Slowness: A Novel
Average customer rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • Great observations, but what happened to his style?
  • An entirely unique author.
  • In Praise of Slowness
  • Undisputedly original, with an erratic charm of its own...
  • Not up to usual Kundera standards
Slowness: A Novel
Milan Kundera
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0060928417

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After the gravity of The Unbearable Lightness of Being and Immortality, Slowness comes as a surprise: it is certainly Kundera's lightest novel, a divertimento, with, as the author himself says, "not a single serious word in it."

Disconcerted and enchanted, the reader follows the narrator through a midsummer's night in which two tales of seduction, sperated by more than two-hundred years, interweave and oscillate between the sublime and the comic, finally culminating in poignant cross-century encounter sure to linger in the reader's mind

Despite Kundera's disclaimer about the novel's seriousness, Slowness resonates with a profound meditation on contemporary life, the secret bond between slowness and memory, the connection between our era's desire to forget and the way we have given ourselves over to the demon of speed.

Book Description

Two tales of seduction, separated by more than two hundred years, interweave and oscillate between the sublime and the comic in this, Milan Kundera's lightest novel. In the 18th century, the marvelous Madame de T. summons a young nobleman to her chamber and gives him an unforgettable lesson in the art of seduction and the pleasures of love. In the same chat at the end of the 20th century, a hapless intellectual experiences a rather less successful night. Distracted by his desire to be the center of attention at a convention of entomologists, Vincent misses the opportunity to be with a beautiful stranger and suffers the ridicule of his peers.

A "morning-after" encounter between the two men brings the novel to a poignant close and provides a unique insight into the different mind-sets of the two centuries. As Vincent prepares to speed off on his motorcycle, he has already obliterated the memory of his humiliation. The young nobleman, on the other hand, relives the delicious pleasures of the night as he lies back on the cushions of his carriage.

Ruminating on how the pleasures of slowness have disappeared in today's fast-paced, future-shocked world, Kundera explores the secret bond between slowness and memory and the connection between our era's desire to forget and the way we have given ourselves over to the demon of speed. As provocative as it is entertaining, Slowness is Kundera in top form.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Great observations, but what happened to his style?.......2005-08-24

I struggled to give this book 4 Stars. I rather feel like 3, but that would put it in the league of far less intelligent books. Slowness is a very inspiring reflection on speed and memory, lust and enjoyment, truth and fiction, individuality and acting. It is also an ironic commentary on today's intellectuals and the media. And it is a story about love and eroticism. Maybe that's the problem with this book: It is too much that Kundera tried to convey in just about 150 pages. If you read closely, you get the point, but whereas Kundera preaches slowness and enjoyment, he practices speed and overload. His style is usually witty, sparkling, elegant and yet full of meaning - elements that are also occasionally present in Slowness. But here they have a hard time to stand out between passages of smart-aleck feuilettonism and the unconvincing attempt to be erotic, provocative and psychoanalytic simultaneously (it rather comes off as quite funny but both pretentious and vulgar at the same time). Even Kundera's usually refreshing experiments with form and style seem somewhat contrived. This book is still a notworthy read - philosophically inspiring, frequently quite funny and definitely original - but it's well below the esprit and stylistic brilliance of Immortality or Unberable Lightness of Being.

5 out of 5 stars An entirely unique author........2005-01-30

Let this be only the first of Kundera's books you read. It was my first, and now I've read everything of his that has been translated into English and if there's more I'm willing to learn another language to get to it. This book is humorous, but that is the least of it. I've never read an author with such perception, such a wily mind. It's impossible to get his characters or their lives out of your mind. Reading Kundera makes life, other people, and the whole world make more sense. And less sense, at the same time.

3 out of 5 stars In Praise of Slowness.......2004-09-30


Ironically, Slowness is a brisk read. The book is 156 pages long, and it could easily be read in one or two sittings. I, however, took my time, impelled, in part, by the theme of the book-slowwwnesss. And yes, the book can be enjoyed at a slow pace-that is until you hit the latter 100 pages, when the plot turns into a farce, and the prose reads so easily, so joyfully really, that you cannot help but finish quickly.

