I Will Fear No Evil

Heinlein's gift for humorus dialogue was seldom used to better effect, since he delights in characters who play verbal games with each other. Some of the other reviewers have complained about Henlein's assertion that "contraception is the woman's responsibility." A number of these reviewers seem to verge on accusing RAH of sexism. Let's analyze this a bit: isn't taking responsibility for your own body the first step towards taking control of your life? I should think that feminists would view this attitude kindly. All such minor qibbles aside, the novel is a full-blooded read stocked with memorable characters. Granted, Mr./Ms. Smith makes a big deal of deciding who she/he is going to sleep with next, but put yourself in his/her place. If you suddenly found a surgical fountain of youth after enduring decades of senility, what would you do? Again, you might not agree with Heinlein's ideas of how to spend a second youth, but why should you agree with every book you read? Let henlein challenge your values; few writers these days dare to do it. Books should be food for thought as well as enjoyable fluff. Heinlein was able to give us both.

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death..." for anyone who missed the title's reference. This book is about what Heinlein thinks life should be. You don't have to agree with him to love it. Even more brain-warping than Stranger (he meets the former husband of his new body...) and more well-written than Time Enough for Love, this novel finally pulls the best of Heinlein's themes into a single, coherent whole. As he stared death in the face, the Master discovered how to truly achieve immortality. (For those of you who have problems with his mysogenistic respresentations of women, you may be able to accept it more in a woman who was once a man. Also, please note that there is graphic sex throughout the book.)

Heinlein was a genius and a visionary. I have never NOT liked a book written by him. This one has always been one of my favorites. I've re-read it at least 4 times (with years in between each reading), and each time I read it I'm amazed all over again at what an incredible mind the author possessed. I highly recommend this book, or any other by this author, and I think I've managed to locate and read ALL of his works, including the short stories. I appreciated reading ALL of the reviews, even though I didn't agree with everyone!

I just won a bet with a Heinlein fan. He thought He had seen all the books there were writen, but I remembered this one from early in his career. I am sorry that I had to give out part of the plot to interest the man, but he was intriged and is looking for it, even as you read. I'll have to e mail him with the information that the best bookstore in the world is only a keyboard away.

This was the second "meaty" Heinlein book I had read. (By meaty I mean books longer/more complex than _TIme for the Stars_, _Tunnel in the Sky_, etc.) I loved it enough that I'm now on my way to collecting all of the Dean's works. HMMM...About the story. Not the most plausable of Heinlein's works, I mean, the main character DID have a "brain transplant"! Actually, I think that the seeming implausibility of the intial 'hook' helps the reader suspend his/her disbelief for what happens next. Which is a good thing because if you don't get hung up on the 'reality' of the story , you'll find a truly wonderful study of human beings, and most importantly what it means to love. Heinlein's work is not just science-fiction at it's best, it's writing at it's best. It illuminates what it means to be human. AND it's a lot of fun to read! PS: Not a book I would recomend giving to the younger set. Some might consider parts (large parts) of the book to be quite racy. This is one for the 13+ set. Be advised, eh?