Requiem: New Collected Works by Robert A. Heinlein and Tributes to the Grand Master

Yoji Kondo, an accomplished NASA scientist (and SF writer) in his own right, brings honor to the writings and philosophies of Robert A. Heinlein, a groundbreaking, sometimes controversial science fiction writer who always left his readers thinking.This tribute, lovingly assembled by Kondo, brings together some of Heinlein's fantastic fiction with the impressions of his many admirers.Kondo was so loyal a friend that he spearheaded a successful campaign to have a Martian crater named for Heinlein. That gesture -- and this impressive collection of fiction and accolade -- is a testament not only to Heinlein, but also to his many fans.

If you are a fan of Robert A. Heinlein, and have read most of his works, then I reccommend this book unceasingly to you. It has 200+ pages of never-before-published Heinlein fiction (as well as the short title story - one of the man's best, and the one that also shot him to fame.) These include two novellas: Tenderfoot In Space - written for Boy's Life, and Destination: Moon - Heinlein's story version that would lead to the script and movie of the same name. Also included are two stories he wrote for girls (!), his remembrance of the filming of Destination Moon, a short poem, and the text of three speeches he made at the World Science Fiction Convention, where he was Guest of Honor an unprecented three times. Also included is are the proceedings of NASA's Heinlein Expedition, where he received (posthumously) their Distinguished Public Service Medal, their highest civilian honor awarded. This includes a reading of his inspirational piece "This I Believe" (which I had read at a local meeting of ours) by his wife, Virginia Heinlein, and several short speeches by such people as Tom Clancy and Jerry Pournelle. The heart of the book for many, though, will be the third section, in which many of Heinlein's famous contemporay writers (as well as an editor and a Navy colleague) write their remembrances of the man. It's very poignant and humbling to see world-famous writers speaking of Heinlein in such highly reverent terms - almost as if they were speaking of God Himself. This goes some way towards showing what an incredible man Heinlein was, and what a tremendous influence he had on the field of science fiction. To see Arthur C. Clarke himself - the only writer, along with Asimov, who you'll ever see mentioned in the same breath as the Grand Master - waxing rememeric on the man is a testament to RAH's vision and integrity. Poul Anderson's piece is particularly memorable. Larry Niven contributes the only fiction piece (a small masterpiece, incorporating Heinlein as a major character), and the long defense of Heinlein by Spider Robinson makes for extremely interesting reading. This is an absolute must-read for anybody who considers themselves a Heinlein fan. It's an incredible book, and shows what an incredibly tremendous influence had on the field of SF, and on the 20th century in general. I gladly put it on my bookshelf, and I'm not afraid to admit - as Arthur C. Clarke does in a blurb on the cover - that I cried while reading it.

This book is a collection of tidbits of information about Robert Heinlein, including some very compelling stories about Heinlein from science fiction writers like Larry Niven. It also includes some never before published works, which is a big bonus for Heinlein fans. While some of the material is a bit uneven, I learned a great deal about Heinlein and his works from this book. Another must have for Robert Heinlein fans.

Heinlein has been my favorite author for many years, and his death seemed a personal tradgedy for me, knowing that there wouldn't be any more of his books forthcoming. However, Requiem at least fulfilled some of my need for new Heinlein material, because I hadn't read some of the short stories. I also really enjoyed reading the tributes by other authors who knew him and/or admired him, because it made me feel more like I knew him. I found Spider Robinson's tributes especially moving, and I really felt like he was writing the same sort of things I felt in Rah rah R.A.H, one of his tributes. The selection that Heinlein wrote some years before, and his wife read, that is in this book "This I know" was a very touching and uplifting essay, and it revealed some things about Heinlein I hadn't really known. The short stories by Heinlein, were, as usal, very well-crafted pieces of work. The two short stories he had written for a girl's magazine, Poor Daddy and The Bulletin Board, were especially interesting, because they are so different from his usual work. REQUIEM was an enjoyable book, not quite up to the very high standards of his other books, but this is a collection of his old stories, after all. Still, they are worth reading for any Heinlein fan, and the tributes are a must.

This collection of Heinlein's little-known work and various tributes to Heinlein is a must-read for all Heinlein fans (though not recommended to any others). All three of his WorldCon guest of honor speeches are included, as is the original "Destination Moon". "This I Believe" is inspiring, non-fictional, and should be required reading for those who think they can know Heinlein's beliefs from his fiction. With the exception of "Requiem" itself, the Heinlein stories are the ones never before compiled, and so are the weakest part of the book. The idea that any of Heinlein's stories could be the weak part of any book should tell you how well-written the rest is, including tributes by Tom Clancy, Arthur C. Clarke, Spider Robinson, etc. Larry Niven's story "The Return of William Proxmire" alone is worth the price of the book.