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jeriendhalI'm about halfway through RAH's Citizen of the Galaxy, and for something that was written in the 50's, it holds up rather well.
More to the point, it's Heinlein at the peak of his work, playing to his own strengths, and not letting his weaknesses and obsessions overcome the story. Balsam the Beggar is the archetypical (though not stereotypical) Heinlein Competent Man, able to spend years as a spy working the streets of the corrupt Empire of Nine Worlds, while raising his adopted slave/son Thorby and instilling in him everything he needs to know to survive on the streets, not mention everything else his young brain can handle. When events switch to Thorby's POV just prior to Balsam's death, the Empire as it's seen manages to not be a typical SF Evol Empire. The local enforcers are to be feared, to be sure, but they aren't faceless stormtroopers, they Just Guys doing their job (like most true evil in the world, really). It's a subtle bit of characterization, but one you don't much these days, and was even rarer back when the book was written.
It's certainly better than anything RAH managed in the 70's. There's a subtle bit in the beginning after Balsam purchases Thorby, which acknowledges that Thorby was abused horribly, and that Balsam is no mere beggar, as he determines what he must do to help the boy overcome his nightmares and begin to teach what he needs to know to survive. There's nothing explicit about it, except a brief mention of Thorby's physical scars, but it's there, and it shows that Balsam is a man deep compassion and convictions.
From there Thorby escapes to a Spacer clan ship, and is adopted by it's captain in order to fit in, throwing him into a world he's not really prepared for. I'd remembered this part of the book but had forgotten most of the details, like the female anthropologist onboard who helps Thorby fit in, and who's obviously modeled heavily on Margarete Mead. Again, by 50's sci-fi standards she's pretty remarkable, a single woman travelling on her own onboard a ship that is completely alien culture, even though the people on board are humans. Like any RAH female she's smart (the casual dissection she does of the Sisu's culture and mores is worthy of Cordelia Vorkosigan). More to the point, unlike later (and lesser) Heinlein heroines, she's neither utterly gorgeous, a redhead, or ready to fall into the arms of whatever genetically and mentally compatible male that comes along.
All in all, RAH shows why he earned the first Grand Master award ever given. When he was at the top of his form, there was no one better for telling a smart, engaging yarn.
More to the point, it's Heinlein at the peak of his work, playing to his own strengths, and not letting his weaknesses and obsessions overcome the story. Balsam the Beggar is the archetypical (though not stereotypical) Heinlein Competent Man, able to spend years as a spy working the streets of the corrupt Empire of Nine Worlds, while raising his adopted slave/son Thorby and instilling in him everything he needs to know to survive on the streets, not mention everything else his young brain can handle. When events switch to Thorby's POV just prior to Balsam's death, the Empire as it's seen manages to not be a typical SF Evol Empire. The local enforcers are to be feared, to be sure, but they aren't faceless stormtroopers, they Just Guys doing their job (like most true evil in the world, really). It's a subtle bit of characterization, but one you don't much these days, and was even rarer back when the book was written.
It's certainly better than anything RAH managed in the 70's. There's a subtle bit in the beginning after Balsam purchases Thorby, which acknowledges that Thorby was abused horribly, and that Balsam is no mere beggar, as he determines what he must do to help the boy overcome his nightmares and begin to teach what he needs to know to survive. There's nothing explicit about it, except a brief mention of Thorby's physical scars, but it's there, and it shows that Balsam is a man deep compassion and convictions.
From there Thorby escapes to a Spacer clan ship, and is adopted by it's captain in order to fit in, throwing him into a world he's not really prepared for. I'd remembered this part of the book but had forgotten most of the details, like the female anthropologist onboard who helps Thorby fit in, and who's obviously modeled heavily on Margarete Mead. Again, by 50's sci-fi standards she's pretty remarkable, a single woman travelling on her own onboard a ship that is completely alien culture, even though the people on board are humans. Like any RAH female she's smart (the casual dissection she does of the Sisu's culture and mores is worthy of Cordelia Vorkosigan). More to the point, unlike later (and lesser) Heinlein heroines, she's neither utterly gorgeous, a redhead, or ready to fall into the arms of whatever genetically and mentally compatible male that comes along.
All in all, RAH shows why he earned the first Grand Master award ever given. When he was at the top of his form, there was no one better for telling a smart, engaging yarn.
