For some reason, I was reminded of Variable Star -- the posthumously published Heinlein novel.
The first 20 pages of plot goes about like this:
-- Young Man proposed to The Girl.
-- The Girl admits she's super, super rich. Like Vanderbilt rich.
-- Young Man runs as far away as he can,. Gets on a starship.
-- The sun blows up, taking the earth it it.
...
..
.
Seriously? Do I remember this right?
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Sounds Heinlein :)
ReplyDeleteIt sounds very Heinlein to me.... Late Heinlein got really strange.
ReplyDelete... the Heinlein part was 8 pages of outline, in the 50s.. The rest was Spider Robinson. Crazy.
ReplyDeleteYep that's Variable Star alright. I've read 100% of what Heinlein published. It was by far my least favorite, and as such I haven't read anything else by Spider Robinson. I was grasping at straws looking for anything remotely like my favorite author and hopeful that I would find a new author to completely devour. Instead it was like reading a half version of a reflection of shadow.
ReplyDeleteI should probably give it and Spider another chance. It was 10 years ago when I read it, and I was dominated by the idea that this was "new Heinlein" and should have been more open minded.
Davey Cruz Yeah, I think we had very similar experiences to it. And to Heinlein.
ReplyDeleteI doubt I'd like Heinlein if I reread it -- the smartest & wisest & guy in the room trope is one I like a lot less now than I did ten years ago. But, I do remember the excitement when it came out. And the disappointment.
Heinlein's writing changed so much later in his life that I had to stop reading. And no, I don't recommend rereading it; any of the earlier writing I reread after getting exposed to fiction where women were actual people was very hard going. I discovered that I preferred to hang onto my illusions and so probably shouldn't go back.
ReplyDeleteGretchen S. Yeah, I think that's right.
ReplyDeleteHeck, I'm currently annoyed at a novel with 4 eye point characters, where 2 are women. Because its the other two who seem to matter.
Not that a lot of modern writing doesn't have that issue, too! But once you've gotten to a better level, it's hard to go back.
ReplyDeleteGretchen S. Agreed. I'm even having trouble with Scalzi, because it a) always centers around a dude from Iowa and b) Has too much talking!
ReplyDeleteWilliam Nichols Haha! Yeah, I actually find him on the dull side because of that. (Redshirts both lampshades and perpetrates this in the same book... puzzling.)
ReplyDeleteThough I did really like the Old Man's War book from the POV of the daughter/subject of the treaty with the aliens; he can do that POV if he tries.
ReplyDelete