The Cat Who Walks Through Walls

[Lambda]

I just read this Heinlein book, and let me say, like every other Heinlein story I loved it. Though I thought it a little odd that he had tied two
(the only two I could spot: Stranger In a Strange Land and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress) together. It felt kind of like recycling old story lines. Though I was disappointed when it ended so soon. Any thoughts?

I admit I am not extremely well read in Heinlein, being only 17, I have had little time to really explore Heinlein's writings. I have read: The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Stranger in a Strange Land, and Starship Troopers. Though I have a few of his other books: Space Cadet (I think this one is one of his Juveniles), Waldo & Magic, Inc., Red Planet, Job: A Comedy of Justice, Time Enough for Love, and Orphans of the Sky. I plan to read all of them. Right now I am just starting Time Enough for Love. After I finish all I can get of Heinlein, I will move to Asimov.

Any suggestions on great Heinlein to buy or even great Asimov to buy would be greatly appreciated.

[Listener]

I liked it also, although I had a bit of trouble following the ending.

Personally, I really liked Friday.  Probably one of my favorites.

[Lambda]

I'll have to check that out.

[Michael]

Friday is one of his best works.

I was a friend of the Heinlein's when they lived above Santa Cruz (Bonny Doon) as well as a fan, and might provide just a little background... Robert hated the environment he had to work under when he was first establishing himself as a writer--he wrote juveniles and pulps--and both censored him mercilessly and relentlessly.  So one of the first things he did when he became a star was to insist his work no longer be "edited"--print what he wrote as he wrote it, or forget it.

In a way this became unfortunate as he got older.  Older writers, and you can see it in almost all of the grand masters, tend to become more wordy, and the ratio of talk to action swings way over to talk.  Heinlein, who was a master of short story and tight, focused, novels of 200 pages in the 1950's had by the 1980's become a rather meandering story teller full of anecdotes and insights--but god he could have used an editor. 

I will also point out that he had chronic medical problems in his later years and the quality of his writing had some corellation to the amount of blood a partially occluded carotid artery allowed to his brain.  I fear the current generation judges him too much on his later works, which is not really fair to a writer or an athlete. 

Friday was an amazing comeback though!  Up there with the moon is a harsh mistress, stranger in a strange land and starship troopers!   

[Reggie]

This was actually the first Heinlein novel that I read too....probably around the time that I was 17 as well (6 years ago).

The thing that really stands out to me is the first person perspective it was written from.

We have these ideas throughout the book that when authors create characters and such they become real in other dimensions and universes and the like and are capable of interweaving with each other.  So...when we have someone writing from their OWN perspective in this type of reality...what does that do for the time lines and universes and dimensions?

Mostly it makes my head hurt.