A collection of
correspondence between
Robert A. Heinlein and his wife, various
publishers,
editors, and others. The writings were published
posthumously, (
Del Rey, 1989) edited by his
widow,
Virginia Heinlein. (
Out of print as of 2/2001)
The character of RAH shines through in the letters, and it seems that a realistic glimpse of the man behind the stories is given. He definitely modeled many of his characters after himself, or portions of himself. The early letters to his wife during his military days contain many ideas and sentiments that were
precursors to themes of later works, and his dedication to precision and science is impressive. The letters back and forth to editors and publishers give much
insight into the actual writing process, and the
wrangling and
niggling that goes on in transforming a
manuscript into a publishable book. There is an entertaining section about his trials at working adult ideas into his
juvenile fiction, such as
Podkayne of Mars. In fact, the discussion of his pursuit of two separate literary tracks,
adult science fiction and
juvenile science fiction, explains much about why RAH's books seem to aim at such different levels - they actually
do.
Perhaps it would be best for RAH fans to not read this book until their
passion has peaked and begun to
wane a bit. The
deconstructionist nature of the work, the exposure of the man behind the controls, could well disrupt the usual process of '
growing beyond Heinlein' experienced by many
fans. For those still discovering, devouring, and digesting Heinlein novels - continue, but leave this for later. For those who've gone back and re-read some RAH and found it to be less than you remember, found the strong opinions less appealing - this book might help you understand the author and put the things he wrote, the things you learned, in
perspective. For those whose
fandom has
festered, or those who found him
fascist from the start, there's likely little here for you, unless you're on a
crusade.