A Fair Desire

Title: Expanded Universe
Author: Robert A. Heinlein
Year: 1980

Expanded Universe is a collection of science fiction short stories and nonfiction essays by Robert Heinlein. There is a particular emphasis on post-apocalypse scenarios and predictions for the future. Fear of WWIII and nuclear war permeates much of the content of this book. At first I found this mindset antiquated, until I realized we still live under the threat of nuclear attacks, although I believe the general public has forgotten about this. The ease and scale with which a determined person or crazy country can cause death and destruction is truly frightening.

Most of the stories are either preceded or followed by some explanation from the author as to its origins, which provides some interesting insight into the motivations and ideas behind the stories. Heinlein points out that many of his stories were intended to show people how much danger we are living in. He covers similar topics in the nonfiction articles, including some educational material on how to survive in a post-nuclear world.

I found his essays and stories concerning serious predictions about the future to be particularly interesting. One essay, Where To?, contains 19 predictions made in 1950 for the year 2000, with commentary and updates from 1965 and 1980. Some seem sadly pessimistic ("Fish and yeast will become our principal sources of protein. Beef will be a luxury; lamb and mutton will disappear") while others too optimistic ("Interplanetary travel is waiting at your front door - C.O.D. It's yours when you pay for it.") On the other hand, some are right on ("Your personal telephone will be small enough to carry in your handbag") and some were right until quite recently ("It is utterly impossible that the United States will start a 'preventive war.'").

His opinion of the future of the United State's space program:

Our national loss of nerve, our escalating anti-intellectualism, our almost total disinterest in anything that does not directly and immediately profit us, the shambles of public education throughout most of our nation (especially in New York and California) cause me to predict that our space program will continue to dwindle. It would not surprise me (but it would distress me mightily!) to see the Space Shuttle canceled.

While we scale back our space work, other countries and private companies will pick up the slack. This is, of course, what has happened.

In The Happy Days Ahead, takes swipes at several negative trends he sees, from a failing education system to inflation to the quality of our military. I found one section, "Age of Unreason," of interest. In it, he further discusses the rise of anti-science and anti-intellectualism. Some signs he points out:

• "...respectability of natal horological astrology..."
• "'Experts' on nuclear power and nuclear weapons who know nothing whatever of mathematical physics and are smug in admitting it."
• "People who watch television several hours a day and derive all their opinions therefrom - and expound them"
• "People who watch television several hours a day"
• "The return of creationism - 'Equal time for Yaweh'"
• "The rise of witchcraft" (in which he includes Scientology and other cults)

Sound familiar at all?

The book does include some science fiction, although I should really note that most of it is pretty depressing, although enlightening. As I mentioned before, this book is really a downer, but I imagine the stories and articles reflect the feelings of their time. If I were sitting with the threat of nuclear weapons hanging over my head, I think I would feel pretty paranoid, too, and I doubt my outlook for the future would be too sunny. Strangely, the threat today is probably not much less than it was in the Cold War. All that has changed is the political climate. But the technology and materials for great destruction remain.

Loading mentions Retweet

Title: The Cat Who Walks Through Walls
Author: Robert A. Heinlein
First Published: 1985

This is my first book review, and I have just realized how difficult it is. Unlike a book report, in which you can discuss the entirety of the work, a review must somehow convey the feeling and worth of the book while revealing as little as possible about what actually occurs in it. A movie review, at least, can talk about the cinematography, how well the actors did, the quality of the dialog...well, I shall have to do my best.

My understanding is that this book is very "Heinlein" - whatever that may mean. It may be interpreted as "a book for Heinlein fans." If you are a big fan of Robert Heinlein, then you will likely enjoy this book and should read it if you have not already. If you are not that familiar with Heinlien, then I recommend getting familiar with him prior to reading this book. I am pretty sure it will increase your enjoyment of it.

This science fiction book is set in a somewhat distant future (it begins in 2188), in which the moon is inhabited and there are large "space habitats" which are even more populated. If you do not like the year 2188 for some reason, do not worry. This book also features time travel and multiple, diverging universes. (Interestingly, one of the factors used to discriminate between timelines is who the first person to walk on the moon is.)  Unfortunately, the writing is quite brief when it comes to actually describing the physical surroundings in the world of the future. The story telling focuses primarily on dialog and internal monologues. Which is fine, if you do not mind.

The future will apparently have baffling marriage customs, with there being some fine line between having multiple wives and having marriages of multiple people. Throw in time travel and it becomes even more confusing. Fortunately, untangling these relationships is not critical to following or enjoying the story, to my relief.

The story, by the way, centers on two people: an ex-military man and a woman he meets and seemingly marries on a whim (marriage in 2188 only requires a formal announcement, nothing else). It quickly becomes apparent that multiple people are out to kill him, and that is where the story takes off, across time and space. The questions to be answered: Why is someone trying to kill this man? Who is this woman he married, actually? And when do I get to see a cat who can walk through walls and what does it have to do with anything?

I only feel comfortable in answering the last two questions: the cat shows up quite late in the story, and has nothing to do with anything. There. I hope I did not spoil anything for you.

Anyhow, let me consider the larger message of this book. It is certainly an examination of what "reality" is and what happens when we can go into the past and change it. There is also the strong set of morals the main character lives by - it is, for example, quite alright to kill a person for being impolite. Whether or not those are morals to emulate...well, I would not recommend it.

The main character also has a strong sense of individualism: he repeatedly refuses to do things without full knowledge of what he is being asked to do and why. Plus, the request needs to be made politely and without any attempt to force him to do it. Appeals to the importance of the act or why he was "preordained" to do it have absolutely no sway at all. It must be his decision or he will not do it under any circumstances. Because of this, I sometimes found it difficult to like the main character. However, that is just me. Perhaps I am simply more obliging.

Overall, I am on the fence about this book. It kept me engaged, but I found it difficult to actually "get into" the world. As I mentioned above, a considerable amount of the book is simply dialog, which at times I felt was trying too hard to be clever. The back-and-forth lost me a few times when I had to deduce which characters were speaking. Also...I must admit I wish the cat had more to do with the story. I mean, it is in the title of the book. Setting the cat aside, though, the story is interesting and moves fast enough. As long as you do not need Dickensian descriptions (of setting or characters) or MORE CAT, you should enjoy this book.

Loading mentions Retweet