As always with Kundera novels many specific lines struck me, and I commemorated them with dog-eared pages. One quote seemed to be lifted from another Kundera novel, Immortality. In Slowness Kundera writes, "...beyond their practical function, all gestures have a meaning that exceeds the intention of those who make them. When people in bathing suits fling themselves into the water, it is joy itself that shows in the gesture, notwithstanding any sadness the divers may actually feel."

Kundera is talking abut Immaculata, a character who has just jumped into a pool fully clothed, but he could just as easily be talking about Agnes, the heroine of Immortality: "the essence of her charm, revealed itself for a second in that gesture and dazzled me."

Reading Immortality, you sense Kundera's compassion for Agnes; reading Slowness, with Immaculata, and the various other characters, you sense Kundera's contempt (although this may be too strong a word: in Kundera's terms, most of the characters here aren't even deserving of contempt.)

But Kundera does show compassion for several characters from an 18th century novel, characters who seem to embody the ancient idea of slowness-an idea all but lost to the modern characters of Slowness, all of who seem to be caught up in various fiascos. (These fiascos culminate in a ridiculous scene at the side of a swimming pool in a château.)

I read the book during the course of several mornings, and then I finished the last 100 pages in one sitting, in the evening. It is a good book for Kundera fans, although I am not sure I can agree with the critics line, quoted on the front cover of the book: "audacity, wit, and sheer brilliance." What does Kundera have to do to earn some mediocre praise?

4 out of 5 stars Undisputedly original, with an erratic charm of its own..........2004-06-13

Same place (an old castle), different times, interlinked stories of lovers, Kundera himself, and a multitude of carefully described peripheral characters that somehow complete the story behind the stories. All that, in a book of merely 176 pages?

However, there is much more to "Slowness", because the real protagonist of this short novel is time, and its nature. Kundera makes some interesting observations that are quite true, from my point of view. He points out the connection between slowness and pleasure on the one hand, and slowness and memory on the other. It is fairly evident that he wants to make us think about the dangers of the speed that seems to characterize our modern society. Where are we headed?. And is it worth the price we will have to pay?.

Is this book for everybody?. Certainly not: there are some scenes with sexual content that are inappropriate for very young readers, and that older readers might find distasteful. Despite that, I believe that many people will like "Slowness", mainly due to the fact that the novel is undisputedly original, with an erratic charm all of its own. The story wanders from one character to the other and from our days to the distant past with an almost perfect inconsistency that hides an omnipresent connecting factor: time.

All in all, I think that those who are fond of the strikingly unusual will enormously enjoy this book, but only if they are able to pay little attention to the defects in "Slowness" in order to concentrate on what makes it worth reading.

Belen Alcat

3 out of 5 stars Not up to usual Kundera standards.......2003-10-27

Let me begin by saying that this is not a bad book. In fact, if it were written by an unknown, nameless author I might find it rather brilliant. However, when compared with other Kundera works, this one falls, saddly, short. It lacks the self propultion of his other books. In addition, the sweet meloncholy of his other characters is missing in this text. All in all, this book is worth reading. However, if this is your first encounter with Kundera,I would recommend reading The Unbearable Lightness of Being, or Ignorance first.
The Discovery of Slowness
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Slowness and Respect
  • The North West Passage, and to each his own time.
  • It moves me through and through Lord Child! it show am good.
  • do yourself the favour and read this book . . .
  • German classic best-seller in English at last!
The Discovery of Slowness
Sten Nadolny
Manufacturer: Paul Dry Books, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1589880242

Book Description

Framing the life of the 19th-century explorer Sir John Franklin (1786–1847), this novel explores not only the adventures of his career, but also enters a world where the quality of life is considered to be in slow motion, where ordinary experience becomes wholly new and unexpected. A phlegmatic, deliberate, strange child, John's slowness is extraordinary, allowing him to hold a rope taut for hours, his arm upright, and gather superhuman strength. He joins the Navy at age 14 and from that point on the volatile but profoundly changeless sea becomes his home. As he travels the world, brutal struggles against Arctic ice, enveloping seas off the coast of Australia, and the deadly ships of Napoleon's navy are etched upon the canvas of the contemplative and methodically slow thoughts of John Franklin, whose brain sends no signals to speak or move until it has fully conceptualized a situation. This remarkable and superbly translated novel derives from the life of the real 19th-century explorer John Franklin, who bestowed the name "District of Franklin" to the northern archipelago above Canada.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Slowness and Respect.......2007-08-03

I read "Die Entdeckung der Langsamkeit" when it came out in German in 1983, and loved it. Unfortuntately, it was a borrowed copy, and I kept looking for it among my collection of German books when I often referred it to others.

