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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
Hmm. Well.
'Stranger in a Strange Land' is a science fiction classic. It was beloved of the hippies of the free love era. It's a weird combination of author Robert A. Heinlein's personal wish fulfillment, libertarian proselytizing, societal trolling, and futurism. It's super-anachronistic take on women is off-putting, and its enthusiastic depiction of what's basically a sex cult strikes the modern reader as naive, at best. It's also well-written, funny, well-plotted, and thought provoking.
It's like the very definition of the literary mixed bag.
Here's the story: an expedition to Mars go wrong. Twenty or so years later, a follow-up expedition brings back the one survivor: Michael Valentine, born on Mars and raised in Martian society. He's completely ignorant of human social mores and ideas, but his Martian upbringing has given him the kind of wisdom and miraculous abilities upon which religions are founded. By hook and crook, he comes under the protection of one Jubal Harshaw, who's basically an idealized Bobby Heinlein. Harshaw's a doctor, a lawyer, a bestselling writer, a father figure, and a tireless proselytizer for his (and Heinlein's) libertarian ideology.
It's only a matter of time, of course, before the protector and educator becomes the protected and educated. It's only a matter of time before Valentine's (literally) far-out perspective germinates a new religion - that refuses to call itself a religion. It's only a matter of time before, well, you know how stories like this end.
The hippies loved this book because, I suppose, Valentine's ideology basically sums up as "We're all God, man. And we should be naked. And every chick should happily bang every dude. And the chicks should bang each other, too. But dudes shouldn't bang. Our free-love sex cult thing is totally no homo." The modern reader, of course, knows that sex cults are exploitative as all get-out. Absent a total rewiring of human psychology (which Valentine seems to effect), they simply don't work.
The libertarians loved this book because, I suppose, Harshaw's ideology basically sums up as "The government's lame, man. The cops are a bunch of thugs and the government is run by self-centered goofballs." Never mind that the government does things like enforce contracts and protect people from being exploited by predatory sex cults.
The trolls loved this book because, I suppose, Heinlein sings the praises of cannibalism. He yanks feminists' chains by making his female characters both capable professionals and dewy, submissive sex goddesses. He really lays into organized religion, equating it with carnival shows. And he has one of his female characters say, "Nine times out of ten, when a woman is raped she did something to bring it about." That one really got my attention.
The futurists, and by futurists I mean contemporary tech bros, love it because they all think they're Michael Valentine. His word for comprehending, "Grokking," shows up in tech all the time. My employer offers its workforce the services of Grokker, a yoga and mental health app. I saw on ad for the social media service X (nee Twitter) the other day that misused "Grokking." These guys really do think they're changing the world. And they really do hope there'll be plenty of banging along the way.
With all that said, and it was a lot, this is a fun novel! Jubal Harshaw is funny! Robert A. Heinlein knows how to write a tense scene and keep things moving along, even if he does have a tendency to bog down in evangelizing for his worldview. His characters are interesting individuals, and I found myself interested in their fates even while rolling my eyes and "Oh, brother"-ing the book in general.
In short, 'Stranger in a Strange Land' may inspire you. It may amuse you. It may annoy you. It may infuriate you. It will definitely entertain you. If you care about science fiction, you should read this book - warts and all.
'Stranger in a Strange Land' is a science fiction classic. It was beloved of the hippies of the free love era. It's a weird combination of author Robert A. Heinlein's personal wish fulfillment, libertarian proselytizing, societal trolling, and futurism. It's super-anachronistic take on women is off-putting, and its enthusiastic depiction of what's basically a sex cult strikes the modern reader as naive, at best. It's also well-written, funny, well-plotted, and thought provoking.
It's like the very definition of the literary mixed bag.
Here's the story: an expedition to Mars go wrong. Twenty or so years later, a follow-up expedition brings back the one survivor: Michael Valentine, born on Mars and raised in Martian society. He's completely ignorant of human social mores and ideas, but his Martian upbringing has given him the kind of wisdom and miraculous abilities upon which religions are founded. By hook and crook, he comes under the protection of one Jubal Harshaw, who's basically an idealized Bobby Heinlein. Harshaw's a doctor, a lawyer, a bestselling writer, a father figure, and a tireless proselytizer for his (and Heinlein's) libertarian ideology.
It's only a matter of time, of course, before the protector and educator becomes the protected and educated. It's only a matter of time before Valentine's (literally) far-out perspective germinates a new religion - that refuses to call itself a religion. It's only a matter of time before, well, you know how stories like this end.
The hippies loved this book because, I suppose, Valentine's ideology basically sums up as "We're all God, man. And we should be naked. And every chick should happily bang every dude. And the chicks should bang each other, too. But dudes shouldn't bang. Our free-love sex cult thing is totally no homo." The modern reader, of course, knows that sex cults are exploitative as all get-out. Absent a total rewiring of human psychology (which Valentine seems to effect), they simply don't work.
