Four Frontiers

by Robert A. Heinlein

Three young men do what we all wanted to - they build Rocket Ship Galileo and fly it to the moon. Of course it's not so simple: there are rivals and red tape to overcome, and a totally unexpected and possibly lethal -- surprise waiting for them when they get there. Matt Dodson has heroic dreams of joining Space Patrol, so he becomes a Space Cadet and embarks on the long and difficult training that will show if he can do the job. His mettle is tested to the utmost when, on his first training flight he finds himself in the midst of an interplanetary crisis. Jim Marlowe grew up on the Red Planet, and when he's sent off to boarding school at Syrtis Major, he insists on taking his Martian pet with him. He doesn't anticipate how much trouble friendly little Willis will get him into -- and how paradoxically lucky that will turn out to be. Bill Lerner can't wait to leave an overcrowded Earth and become a Farmer in the Sky on Ganymede. He thinks he's ready for hard work and hardship -- but he has no idea what it will mean when things go wrong and the nearest help is four hundred million miles away!

Includes:

- Rocket Ship Galileo
- Space cadet
- Red planet
- Farmer in the sky

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Young Adult, Collections, Science Fiction Fantasy

709 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1953

About the author

Robert Anson Heinlein was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific accuracy in his fiction, and was thus a pioneer of the subgenre of hard science fiction. His published works, both fiction and non-fiction, express admiration for competence and emphasize the value of critical thinking. His plots often posed provocative situations which challenged conventional social mores. His work continues to have an influence on the science-fiction genre, and on modern culture more generally.
Heinlein became one of the first American science-fiction writers to break into mainstream magazines such as The Saturday Evening Post in the late 1940s. He was one of the best-selling science-fiction novelists for many decades, and he, Isaac Asimov, and Arthur C. Clarke are often considered the "Big Three" of English-language science fiction authors. Notable Heinlein works include Stranger in a Strange Land, Starship Troopers (which helped mold the space marine and mecha archetypes) and The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress. His work sometimes had controversial aspects, such as plural marriage in The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, militarism in Starship Troopers and technologically competent women characters who were formidable, yet often stereotypically feminine—such as Friday.
Heinlein used his science fiction as a way to explore provocative social and political ideas and to speculate how progress in science and engineering might shape the future of politics, race, religion, and sex. Within the framework of his science-fiction stories, Heinlein repeatedly addressed certain social themes: the importance of individual liberty and self-reliance, the nature of sexual relationships, the obligation individuals owe to their societies, the influence of organized religion on culture and government, and the tendency of society to repress nonconformist thought. He also speculated on the influence of space travel on human cultural practices.
Heinlein was named the first Science Fiction Writers Grand Master in 1974. Four of his novels won Hugo Awards. In addition, fifty years after publication, seven of his works were awarded "Retro Hugos"—awards given retrospectively for works that were published before the Hugo Awards came into existence. In his fiction, Heinlein coined terms that have become part of the English language, including grok, waldo and speculative fiction, as well as popularizing existing terms like "TANSTAAFL", "pay it forward", and "space marine". He also anticipated mechanical computer-aided design with "Drafting Dan" and described a modern version of a waterbed in his novel Beyond This Horizon.
Also wrote under Pen names: Anson McDonald, Lyle Monroe, Caleb Saunders, John Riverside and Simon York.

Reviews

[John Bruni · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another collection of Heinlein's juvenile books. I tend to enjoy these things, and he hasn't really let me down. Let's take a look at each novel:

-Rocket Ship Galileo: It's a fun book, but not a lot happens. Most of it consists of four boys and an uncle trying to build a rocket ship to go to the moon. It's all hard science, and I'm sure it inspired a lot of kids to become engineers. But for the average kid? I'm sure it bored the hell out of them. Every once in a while, something happens, but it isn't until they're on the moon when the real fun begins. Something happens, and you can't possibly predict what it is.

-Space Cadet: This one suffers from the same problem as the previous novel. Not a lot happens. It's essentially about a boy training to become a space cadet. Again, it's a lot of hard science, stuff that would only appeal to a limited group of children. Also like the previous novel, it has an awesome ending when stuff actually happens. Great stuff. (Also worth noting: this book was written in the 'Forties, and the characters have cell phones.)

-Red Planet (not to be confused with the Val Kilmer movie): This one is my favorite. It has plenty of hard science for those who want that kind of thing, but more importantly, it actually has a story going on. Plus it's got a cute "pet" that will warm any kid's heart. Not only that, but there's a lot of political statements being made here, stuff that would sound very subversive today. Subversive enough to maybe get it banned from school libraries.

-Farmer in the Sky: This is my second favorite because it lands in the middle ground between the fashion of the first two and Red Planet. It's about a boy and his family flying out to one of Jupiter's moons to become farmers. There's some action along the way, but a lot of it is hard science and figuring out how to farm a supposedly unfarmable moon. But at least stuff happens at regular intervals. It's fun. (Also worth noting: this book was written in 1950. At one point a character derisively says that Pluto is not a planet. Interesting.)

One more thing I want to add: I love the way Heinlein's kids speak. They sound like hoods in 'Thirties gangster movies. The adults speak the same way, but they also throw in words like "fiddlesticks." No one in real life ever speaks like this, but I love it anyway.

[Doc Ezra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Collecting four of Heinlein’s earliest “juveniles”, this collection from the (sadly defunct) SFBC is a must for the golden age completist. The titles are a mixed bag of speculative post-WWII space adventures, very much “boy’s adventure” stories of their time and place. Women are non-existent or nuisances, and the protagonists are without exception teenaged boys whose grasp of engineering and calculus exceed most college graduates. If you can take it as read that all future teenagers are starry-eyed wunderkind who started calculus when they were in grade school, it can be glossed over, but if not, they’re all just going to read as insufferably smug.

The four novels collected range from “race to be first to the moon” in Rocket Ship Galileo all the way out to colonizing the solar system in Farmer in the Sky That said, Space Patrol is probably my favorite of the bunch, as it suffers a little less from the “know-it-all Eagle Scout” problem of the other books. Least favorite goes to Red Planet, which wastes the opportunity to delve into an alien psychology and civilization in favor of indulging in over-the-top libertarian wankery that is unfortunately a hallmark of much of Heinlein’s work.

[Austin Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had avoided the "Heinlein Juveniles" for a few years, because of assumption that they were for kids--these books are simply standard novels, and they're amazing!

"Four Frontiers" contains the first four novels. Each book expands to a different planet:To the Moon....To Venus...To Mars...To Jupiter (technically Juputer's Moon Ganymede)!

For the 3rd novel, "Red Planet", pick up the new Del Rey version which that an Introduction that explains the bowdlerization of the novel, as well as the reasons for it's censorship, as well as literal examples of censored pages.

Books 1 and 2 are just okay, but books 3 and 4 are amazing!

[Jonathan Harbour · Rating 3 out of 5]

Technically, I didn't read this entire book. I read 3 of the novellas previously and switched to this HC edition to finish Red Planet when the audiobook went on the fritz. Saving this as a record that I read the contents entirely, but did not read the stories twice. The physical HC book is well done and attractive but a bit bland due to being a book club copy. Still, I prefer this over the paperbacks. Many of Heinlein's old novels/novellas can still be found in mmpb format, but I just don't want any more of them. Much prefer the HC. And, I intend to pick up the other Heinlein HCs in this series.

[Freek]

N/A

[Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of my favorite Heinlein stories are his early works - his "boy adventure" stories