Now I again had an opportunity to refer to it while reading Patricia Wood's new (and first) novel Lottery, which is also about a very slow person, Perry, who gains respect and friendship after what could have been the devastation of winning the Washington State Lottery. Perry is also a sailor, and Perry, like Franklin, has learned to be an "auditor" and a listmaker, to turn slowness into his strength.

4 out of 5 stars The North West Passage, and to each his own time........2004-01-12

In recent years, polar exploration has regained much attention; particularly so the voyages of Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton. Relatively little, in comparison, is known about Sir John Franklin, who after several expeditions to the Polar Sea lost his life shortly after having discovered the North West Passage in 1847.

Working from Franklin's own accounts, other historic sources and several scholarly treatises, German author Sten Nadolny in 1983 published an award-winning and (at least in Germany) highly successful novelized biography of Franklin. But "The Discovery of Slowness" (German title: "Die Entdeckung der Langsamkeit") is no mere rendition of the facts of Franklin's life, fascinating though they may be. Nadolny sees Franklin as a proponent of the idea of giving to all persons and things their own time; of not being unduly rushed, nor influenced by outside factors over which one has little (if any) control: then and now, an unusual concept in a world growing faster by the day.

Growing up in Spilsby, Lincolnshire, Nadolny's Franklin is a perpetual outsider, seemingly handicapped by his slowness, which renders him defenseless against spiteful attacks and unable to follow anything occurring at an even moderately fast pace, including speech. Early on, John thus turns his desires to the sea, which he perceives as a dark and boundless ally. He tries to run away to a nearby port, but is recaptured and sent to boarding school. There, an enlightened teacher eventually shows interest in him after having discovered that "the student F." (as he entitles a treatise based on his observations) is not simply slow but rather, takes particular care in observing things, and anything once lodged in his brain will be lodged there forever.

To deal with the difference between his own pace and that of the world around him, Franklin adopts a number of varying techniques: A stare enabling him to bypass quick action, memorized phrases to cover the breaks he needs in longer sentences, and a mental sorting system to distinguish issues in need of immediate address from those requiring long-term care. And as he grows older, his behavioral patterns progressively shape his outlook on the world and personal philosophy.

On his teacher's recommendation, Franklin is allowed to board his first ship at age fourteen. A few years later, he joins the Royal Navy and, rising through the ranks, witnesses the 1801 Battle of Copenhagen, the Battle of Trafalgar, and a campaign against American forces before New Orleans, during which he is wounded. Having already participated in the 1801-03 expedition to Australia led by his uncle, renowned navigator Matthew Flinders, Franklin receives his first commission for a voyage to the North as the commander of one of two ships sent to explore the Polar Sea north of Spitzbergen in 1818. However, both ships are damaged by the drifting floes of a large ice field and forced to return home.

Unsatisfied, Franklin requests - and eventually receives - a commission for a second voyage, this time a land expedition; his first attempt to discover the North West Passage. For its sheer gripping storytelling, this 1819-22 trip is one of the highlights of Nadolny's book; particularly the return journey, which confronts Franklin's crew with sorrow, hunger and death, from both starvation and murder. (No recommended bed-time reading if you value a good night's rest.) Yet, having first suffered humiliation due to what the Admiralty considers a "failed" trip, Franklin's no-frills account of the expedition garners him unexpected fame and fortune; and eventually a commission for a further journey to the North, which due to its thoughtful preparation and the extensive cartographic material and observations it yields is considered a success, although it, again, does not result in the discovery of the North West Passage. Franklin is knighted, his fame and fortune grows - but for the moment, no further voyage to the Polar Sea is in sight.

