The Rolling Stones

Some of the other reviews mention the great contributions Heinlein made to scifi, but the most important contribution of this book was not pointed out.Anyone following the space program these days is familiar with the "gravity assist," whereby probes like Galelio make it to Jupiter by swinging around Venus and Earth to boost their speed for the voyage. The Rolling Stones was the first published mention of this technique way back in the early '50's.Heinlein was a Naval Academy graduate whose chosen field was naval artilery ballistics. It was this background that gave Heinlein such a chillingly accuate eye towards his (soon not to be) fictional creations as the Atom Bomb, long range fire control to sink enemy ships, and more.

Anyone new to sci-fi should read the Rolling Stones as one of their first ten books; they won't be disappointed. It's such a marvelous work that any sci-fi buff would feel proud to have it in their collection.Simply put, this book is high adventure, following a family from the moon to Mars and to the asteroid belts, and beyond. Blending the novelty of a space ride with father-knows-best sensibilities--which at times seem dated but are all the more charming for it--he shows us a strong family full of independent thinkers and people willing to forge their own road.Fans of "The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress" (another excellent Heinlein for any primer) will note that the grandmother of the Stone family was Hazel Meade, the hard fighting kid from the Lunar revolution; this book takes place about two and a half generations later. And of course it's obvious that Star Trek's tribbles are literary descendants of Heinlein's flat cats, though I think Heinlein got more mileage with them.What's really most wonderful about this book, though, is how it touches the imagination. The concept of running an interplanetary shipping business bringing luxury items to asteroid miners and sight-seeing bikes to Mars strikes a chord, as do the little things like home life aboard a space ship and the grandmother's caustic sense of humor. Whether you're a long-time sci-fi reader or new to the genre, don't pass this one up.

A great introduction to Heinlein's Universe, set after "Moon Is A Harsh Mistress", this is one of the many books Heinlein wrote for children. Which isn't to say it is a "cutesy" story, but it IS written to catch the imagination and hold it.

I think this book is one of the funniest I have ever read. Unfortunately I read it about twenty years ago in a horrible Italian translation. But now I was able to appreciate the subtle humour, the pseudo-scientific details (I am an engineer), and the intriguing plot. Five stars well deserved!

The Rolling Stones is one of Heinlein's most lighthearted novels. It was written primarily for young adults, but it's a good read at any age. The book is about a middle class family, living on the moon as the story begins, in a time when middle class families can buy spaceships about as easily as you or I could buy a large recreational vehicle or a small yacht. Briefly, the story involves a family--a mother and father, their four children (the twins Castor and Pollux, their annoying elder sister and usually underfoot younger brother), and grandmother Hazel Meade Stone. The twins had the idea of buying a spaceship and flying out to the asteroid belt to make their fortune in space mining ventures. Their father rejected this plan, preferring to send them to Earth for a formal university education. But Grandma Hazel prevailed with more ambitious counsel, and the whole family ended up buying a spaceship and becoming an adventurously nomadic collection of rugged individualists. They flew first to Mars, then to the asteroids, then, as the book ends, further onward. The Rolling Stones is Heinlein's "family values" novel, with the highest virtue held to be loyalty to one's kin. Grandma Hazel Meade lies under oath and practically vamps a Martian judge, at one point, to save her two grandsons from doing hard time as punishment for trying to sidestep Martian import taxes. Earlier in the family's travels, the usually self-oriented Stone twins endorse the idea that the family should return to the moon, rather than go on toward Mars, because their younger brother (Lowell) seemed to be incurably space-sick. Even father Roger Stone's decision to override the computer and force a launch from the moon in the event of a mechanical glitch is explained as loyalty to the family honor, rather than being a petty manifestation of his own egoism. The quality of the writing in The Rolling Stones is par for Heinlein--which is another way of saying it would be a masterwork for many another writer. If you want Heinlein without the aspiring sexual scenarios and political red flags, then The Rolling Stones is about as good as you're going to get. Jerry Neil Abbott ([email protected]