Matthew's Reviews > The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress

“Seems to be a deep instinct in human beings for making everything compulsory that isn't forbidden.”

Politics and space . . . not a surprise when reading Heinlein. With his writing will always be some very interesting sci-fi space travel, action, etc., but the political allegory is also always there. And, while some authors hide the point they are making under the story, I feel like Heinlein unapologetically puts his right on the surface. Sometimes this has not worked for me (I was not a huge fan of Stranger in a Strange Land), but with The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, I found the balance perfect; not only was I entertained by the sci-fi, but it made me think without feeling like I was being preached at (too much).

But as you can see with the quote below . . . as I said . . . it is right there on the surface!

“A rational anarchist believes that concepts such as "state" and "society" and "government" have no existence save as physically exemplified in the acts of self-responsible individuals. He believes that it is impossible to shift blame, share blame, distribute blame. . . as blame, guilt, responsibility are matters taking place inside human beings singly and nowhere else. But being rational, he knows that not all individuals hold his evaluations, so he tries to live perfectly in an imperfect world. . . aware that his effort will be less than perfect yet undismayed by self-knowledge of self-failure.”

If you like just straight up action sci-fi to mainly escape with for a while, Heinlein may not be for you. But if you are a fan of a bit of political introspection in the midst of your Artificial Intelligence and laser battles, this book is worth trying.