Somewhat reluctantly, he thus accepts the appointment as governor of Van Diemen's Land (which he will rename Tasmania, for its discoverer Abel Tasman); telling himself that a governorship - even of a penal colony - is not substantially different from commanding a ship. Like at sea, Franklin attempts to divide responsibility between himself and his "second(s) in command," taking personal charge of all matters requiring long-term care and leaving the issues requiring fast, immediate attention to his chief subordinates. Here, however, he is not dealing with loyal men who understand his philosophy: His personal secretary Maconochie is a pseudo-reformist radical; colonial secretary Montagu a crony of the local elite without any sympathy for Franklin's reformatory measures, whereas Franklin's efforts to better the fate of the convicts and aborigines reflect the humanistic qualities of a man whose empathy for all human beings and keen interest in science has developed over a lifetime spent in the company of sailors, explorers, American Indians and Inuit, through war and peace, hunger and satisfaction.

Facing opposition from the local ruling class and the politics of royal secretary Lord Stanley, Franklin is finally recalled in 1843. Upon his friends' intervention, he is granted an audience with prime minister Sir Robert Peel, who offers him the newly-created position as royal supervisor of educational affairs; but realizing that Peel merely wants to capitalize on his apparent reluctance to take action, not implement any true reforms, Franklin declines. At last, he is granted another commission for a voyage to discover the North West Passage: his last journey, during which he (and his crew) have to realize that there is one who is more patient than even the most patient of humans - death.

"Thou ... art passing on thine happier voyage now towards no earthly pole," reads part of a poem by Franklin's cousin Tennyson, printed on his Westminster Abbey memorial. Franklin was certainly not the only polar explorer to whom these words could be applied. As Sten Nadolny's book shows, he is as deserving of renewed attention as are his brethren in spirit; and not only because much yet remains unclear about the exact fate of his last expedition.

5 out of 5 stars It moves me through and through Lord Child! it show am good........1999-02-07

I like taking this book out for a long night stroll. Maybe it's lightly raining, of course it's dark with only street lights to light up the words on the page. It moves me through and through Lord! Child! it shorely am good it good it good! it so damn good!

5 out of 5 stars do yourself the favour and read this book . . ........1998-01-21

this book is unusually thruthful and gripped me from the beginning to the very end - maybe because of the fact that I have something in common with Franklin. So convincinglty written , I'd like to have met the protagonist !

5 out of 5 stars German classic best-seller in English at last!.......1997-07-26

The publication (or to be more accurate, re-publication) in English of Sten Nadolny's The Discovery of Slowness is a major literary event, not only for connoisseurs of fine historical fiction, but also for those of us who concern themselves with leadership, communication and systems-thinking issues.

First published in Germany in 1983, this powerful novel of the life of explorer John Franklin has never been out-of-print in that country since. This is certainly due in part to its stature as a cleanly-written, keenly-observed literary impression of a chaotic age not dissimilar to our own, and of a man whose slower rhythm seems out of joint with that age. What has contributed to the book's longevity in the meantime, however, is the cult-status it enjoys among managers and leaders as a portrayal of a type of leadership that all eras cry out for: the ability to perceive the world not merely at the level of isolated events, but at a level of deep structure where the dynamics of the whole system are revealed, and plans can be made based on better data and profounder understanding.

John Franklin is uniquely suited to play this role: "slow" from birth, he experiences the world as an endless cycle of data-gathering, reflection, and action based on the systemic patterns that reveal themselves to his silent contemplation. The fact that that action can not only be more appropriate than what other, "faster" contemporaries would have initiated, but also swifter in execution and more permanent in its effect, only insinuates itself slowly on a society caught up in the frenetic pace of the early 1800's. One simply does not have the time; doing takes precedence over reflection and doing.

It is, however, through his in-born inability to act in any other manner that John Franklin's career is made, first as a seaman, then as a hero at Trafalgar, as the captain of 3 expeditions in search of the Northwest Passage that instinct tells him must exist, and as the Governor of Tasmania. Author Nadolny is, one suspects, as much concerned with his protagonist's inner journey of adaptation to the world (and the world's to him) as with the external details that lead up to the final, fateful voyage to the Arctic regions and the disappearance of the Franklin expedition in 1845. The measure of Nadolny's artistic success is that he achieves our undivided attention and caring at both levels with his breathtakingly simple prose.

