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The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress

Robert A. Heinlein

Start date: August 1, 2013

Finish date: August 31, 2013

Discussion: Book Discussions

Why we're reading this: Group Classic Discussion August, 2013
Hugo Award 1967
#34 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 po…more
[close] Group Classic Discussion August, 2013
Hugo Award 1967
#34 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 poll) http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/1390858...
#12 on Locus Magazines Best SciFi novels of the 20th century http://www.locusmag.com/2012/AllCentu...

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Jan 04, 2008 Jim rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2fiction, 1paper, scifi, favorites, war

This is a classic SF story of the moon fighting for its independence from Earth, with a lot of parallels to the American Revolution. Heinlein has a political conversation with himself here, definitely coming down on the side of Libertarianism, but also acknowledges & points out the holes in his arguments himself. I've read some rants about Heinlein pushing his politics & I disagree with them. I think he's doing more questioning than pushing & that leads to some fun with the characters, especiall This is a classic SF story of the moon fighting for its independence from Earth, with a lot of parallels to the American Revolution. Heinlein has a political conversation with himself here, definitely coming down on the side of Libertarianism, but also acknowledges & points out the holes in his arguments himself. I've read some rants about Heinlein pushing his politics & I disagree with them. I think he's doing more questioning than pushing & that leads to some fun with the characters, especially Prof.

Prof is the Heinlein wise elder character while Manny is the middle aged incarnation. Hazel (who shows up as the grandmother in The Rolling Stones) is the youthful, female version. Yes, Heinlein only has 1 main character, he just changes age & sex to suit the situation. I don't consider this a horrible flaw in his books, though. They're more situational, so a steady character actually helps them out.

Prof has a wonderful political philosophy. He's a Rational Anarchist. Actually, that seems to pretty much be his take on life & I dare say it's more honest than most. He'll accept any laws you think you need & obey those he can, when he can, otherwise ignore them, but will pay up if caught. (Come to think of it, that's pretty much how I go through life.) His remarks to the new Lunar Congress on how to pay for government & what laws to make are well worth thinking about & certainly does point out the perennial problem they all have. One suggestion was they start by making laws of what the government could never do. Another was a house devoted to repealing poor laws.

Stu's observations on governing were more amusing. He wants to name Prof king because that would protect people from their biggest enemy, themselves. How true! The woman with the list of proscribed items in the early Congress is a perfect example. Anyone with half a brain can't help but make the comparisons to our own society & the creeping repressiveness as we democratically vote away our rights.

Heinlein points out another fallacy in government, one that he never explicitly states: What works for a small group often won't for a large one & that needs change over time. He makes this argument as a thread throughout the book: Manny's reflections from the future when Luna is much more populated & his other comments on its early days. The justice system of Terra versus that of Luna of Manny's time. It's important to note that Heinlein offers up no concrete answers, just a lot of questions, & he is pointing them out through a first person narrator. Manny is fairly reliable, but he's human & thus comfortable in the society he knows. There are multiple examples of how poorly this fits others - many of whom wind up paying the ultimate penalty.

The language of the book is notable. Sentences are clipped with a lot of polyglot slang & - possibly most important - he popularized the word tanstaafl : "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch". The link is to the Wikipedia article on it. I wish people would use & think of it more.

Racial, religious, & national slang names are commonly used & are now considered politically incorrect, but they are used in such a way that no prejudice can possibly be attached. The moon is such a mix that such designations are merely descriptive. Marriage is another institution that receives a thorough cleansing of preconceptions & homosexuality is also briefly addressed. IOW, Heinlein has a lot of fun with Civil Rights. Since this book was originally published in 1966, that's not surprising, especially given his views on the matter, but this book was well before he almost died & he hasn't gone overboard yet.

The story is quite dated as far as technology goes, but that didn't hurt it much. There are tape recorders, wall phones, & computer punch cards, but the overall experience of the moon is well done. Mike, the self-aware computer is fun, too. Not particularly realistic, but enjoyable & played his part well.

All in all, it's a must-read for anyone exploring SF. It is a classic & is a hell of a lot of fun, but gives plenty of food for thought, too.
Wikipedia has a so-so write up on it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Moon... ...more

35 likes · Like · see review

Apr 16, 2013 Jim rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: scifi, favorites, 2fiction, 1audio

25 likes · Like · see review

Jan 06, 2008 Jeffrey rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

One of the greatest science fiction novels of all time full of ideas way ahead of the curve from surragate pregnancy to artificial intelligence, this tale of a revolt on the Moon, has Heinlein firing on all cylinders. A must read for anyone who loves science fiction. ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Sep 30, 2010 Michelle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I think the ideas expressed in this one are among his best - as good as Stranger in a Strange Land, but a different angle - but the writing style (slangy pseudo-Russian stream of consciousness - not as well done as A Clockwork Orange) was distracting. It was close enough to standard English that you "get used to it" but every time I picked up the book after a pause I had to get into it again.

This was not one of his inter-universal sex romps - don't read it expecting that =) ...more

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