The libertarians loved this book because, I suppose, Harshaw's ideology basically sums up as "The government's lame, man. The cops are a bunch of thugs and the government is run by self-centered goofballs." Never mind that the government does things like enforce contracts and protect people from being exploited by predatory sex cults.
The trolls loved this book because, I suppose, Heinlein sings the praises of cannibalism. He yanks feminists' chains by making his female characters both capable professionals and dewy, submissive sex goddesses. He really lays into organized religion, equating it with carnival shows. And he has one of his female characters say, "Nine times out of ten, when a woman is raped she did something to bring it about." That one really got my attention.
The futurists, and by futurists I mean contemporary tech bros, love it because they all think they're Michael Valentine. His word for comprehending, "Grokking," shows up in tech all the time. My employer offers its workforce the services of Grokker, a yoga and mental health app. I saw on ad for the social media service X (nee Twitter) the other day that misused "Grokking." These guys really do think they're changing the world. And they really do hope there'll be plenty of banging along the way.
With all that said, and it was a lot, this is a fun novel! Jubal Harshaw is funny! Robert A. Heinlein knows how to write a tense scene and keep things moving along, even if he does have a tendency to bog down in evangelizing for his worldview. His characters are interesting individuals, and I found myself interested in their fates even while rolling my eyes and "Oh, brother"-ing the book in general.
In short, 'Stranger in a Strange Land' may inspire you. It may amuse you. It may annoy you. It may infuriate you. It will definitely entertain you. If you care about science fiction, you should read this book - warts and all.
1.5 stars, rounding down.
Yes, it is a relic of its own time. Yes, it inspired likely countless SF novels/stories/movies. Yes, its message was progressive during the time in which it was released. It was interesting to listen to in the same way that watching Roger Sterling on Mad Men drop acid was interesting.
And yet, 63 years after its initial publication, it has aged so poorly that anyone who says they enjoy this book in 2024 might as well be waving a giant red flag.
Rampant and unrelenting misogyny, homophobia, and racism. Wisdom and love and freedom are possible, if you’re a white guy or a woman willing to be fully submissive to said white guy. Yuck.
Yes, it is a relic of its own time. Yes, it inspired likely countless SF novels/stories/movies. Yes, its message was progressive during the time in which it was released. It was interesting to listen to in the same way that watching Roger Sterling on Mad Men drop acid was interesting.
And yet, 63 years after its initial publication, it has aged so poorly that anyone who says they enjoy this book in 2024 might as well be waving a giant red flag.
Rampant and unrelenting misogyny, homophobia, and racism. Wisdom and love and freedom are possible, if you’re a white guy or a woman willing to be fully submissive to said white guy. Yuck.
Stopped at 22%. Not interested anymore.
En Terre Étrangère est un excellent roman de Science Fiction mais en même temps vraiment étrange. C'est un roman des années 1960 qui est précurseur du mouvement Hippie et qui prône l'amour libre. Malheureusement pour l'auteur, plusieurs sectes se sont inspiré de son oeuvre pour endoctriner les gens. Malgré tout, ce livre est vraiment un classique gu genre qui vaut vraiment la peine d'être lu.
I know this is like the Heinlein book & I read it because I was reading a lot of his stuff in high school, but I didn't find the philosophy as compelling as it was in Time Enough for Love or the characters as endearing. Just don't grok it, would recommend other things first. Kudos though to not actually starting scientology.
To the book's credit, though, I still think about the scene where the characters talk about looking at only one statue in a statue garden a day, because art needs time to be appreciated in its fullness (I think about it every time I start glazing over in an art museum).
To the book's credit, though, I still think about the scene where the characters talk about looking at only one statue in a statue garden a day, because art needs time to be appreciated in its fullness (I think about it every time I start glazing over in an art museum).
"Thou art God, I am God. All that groks is God.”3/5 stars.
ebook, 448 pages.
Read from April 17, 2018 to May 7, 2018.
Review at The Pluviophile Writer: https://bit.ly/2MhnRc1
I have to say the cover of this book is my all time favourite, the 1986 edition that is, and the one I have featured here. I have been drawn to this book long before I even know about this classic or the author or even science fiction as I remember seeing this cover when I was a kid and it left an impression.
Did you know? The artist that created the 1987 cover that I love so much was created by Andy Warhol's brother, James WarholaThis novel was originally published in 1961 and made waves with its literary, yet firmly science fiction, plot. The eventual promiscuity of the characters I am sure also helped with the interest in this book as well as things did get pretty sexy at times but free love is just one of the delicate topics that are breached in this story.