Penguin books has done us a great service by re-releasing the elegant Ralph Freedman translation, once fleetingly available from Viking. For people in search of an elegant humanitarian classic, or a portrayal of the much-touted "servant leadership" in action, The Discovery of Slowness may well be the discovery of the summer. And those who agree about its status as a contemporary classic will want to investigate the same author's delicious Hermes-novel, The God of Impertinence, also newly published by Viking
The Discovery of Slowness: A Novel
Average customer rating: Not rated
    The Discovery of Slowness: A Novel
    Sten Nadolny
    Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Paperback
    ASIN: B000OIZGIO
    Slowness : A Novel
    Average customer rating: Not rated
      Slowness : A Novel
      Milan; Asher, Linda (translator) Kundera
      Manufacturer: HarperCollins
      ProductGroup: Book
      Binding: Paperback
      ASIN: B000OEKSUY

      Cashelmara
      Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
      • A Vivid History
      • Cashelmara
      • A Wonderful Novel
      • A good story told well
      • Gripping Multigenerational Saga Of The English In Ireland
      Cashelmara
      Susan Howatch
      Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
      ProductGroup: Book
      Binding: Hardcover

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      ASIN: 0671217364

      Book Description

      The rich and mighty saga of a wealthy and titled English family in Ireland during the 19th century.

      Customer Reviews:

      5 out of 5 stars A Vivid History.......2007-04-05

      You'll be in Ireland with the characters in this novel, which is the story of King Edward II moved to 19th century Ireland.

      5 out of 5 stars Cashelmara.......2007-01-04

      This is Susan Howatch's very best book. I could feel each character and understand their emotional makeup. I could "see" Cashelmara, the countryside surrounding it and appreciate the isolation and hardship involved with the poor living in a tiny, remote village. It was another time, another place and a different way of life. Still, I could relate to it and the story captivated my heart. Thank you Susan Howatch.

      5 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Novel.......2006-11-26

      'Cashelmara' is Susan Howatch's re-telling of the story of Edward II, King of England 1307-1327, updated to nineteenth-century Ireland. If you're not at all interested in Edward II, or know nothing about him, it's absolutely no problem - you can thoroughly enjoy this novel anyway. However, working out who each character represents historically - for example, Derry Stranahan is 'really' Edward II's favourite Piers Gaveston, while Maxwell Drummond stands for Queen Isabella's lover Roger Mortimer - was a big part of my enjoyment of the novel!

      'Cashelmara' is divided into six sections. Each section is narrated in the first person, by a different character. I love this structure, as you really get into the heads of the different characters, and see how they think and see themselves and others. Howatch has complete command of her structure and pulls it off wonderfully.

      If you know anything about fourteenth-century English history, you'll see how accurate a re-telling it is. If not, you're sure to enjoy a well-told and fascinating novel that's full of emotional ups and downs. I agree with a previous reviewer who called it emotionally draining! 'Cashelmara' is a highly rewarding read.

      5 out of 5 stars A good story told well.......2005-03-27

      This is the kind of book I love--- involved, lots of interesting charactors, a story that is believable and makes one want to keep reading. The middle of the book gets into a subject that was not mentioned much in other books I have read that were written in the mid 70's, and I was surprised when the plot took that turn, although the hints were there from the first. I just wasn't expecting the story to get so specific. I had my favorite charactors, then they would turn out to be not what I had thought-- the whole book was one I kept looking forward to going back to.
      When I finished it, I was almost drained with emotion. That sure doesn't happen to me very often. I loved it.

      4 out of 5 stars Gripping Multigenerational Saga Of The English In Ireland.......2004-04-08

      Susan Howatch has written a gripping multigenerational tale of a titled English family who live on their Irish estate, Cashelmara, during the 19th century. This family saga is interwoven with Irish and English politics of the period, self-rule, the Great Famine, emigration, etc.. The years after the Irish famine were marked with issues like the land question and the struggle for independence. Tenants started to demand more security of land tenure. At the same time, landlords were eager to remove paupers from their land to reduce their poor law charges. The landlord/tenant divide was exacerbated by this conflict. The drama of Cashelmara takes place against this explosive backdrop.

      Edward de Salis, an English nobleman with vast landholdings in Ireland and England travels to America and visits the Marriot family, distant relations in New York City. De Salis, a man in his fifties, has been a widower for eight years and has a young son, Patrick, and three older daughters, all married or living away from home. He returns to England with plans to marry seventeen year-old Marguerite Marriot, to his family's great consternation. Marguerite and Edward are married at the family estate, Cashelmara. Oddly enough the marriage turns out to be a love match. Times become difficult when Edward dies and finances become tight. Cashelmara and the situation in Ireland begin to weigh heavily on the family with unexpected results. This historical novel is filled with romance, intrigue, social and political unrest and family drama.

