Orphans of the Sky
by Robert A. Heinlein
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Book Summary Information
Author: Robert A. HeinleinEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2001-11-27
ISBN: 0671318454
Number of pages: 224
Publisher: Baen
Book Reviews of Orphans of the Sky
Book Review: Read for an hour; Enjoy it for years!
Summary: 5 Stars
The mutiny took place many, many years ago on an enormous star ship outfitted for a multi-generational voyage to Far Centaurus. The last remaining member of the original crew, for right or wrong, made a political decision to hide the logs and, in effect, to bury the present crew's real history. As a result, for those alive today, now drifting aimlessly in a deep space of which none of the inhabitants are even aware, the ship constitutes their entire universe. None of them has ever been outside the ship and, indeed, even the existence of "outside" is a concept beyond their ken and imagination. They farm, they eat, they raise their families, they live and die, and they battle mutants that inhabit the upper levels of the ship. Scraps of past knowledge such as a book entitled "Basic Modern Physics" have been re-interpreted as religious artifacts and scientists have become the priesthood of the ship's "religion". Hugh Hoyland, a young man who had hopes of becoming a scientist, is captured by the mutants as he indulges himself in typically reckless young men's high jinx on the upper levels of the ship. Although he has been presumed dead by the ship's crew he left behind, the mutants reveal the true nature of the ship and its place in the universe to Hugh who decides he must somehow return to the lower levels and persuade them to complete the trip to Centaurus.
Like many of his other ground-breaking classics such as "Methuselah's Children" or "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress", "Orphans of the Sky" can read on the surface as a short exciting adventure tale that succeeds brilliantly. Indeed, it is so simple and straight forward that one could easily classify it as juvenile fiction that would thrill the young readers in your family and convert them to life long fans of the sci-fi genre.
But the discerning adult reader who cares to dig a little more deeply will appreciate that Heinlein, in the space of an incredibly short 128 pages, has provided us with the fodder for many a thoughtful conversation - science as religion; religion as science; the tendency of established religion to view thinking outside its doctrine as unforgivable heresy; the extreme societal antagonism to sea change and paradigm shifts in philosophical or scientific thought; the difficulties scientists often encounter in the interpretation of their own data when the results run counter to their intuition; and, of course, the prejudice, fear and hatred we are all prone to in dealing with societies or individuals "different" from ourselves. Heinlein no doubt took the light-hearted humorous expression "Don't look at me like I've got two heads!" and turned Joe-Jim Gregory, a mutant with two heads, into a metaphor for the whole bigotry issue. In the closing chapters, Heinlein even deals with the cruel necessity for persecuted individuals to occasionally strike out blindly on their own and establish a new pioneering society norm as an expedient for basic survival.
"Orphans of the Sky" is a classic that can be read at a single sitting but you'll savour it for years to come!
Paul Weiss
Summary of Orphans of the Sky
Ancient myths told of a place called Earth, but the modern world knew it was nonsense. Science knew the Ship was all the Universe, and as long as the sacred Converter was fed, lights would glow and air would flow through the miles of metal corridors. Hugh never questioned these truths until a despised mutie showed him the Control Room and he learned the true nature of the Ship and its mission.Literature & Fiction Books
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