January SF BOTM: The Moon is a Harsh Mistress

[Starbreaker]

Welcome to the inaugural edition of the Science Fiction Book of the Month Club. In January 2011, we will be reading The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein. Everyone is invited to join in the discussion. If things go well, I hope to be doing this for many months/years to come.

The novel is about a lunar colony's revolt against rule from Earth. Originally serialized in Worlds of If (December 1965, January, February, March, April 1966), the book received the Hugo Award for best science fiction novel in 1967,and was nominated for the Nebula Award in 1966. Heinlein's original title for the novel was The Brass Cannon, replaced with the final title at the publisher's request.

Wikipedia
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon Canda

 

[label]

Looking forward it!

By the way, those looking for an electronic copy can PM me.

 

[Snaploud]

Do we wait until a certain day (giving everybody a chance to join the discussion from the beginning), or do we just start the discussion?

 

[theenglish]

I read chapter one last night. I always find it very interesting just how "wrong" writers got computers. Not a criticism as you can't fault people for not being prescient about this, just an observation.

Nice set up establishing the moon as a people who view themselves as a separate culture and society, albeit one dependent on Earth. A dynamic similar to Hal and Dave with respect to Mike.

May I suggest a "reading schedule" for the months discussion? Part I of the novel to be discussed during week 1, part II during week 2, etc. Would that work for people?

 

[label]

Either a schedule, or perhaps a "finish book by Date" so we can discuss.....perhaps the 15th or 20th ?

 

[Switch]

TANSTAAFL!

I read chapter one last night. I always find it very interesting just how "wrong" writers got computers. Not a criticism as you can't fault people for not being prescient about this, just an observation.

Don't speak too soon, what with everything moving into 'the cloud' and all...

 

[sportzkid]

I have to say this book is one of my favorites of all time. Such a great mix of great science fiction, philosophy, politics, revolution etc. Be interesting to hear what people have to say.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Looks like this is a book I need to put on my birthday wish list.

 

[label]

So I've started the book last night. So far the main characters diction is making it difficult to read in places for me. Stuff like "At main door in back one was using bull voice, drowned out crowd and sound system." I can almost hear a caveman talking when the syntax is like this.

In any case, other than that, so far so good. I've been very busy lately so I'm only a couple chapters into it. A few places have made me chuckle so far..........

 

[Klaus]

I'm still trying to scare up a copy, mine is AWOL or lent out... hopefully I'll get one today

 

[Starbreaker]

I'm about 1/4 of the way through it now. This is my third Heinlein book after The Cat Who Walks Through Walls and Starship Troopers. He really has a knack for dialogue that a lot of authors don't. I could just sit and read an entire book of his that was just people sitting in a room and talking. O'Kelley and Knott's banter is really quite great.

 

[I Grok Spock]

So I've started the book last night. So far the main characters diction is making it difficult to read in places for me. Stuff like "At main door in back one was using bull voice, drowned out crowd and sound system." I can almost hear a caveman talking when the syntax is like this.

I find it helpful to imagine them talking with Boris Badenov's accent:

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHqy-chPMnM[/yt]

 

[label]

So I've started the book last night. So far the main characters diction is making it difficult to read in places for me. Stuff like "At main door in back one was using bull voice, drowned out crowd and sound system." I can almost hear a caveman talking when the syntax is like this.

I find it helpful to imagine them talking with Boris Badenov's accent:

Greaaaat, thanks for that! While I'm reading tonight I'm not going to be able to help hearing anything but his voice. I'll be expecting Bullwinkle to show up at the turn of every page now.

 

[Mistral]

I'm about 1/4 of the way through it now. This is my third Heinlein book after The Cat Who Walks Through Walls and Starship Troopers. He really has a knack for dialogue that a lot of authors don't. I could just sit and read an entire book of his that was just people sitting in a room and talking. O'Kelley and Knott's banter is really quite great.

Try Number of the Beast, then.


When can we talk about this??????

 

[Starbreaker]

Now. Just don't spoil the ending, because I'm not done reading it. I read fairly quickly, but not a book a week normally.

 

[Mistral]

Regarding the odd phraseology in the dialogue. The colony is composed of a mixed nationality bag in a tight space so the lingua fraca has evolved away from pure English/Russian/Chinese. The unconventional living arrangements made for unconventional marriage arrangements. The characters are a bit "deeper" IMO than many Heinlein characters, perhaps because he focuses on 3-4 and stays focused instead of wandering all over on a philosophical Holy Grail quest.

 

[Klaus]

Got a gorgeous trade paperback copy, will be starting it as soon as I knock off the new Niven...

 

[label]

I'll be honest here. I'm about 30% of the way through the book and it's pretty slow going for me which is very unusual for me. Even as busy as I am I never take more than a 1 week to read a book and this one seems to be challenging, largely because of how the writer chose to make the characters talk and some of the slang that is used.

I'm enjoyed the story for the most part, but it's definitely slow going and in some places, far too detailed when describing how the ternary cells would work and how each person would communicate and so on.

Very little action up to the point I'm at. Basically after the initial meeting and escape from that meeting, it's been little else but 4 characters talking about how to make the revolution work and add members and fund it but not much else.

 

[label]

Alright, so I finally finished the book. Took me forever and a day it felt like. Overall I ended up liking it quite a bit, though the format I had to read it in and the syntax used by Mannie made it challenging to read.

I thought there were some very interesting discussions about govt. that were very timely given how much of an issue it is right now, at least in America. I found myself very much in agreement with the professor and his small as possible govt. approach and empathized with Mannie's frustrations at the "yammerheads" who he had to deal with.

Was sad about mike's fate, though unclear on what actually happened to him. Was also sad about professor but not surprised at all. While parts of the books dragged for me (talking about who each cell would talk to each other forever and other similarly tedious passages) most of the story was reasonable interesting.

That was my first Heinlein book and I'm not sure when I'll read another one but I've enjoyed Mannie's story about the revolution of Luna.

8.2/10

 

[Switch]

^ With various nodes damaged by the attack, Mike fell below the total number of neural connections necessary to sustain consciousness.

The computational model leading to sentience in the novel is interesting not only in that it correlates fairly well with the real world development of the internet, but also with what little we know of consciousness and how it relates to the human brain.

In any case, my favourite line from the novel:

"I am free, no matter what rules surround me. If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do."

TMIAHM is often described as a libertarian novel, but in truth the above enunciates not the heart of libertarianism, but rather anarchism. Most folks focus on the "I'll do whatever I want!" aspect of anarchism, but they miss the other half of the coin: that one is responsible for everything one does. There's no hiding behind uniforms or abstractions like the state, no excuse that "I was just doing my job" or "it's my right!" to disguise one's brutality, selfishness or cowardice from oneself.