A review by danrue
The Roads Must Roll by Robert A. Heinlein

2.0

This story was difficult for me to read, as it was hard to follow the story and understand the world. While reading these Science Fiction short stories, I have found that it is difficult to create the world in my head. I have previously read books set in different worlds, but the technology and it’s importance in the story create confusion. This story created the most confusion for me. I could not wrap my head around all the characters and the ranks. I think this is an interesting concept because it does make sense that there will come a day when there are too many cars and they can no longer be used. This will force a change in technology, and this almost seems like something that could happen, although it is hard to imagine that world. I think this shows the important idea of how the people who are the backbones of society don’t have the power to make decisions. The workers are the most important part of society, and they are stuck by oppression. This is present in today, similar to many other stories.
One scene I thought was powerful was on pg 77 where Gaines asked if anyone wanted “the chance to kill the louse”, and sent the people away that did. I found it strange that he took the time to make sure that everyone was coming in peacefully. This connects back to his statement on how he feels about emotions because he knows that some people are doing this for revenge and that they may kill or injure the people, or disobey Gaines’ orders.