Have Spacesuit--Will Travel
A science fiction novel for young readers by American writer Robert A. Heinlein, originally serialized in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction (August, September, October 1958) and published by Scribner's in hardcover in 1958. It is the last of the Heinlein juveniles. Plot summary: Clifford "Kip" Russell, enters an advertising jingle writing contest, hoping to win an all-expenses-paid trip to the Moon. He instead gets a used space suit. Kip puts the suit (which he dubs "Oscar") back into working condition. Kip reluctantly decides to return his space suit for a cash prize to help pay for college, but puts it on for one last walk. As he idly broadcasts on his shortwave radio, someone identifying herself as "Peewee" answers and requests a homing signal. He is shocked when a flying saucer lands practically on top of him. A young girl (Peewee) and an alien being (the "Mother Thing") flee from it, but all three are quickly captured and taken to the Moon.
Stats for nerds
12recommend
25mentions
20people
2008–2026years
48% recommend52% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- Early Heinlein e.g. Have Spacesuit - Will Travel, Farmer In The Sky, The Rolling Stones or for non-juveniles, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress have lots of science.
Later works, less so.
- The renderings look like the cover of a Young Adult Sci Fi novel by Robert H. Heinlein. Have Spacesuit, Will Travel comes to mind. Probably the first true Science Fiction I have ever read!
- Nearly every other one?
I'd recommend The Moon is a Harsh Mistress which is a romp imho, and also happens to be a better insight into his personal politics.
Also, Have Spacesuit Will Travel, Farmer in the Sky, Stranger in a Strange Land and mostly everything by Heinlein, though there was arguably a bit of a drop in quality towards the late end of his career.
- I remember reading an article claiming that The Number Of The Beast was the start of his "later, post-talented phase".
This part of the article _striongly_ reminded me of that:
In 1978, he suffered a near stroke from a blocked carotid artery that temporarily paralyzed one side of his body and left him to choose between the Damocles sword of massive seizure or the scalpel of a risky operation. He took the surgery, beat the odds, and immediately wrote "The Number of the Beast" (1980) -- four lubricious characters on a romp through various universes -- "to see if my brain would work." (Many critics said No.)
As a kid, I loved Have Spacesuit Will Travel. But even as a 14-15 year old I understood Number Of The Beast was not the same...
- Have Spacesuit Will Travel is another story that makes the case for Heinlein's female characters being exceptionally smart and capable.
- >As a kid, I loved Have Spacesuit Will Travel. But even as a 14-15 year old I understood Number Of The Beast was not the same...
One is a Scribner's juvenile, and the other is a novel written for adults.
Anyway, Friday is a post-carotid artery novel and is fantastic. Job, the novel the article discusses, is also great. They're just different from his earlier works.
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