Mycroft Holmes a computer, Manuel Garcia O’Kelly as a technician and Wyoming Knott as the love interest on a Botany Bay adventure on the Moon. These are but a few of the main characters in this, one of RAH’s best kept secrets. As a guidebook for libertarians, Heinlein brings us a cautionary tale rich in characters and setting and delightful in a cautionary future history.
In 1966, there was enough reason for pessimism. A quick snapshot of the world shows revolution in many disparate forms and RAH brought it to a focus by looking backward to penal colonies of our collective past and extrapolating a future of universal struggle not only on Terra but also on Luna, seen through the eyes of Loonies….. oh, and a self aware super computer.
This novel is one of many in which RAH gives personality to a computer and treats technology as a full partner in tomorrow. Mike Holmes endearing as we the reader watch him grow and mature and become an integral part of the Lunar Revolution and eventually its hero. A quick, seductive and thoroughly enjoyable read, this book is certainly one of my personal favorites.
Keep reading, kids!
It won the Hugo for Best Novel in 1967.