      Ms. Howatch is able to vividly describe the same situation through the eyes of various characters. These differing points of view give tremendous depth to her characters and interesting insight into their personalities and ulterior motives. The events they are involved in become more complex when all the versions are compiled. Cashelmara's plot unfolds through the individual stories of five people. The author's research and attention to detail are meticulous and give the reader insight into the hardships and difficulties of 19th century Ireland. Cashelmara is an example of excellent historical fiction.
      JANA
      Cashelmara
      Average customer rating: Not rated
        Cashelmara
        Susan Howatch
        Manufacturer: Simon and Schuster
        ProductGroup: Book
        Binding: Hardcover

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                        Have Space Suit, Will Travel
                        Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
                        • A Great Read for 14 and Up
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                        • HAVE SPACE SUIT-WILL TRAVEL
                        Have Space Suit, Will Travel
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                        Manufacturer: Del Rey
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                        ASIN: 034546107X
                        Release Date: 2003-07-29

                        Book Description

                        SKYJACKED!

                        One minute Kip Russell is walking around his own backyard, testing out an old space suit and dreaming about going to the moon–the next he is the captive of a space pirate and on his way to the very place he had been dreaming of. At first, the events are so unreal he thinks he might be having a nightmare . . . but when he discovers other prisoners aboard the spaceship he knows the ordeal is all too real. Kip and his fellow abductees, the daughter of a world-renowned scientist and a beautiful creature from an alien planet, have been skyjacked by a monstrous extraterrestrial who is flying them to the moon–on a journey toward a fate worse than death. . . .

                        Have Space Suit–Will Travel is the newest addition to the Del Rey Imagine program, which offers the best in classic fantasy and science fiction for readers 12 and up.

                        Customer Reviews:

                        4 out of 5 stars A Great Read for 14 and Up.......2007-10-04

                        This is a good interduction to Robert A Heinlein for the younger set. Read this and you will become a fan and will want to read more. Enjoy this for what it is a good read.

                        5 out of 5 stars Utterly perfect.......2007-09-07

                        I recently gave this book to my ten-year-old to read and he pronounced it "the best book ever". (Yes, he has read Harry Potter, his previous favorite.) Having re-read it myself, for at least the tenth or twelfth time, I can't disagree. Like all great books, its themes are so universal, it would require only minimal editing to be published today.

                        5 out of 5 stars Have Spacesuit Will Travel.......2007-05-07

                        I've probably read this book six times over the course of my life, first when I was thirteen. I still enjoy it as an adult. It's a great present for sixth grade birthdays. The story takes you from a regular boy in high school wishing he could go to the moon and leads you much further, further out, one step at a time. He wins a spacesuit, and that 's how his space travel and encounters with aliens begins.
                        Laura

                        5 out of 5 stars A brief comment.......2007-02-27

                        Although considered one of his juveniles, Heinlein cleverly concealed a lot of more adult themes in these books (such as the no-nonsense marital advice in The Star Beast)--often dispensing valuable advice about the importance of good old fashioned values, especially hard work, discipline, integrity, loyalty, friendship, personal responsibility (especially civic responsibility), getting a good education, and other important qualities that young people needed to learn about.

                        This book is no different, and when the main character wins an old space suit in a contest and puts in a lot of time and effort to repair and recondition it, his industriousness "pays off" when he serendipitously gets involved in an improbable but fascinating drama of intergalactic proportions (he ends up visiting one of the Magellanic Clouds). Some of the most interesting parts of the book are the comparisons between the various alien races in regard to their observing proper morality and values themselves, although the security council meeting at the end of the book makes it clear that right or wrong, humanity will be exterminated if they pose a threat to the rest of the galaxy.

                        In that sense, the book anticipates the movie, "The Day the Earth Stood Still," and it's preachy but dire message, by ten years. But Heinlein, always more than a little ahead of his time, had an uncanny gift for sensing the winds of change. Most of the science in the book was far enough in the future so that very little of it seems dated, and like many of Heinlein's books it has stood the test of time and is still worth reading today.

