Double Star

Yet another Hugo Award winning Robert Anson Heinlein book off the shelf and into my tiny brain. Double Star is short, fast paced, to-the-point, and of most significance, “Early Heinlein.”  It takes place originally on Earth but soon after in outer space and on Mars and the Moon. In a brief synopsis, almost as brief as the actual plot, I’ll say that a down-and-out actor with too much pride is approached by spacemen for an acting role that pays well. By appealing to his sense of self-worth (The Great Lorenzo is a very self-confident man) they are able to smuggle him and whisk him away to Mars where he will be a fill-in for the politically outspoken leader of the Expansionist Coalition, Joseph Bonaparte. As Bonaparte has been kidnapped by anonymous enemies, the consequences for not showing up to a sacred Martian ritual are beyond consideration.

Lorenzo agrees and thus the transformation into Joseph Bonaparte begins. The enemies, who remain anonymous throughout the entire novel (typical Heinlein, really), eventually release Bonaparte, but he is in no condition to take the office he has just been voted into and Lorenzo ends up morphing into the role for more than any compensation can bring justice to.

The pace of the book makes it all very exciting. It is short, blunt, charming, imaginative and still carries Heinlein’s ideals but all put together so as not to disturb the flow of the story. Lorenzo is at first a very confused man, and remains that way until the breaking point when he realizes what must be done. But there is no confusion in the people helping him out, those that worked closely with Bonaparte and are helping him learn the role; they really pull together for the good of the cause.

These are the people that represent Heinlein’s ideals. They believe in putting an end to the exclusion of extraterrestrials in the Grand Assembly (which is similar to our House of Representatives, representing regions/groups to be acknowledged by the Solar Emperor) and that all sentient creatures are equals, and warrant the representation they deem necessary. The protagonists become political victors, then, as the afterword explains, losers and winners again. The Great Lorenzo becomes Joseph Bonaparte after his untimely death (affected so much by the torture during his kidnapping that his health deteriorates) and remains in office until his ousting, only to regain it again.

Political issues, especially those regarding Liberty, are at the core of Heinlein’s writing, but if you think you can’t handle any of his strongly libertarian themes then this just may be the perfect Heinlein book for you (in addition to the others on this blog I’ve reviewed).