Title: The Moon is a Harsh Mistress
Author: Robert Heinlein
Publisher: 1966
Genre: Scifi
Pages: 518 (ebook version)
Rating: 4/5 stars
Reading Challenges: Genre - Scifi; Monthly Key Word - February; Ebook; Bingo -- 4 from TBR
How I Got It: We own it
It is a tale of revolution, of the rebellion of the former Lunar penal colony against the Lunar Authority that controls it from Earth. It is the tale of the disparate people--a computer technician, a vigorous young female agitator, and an elderly academic--who become the rebel movement's leaders. And it is the story of Mike, the supercomputer whose sentience is known only to this inner circle, and who for reasons of his own is committed to the revolution's ultimate success.
My third Heinlein book and I dare say the easiest book, at least on the surface. We have a story of revolution on the moon. Easy right? Sure, the first part is easy. But then we get into more discussions of politics and governmental theory. What constitutes a good government? How should we rule? From there things go from bad to worse. Revolution is hard, ruling is even harder. I liked the political discussions above all else. The storyline and characters are good, but Heinlein excels when characters discuss political philosophy. Those conversations are what kept me engaged in the book.
As to the style, it took me awhile to get used to the gramatical structure. There is a mix of English and Russian and an omission of "the" throughout most of the book. This points to an evolution of language on Luna separate from Terra. I like the style, but sometimes found myself wanting to "correct" the language.
Just remember: TANSTAAFL!