Valentine Michael Smith is a Martian. Or rather, he was born on Mars but is actually a human. After an expedition from Earth to Mars, the Martians ordered Valentine, who was a bit of an outcast, to go back to Earth with the astronauts. After recovering in a hospital to adjust to the atmosphere of Earth, Valentine meets a nurse called Gillan who helps him escape the Earthly politics that he has yet to understand. Gillan enlists the help of Jubal, who is a wealthy man of many intellectual qualities that has a harem of women that he keeps around to serve him. Jubal ensures that the US government cannot claim anything on Valentine or on Mars while also taking the time to learn about Valentine and teach him what he can about Earth. Valentine, despite being with his own kind, knows nothing about the cultural ways of humans and through his journey to understand, or grok, he also teaches his friends or water brothers what it means to be Martian which, offers amazing internal insight, knowledge and powers that humans did not even know they were capable of. Valentine comes to understand humans so well that he even founds his own religion in order to teach those who are wanting to know his ways.
Throughout Valentine's story, the author intensely reevaluates major institutions and taboos like religion, money, monogamy, the fear of death and even cannibalism. There are sections that are highly philosophical but they also occasionally derail the main intrigue of the plot making for some very dull moments. The philosophy itself is interesting, but as a reader, you feel as if you are no longer reading a science fiction novel but rather a piece of academia and it can be jarring. The political nuances were particularly boring and just about put me off the book. Some of the sections involving free love are quite sexy and liberating but in general, the author was still a man of his time as there are some highly misogynist sections. Here are two such examples,
"No, you're really bright, for a female."While the misogyny is forgivable due to the timeframe the book was written in, it doesn't make it any less annoying when you are reading it as a modern woman.
-----
"Nine times out of ten, if a girl gets raped it's partly her fault."
Valentine's character is superbly executed and watching him grok his new world is a unique experience that not many authors could not have pulled off. I enjoyed portions of this book and the ending but in general, I felt bogged down with sidetracked details and characters that added little to the main plot. Did I grok this book in fullness? As Valentine would say, perhaps not, but I have no regrets in finally picking up the novel whose cover art fascinated me so long ago.
Put it down then didn’t bounce back.
Stranger in a Strange Land is mostly about a guy named Jubal who, in his 80s, becomes the surrogate father to Mike, a man raised by Martians. The first 60% of the book is more or less a legal adventure where Jubal tries to assure Mike's personal freedoms.
Things I liked:
- Large focus on the humans and almost no focus on the Martians, instead feeling their culture via a the human they raised.
- The linguistic notion that the powers of Martians is something comprehendible only by learning their language, and thus opening up thought in a way English can't manage.
- The legal shenanigans that make up the majority of the book.
- Fair Witnesses, which are people trained to watched and memorize every detail of their situation like a computer on record, so that they may give fair testimony to it later.
- The way in which some characters evolve (the Jill/Dawn transformation was interesting).
Things I didn't like:
- The super outdated views on gender.
- The super outdated same-sex relationships.
- The fact that 50% of the book is comprised of rants and monologues Jubal gives other people, as if he were the wisest person on the planet.
- The fact tat Jubal is confirmed to be the wisest person on the planet.
- The extremely patchy philosophy of the Martian Sex Cult. (They sleep with each other to know each other perfectly no matter who... but where do family members come in? And why is gay-ness still wrongness? And how does any of this truly make people wise?)
- Long stretches of dialogue followed by the other character just saying "huh?".
- The word "grok" used to the point of meaninglessness.
Overall it was a good, fun book. There were parts that made me feel like the author lost track of what he wanted to happen in the book so instead just started rambling about his personal opinions on things. I read the long version of this book, and I can totally see the value of the short one.
Things I liked:
- Large focus on the humans and almost no focus on the Martians, instead feeling their culture via a the human they raised.
- The linguistic notion that the powers of Martians is something comprehendible only by learning their language, and thus opening up thought in a way English can't manage.
- The legal shenanigans that make up the majority of the book.
- Fair Witnesses, which are people trained to watched and memorize every detail of their situation like a computer on record, so that they may give fair testimony to it later.
- The way in which some characters evolve (the Jill/Dawn transformation was interesting).
Things I didn't like:
- The super outdated views on gender.
- The super outdated same-sex relationships.
- The fact that 50% of the book is comprised of rants and monologues Jubal gives other people, as if he were the wisest person on the planet.
- The fact tat Jubal is confirmed to be the wisest person on the planet.
- The extremely patchy philosophy of the Martian Sex Cult. (They sleep with each other to know each other perfectly no matter who... but where do family members come in? And why is gay-ness still wrongness? And how does any of this truly make people wise?)
- Long stretches of dialogue followed by the other character just saying "huh?".
- The word "grok" used to the point of meaninglessness.
Overall it was a good, fun book. There were parts that made me feel like the author lost track of what he wanted to happen in the book so instead just started rambling about his personal opinions on things. I read the long version of this book, and I can totally see the value of the short one.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No