote.)

 

[AE35Unit]

I don't think i've read any of his stories yet,unless you count Puppet Masters or Waldo and Magic Inc. which are novellas. I recently got a copy of The Best of Heinlein which I believe contains at least one of those stories that JD mentioned above.

 

[Pyan]

My favourite RAH short has got to be Magic, Inc - Damon Runyon meets Denis Wheatley...

 

[j d worthington]

My favourite RAH short has got to be Magic, Inc - Damon Runyon meets Denis Wheatley...

You know, that may be the best one-line description of that tale I've seen yet....

 

[Connavar]

To be honest, Connavar, no, I don't think it's the best place to start. While I like the book, it is more than a little uneven. It is also a combination of short stories and essays, not fiction exclusively. My suggestion would be The Past Through Tomorrow, The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag, Assignment in Eternity, or Waldo & Magic, Inc..... (Yes, I realize this covers a large portion, if not the bulk, of his shorter fiction, but -- with the exception of the first named -- none is particularly long, and this would offer a variety of types of fiction he wrote.)

Waldo & Magic and Jonathan Hoag are combined for the short story collection that is called the fantaties of RAH according to amazon review i read. Fantasy novellas is how that collection is described. I thought Hoag was sf story ?

That collection was so cheap 89 kr which is like 11 dollars. Compared that to short story collection Wild Thyme,Green Magic(Jack Vance) that i ordered which set me back $40. If it wasnst JV it would scare me off that price.

Since i ordered that collection already cause it was so cheap any of those stories that are famous RAHs ? Life-line i know is in The man who sold the moon and part of that,that series.

 

[j d worthington]

Waldo & Magic and Jonathan Hoag are combined for the short story collection that is called the fantaties of RAH according to amazon review i read. Fantasy novellas is how that collection is described. I thought Hoag was sf story ?

No, not really. It is fantasy or, at most, science fantasy. Written with the same sort of approach he used with his sf, but without the grounding in the hard sciences one tends to associate with his work. Very good stories, however, in those collections....

Since i ordered that collection already cause it was so cheap any of those stories that are famous RAHs ? Life-line i know is in The man who sold the moon and part of that,that series.

A couple: "Blowups Happen" is also part of the "Future History" series, while "Solution Unsatisfactory" is one of his more famous tales written as Anson McDonald; still a chilling story today, even though there are flaws in the science as well as other things. Also, "Free Men" is somewhat famous, and somewhat controversial; but it is a good taste of Heinlein's style, manner, and position at the time it was written.

 

[Connavar]

Good to know about those stories in that collection. RAH

Flaws in science have never been my problem i'm all about the story. Thats why i read RAH hard sf sure but with alot of story,ideas in it. Some authors of that type tend to forget the story,ideas that arent science oriented. They try to impress with the newest science but the other important elements.

I will stay away from the future history stories in the Expanded Universe and enjoy reading RAH short stories for the first time. After that i plan to get the first few Future history novels,collections anyway.

 

[revelshade]

If I was introducing someone to Heinlein now I would definitely start with Hoag just because fantasy (or science fantasy) doesn't date the way sf does.

Personal favorites?

Our Fair City - wisecracking reporters versus corrupt politicians, assisted by Kitten (not a cat), my second favorite non-human Heinlein character. Why has this never been adapted for TV?

Lost Legacy - kind of a guilty pleasure, because the whole thing is purest wish-fulfillment, but I love how the story starts with a small discovery and then grows as the implications are explored, ultimately reaching backward into prehistory and forward to a transcendent climax and a haunting, elegaic coda.

Lifeline - this is a first published story? Incredible. Great last line (Heinlein was a master of last lines) and Pinero's layman's explanation of how his machine works, using an analogy from electrical engineering, is a textbook example of great sf writing, effortlessly making an outrageous idea seem utterly plausible. And seriously, first published story?

Ordeal in Space - great misleading title: the only outer space action is in flashback. A man faces his fear trying to perform a simple, unobserved heroic act. Extra points if you are, like Heinlein, a cat lover.

The Long Watch - the best and simplest statement of Heinlein's philosophy, and another amazing story I can't believe has never been adapted. The hook is irresistible: a man sits on the floor, back to the wall, in a dark room. He is smoking a cigarette. Beside him on the floor a geiger counter chatters to itself. He idly exhales smoke in its direction...

By His Bootstraps - my favorite example of what I've always called the fair-play time travel story (sometimes called fatalistic time travel): there are no paradoxes or alternate timelines. You are free to travel into your past because anything you choose to do there has always been a part of history, you just didn't know it. Another great closing line and a story that fits together like a four-dimensional jigsaw puzzle.

Examples could be multiplied, as the saying goes. Anyone?

 

[Urlik]

Pinero's layman's explanation of how his machine works, using an analogy from electrical engineering, is a textbook example of great sf writing, effortlessly making an outrageous idea seem utterly plausible.

Heinlein was a master of this.
I love the explanation of how a forcefield works in Glory Road using the analogy that radio is like a telegraph without the wires to explain how a forcefield is an electric fence without the wires

 

[revelshade]

Heinlein was a master of this.
I love the explanation of how a forcefield works in Glory Road using the analogy that radio is like a telegraph without the wires to explain how a forcefield is an electric fence without the wires

That's a good one. For sheer chutzpah you can't beat the "explanation" of the principle behind Jacob Burroughs' dimensional doohickey in Number of the Beast. I wish I had the book handy - it's something about how if you shove a gyroscope it moves at right angles to the push. As I recall Deety explains that if you apply force from six orthogonal directions at once a gyroscope will disappear, flying off at right angles to our universe! I imagine Heinlein grinning wickedly as he typed that little bit of hocus pocus.

 

[manephelien]

By His Bootstraps is definitely my favorite Heinlein short, and one of the few time travel yarns that I've actually enjoyed in recent years.