                        5 out of 5 stars HAVE SPACE SUIT-WILL TRAVEL.......2007-02-26

                        Although dated (and what isn't dated today), this is another great book by Heinlein. I remember finding this book in the school library when I was a kid and never forgot reading it from cover to cover. Now I am sharing it with my kids. Great adventure!
                        HAVE SPACE SUIT-WILL TRAVEL
                        Average customer rating: Not rated
                          HAVE SPACE SUIT-WILL TRAVEL

                          Manufacturer: Scribners 1958 J Printing
                          ProductGroup: Book
                          Binding: Hardcover
                          ASIN: B000GA6YP4
                          Have Space Suit--Will Travel
                          Average customer rating: Not rated
                            Have Space Suit--Will Travel

                            Manufacturer: Mercury Press
                            ProductGroup: Book
                            Binding: Hardcover
                            ASIN: B000BZ8PHE
                            6 Books by Robert Heinlein: Between Planets, The Green Hills of Earth, Citizen of the Galaxy, Have Space Suit Will Travel, The Star Beast, Glory Road
                            Average customer rating: Not rated
                              6 Books by Robert Heinlein: Between Planets, The Green Hills of Earth, Citizen of the Galaxy, Have Space Suit Will Travel, The Star Beast, Glory Road
                              Robert Heinlein
                              Manufacturer: BAEN, New York
                              ProductGroup: Book
                              Binding: Paperback
                              ASIN: B000WV4XEQ
                              Have Space Suit - Will Travel
                              Average customer rating: Not rated
                                Have Space Suit - Will Travel
                                Robert A. Heinlein
                                Manufacturer: Ace
                                ProductGroup: Book
                                Binding: Paperback
                                ASIN: B000OIGHBE
                                Have Space Suit - Will Travel
                                Average customer rating: Not rated
                                  Have Space Suit - Will Travel
                                  Robert A. Heinlein
                                  Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
                                  ProductGroup: Book
                                  Binding: Paperback
                                  ASIN: B000S86XPK
                                  Have Space Suit - Will Travel
                                  Average customer rating: Not rated
                                    Have Space Suit - Will Travel
                                    Robert A. Heinlein
                                    Manufacturer: New English Library
                                    ProductGroup: Book
                                    Binding: Paperback
                                    ASIN: B000KF6V5I
                                    Have Space Suit - Will Travel
                                    Average customer rating: Not rated
                                      Have Space Suit - Will Travel
                                      Robert A. Heinlein
                                      Manufacturer: Charles Scribner's Sons
                                      ProductGroup: Book
                                      Binding: Hardcover
                                      ASIN: B000WVPRKA
                                      Have Space Suit - Will Travel
                                      Average customer rating: Not rated
                                        Have Space Suit - Will Travel
                                        Robert A. Heinlein
                                        Manufacturer: New English Library
                                        ProductGroup: Book
                                        Binding: Mass Market Paperback
                                        ASIN: B000PRURRE
                                        Have Space Suit Will Travel
                                        Average customer rating: Not rated
                                          Have Space Suit Will Travel
                                          Robert Heinlein
                                          Manufacturer: Gollancz
                                          ProductGroup: Book
                                          Binding: Hardcover
                                          ASIN: B000MVQKVK

                                          Reliving the Passion: Meditations on the Suffering, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus As Recorded in the Gospel of Mark
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                                            Reliving the Passion: Meditations on the Suffering, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus As Recorded in the Gospel of Mark
                                            Walter Wangerin
                                            Manufacturer: Harpercollins (Mm)
                                            ProductGroup: Book
                                            Binding: Paperback

                                            GeneralGeneral | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
                                            InspirationalInspirational | Spirituality | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
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                                            1. Reliving the Passion Reliving the Passion

                                            ASIN: 0061043060
                                            Reliving the Passion: Meditations on the Suffering, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus As Recorded in the Gospel of Mark
                                            Average customer rating: Not rated
                                              Reliving the Passion: Meditations on the Suffering, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus As Recorded in the Gospel of Mark
                                              Walter Jr. Wangerin
                                              Manufacturer: Harpercollins
                                              ProductGroup: Book
                                              Binding: Mass Market Paperback
                                              ASIN: B000NG9KSY

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