The Rolling Stones (Heinlein's Juveniles Book 6)

Heinlein practically invented the science fiction juvenile -- meaning written specifically for the young adult market -- but that doesn't mean they're any less fun than his "adult" novels. This one, one of his best know, features the Stone family of Luna: Father Roger an engineer and ex-mayor of Luna City (and the author of a continuing adventure serial for Earth), mother Edith an M.D., grandma Hazel a Founding Father of the Lunar Revolution (she always packs a gun, though nowadays it's just a place to carry her supply of cough drops), twin teenage boys Castor and Pollux who are mathematical prodigies and born mechanics as well as budding capitalists, and toddler Lowell who's a chess whiz and possibly a mentalist. Only the daughter, Meade, is "ordinary," being merely gorgeous and a fair singer. The twins want to head off Luna to make some money, one thing leads to another, and the whole family buys a used ship and takes off on a junket for Mars. Part of this yarn is adventure, part of it is sugar-coated science, and all of it is enjoyable, even the parts that are now half a century out-of-date. Not to mention that the Martian "flat cats" are the inspiration for "The Trouble with Tribbles"! Heinlein's prose tries much too hard in some of his novels, especially the later one, but this one bounces right along. Read and enjoy!

Robert A. Heinlein wrote many books for young adults, and they have introduced many a teenager to science fiction -- indeed, to science, as many astronauts say they were first inspired by them. It's easy to see why; the books are great. Yes, they were written for a target audience, but they can be enjoyed just as readily and just as much by anyone. Neophytes may have difficulty deciding which to pick up first; this, along with Citizen of The Galaxy and Tunnel In The Sky should definitely be picked up early. It's a fun, breezy, highly enjoyable romp. Some reviewers have pointed out that, unlike most Heinlein, it has no major overarching theme or message. Also unusually for Heinlein, it is episodic. However, the book is notable for its portrayal of domestic life. The Stones are not in any way that great mythological "normal" family but Heinlein's usual, and always lovable, maverick motley crew of genius, smart-aleck minions who spout wit as if it were second-nature, but some positive family values and situations are put across here. There are many examples that give a strong moral foundation and grounds for thought to the intended audience. Older readers will not be "charmed," a horrible term often applied to so-called "kids' books" that adults will supposedly like, but enlightened as well. Like all Heinlein "juvies," the book also doesn't skimp on science. All in all, it is another Heinlein that you should definitely pick up.

A typical Heinlein book for young adults and yet one of the better ones. There are so many of them out there that a new reader probably won't know where to start . . . well this should be one of them. Heinlein manages to keep the action and dialogue moving fast enough so you don't think about the lack of a plot (it's more episodic than anything else) or how annoying the characters are to anyone but themselves. This ones about the Stone family, father and mother Stone, grandmother Hazel, sister Meade, baby Lowell, and twins Castor and Pollux. The twins always have ideas and this time they figure that they'll buy a spaceship, fix it up and go sell stuff out in the solar system. Except the entire family decides to go along and the fun of the story lies in the many weird things that they run across in their attempts to see the system and make a few bucks along the way. You get to see Mars (but not any Martians, darn) and Luna and the asteroid belt and all sorts of things, it's not a very deep book but you can't fault it for not being entertaining. The entire Stone family is entirely super-competant (even the baby can beat anyone in chess!) which can lead to some rather smug dialogue as everyone tries to outsmart each other in that typical Heinlein fashion but old readers should be used to that and new readers better just get used to it quickly or you're not going to get anywhere. Still the interactions between family members are rather fun, the sights are something to see and they just don't make books this fun anymore. Don't let the fact that it's a young adult book stop you, if you want some decent entertainment and a fast read, you don't have to look much farther than this novel.

The family Stone goes Rolling across the solar system to see what they can see. Tough and wise Grandma Hazel, Captain and Doctor Stone, daughter Meade, irascible twins Castor and Pollux, and baby Lowell have all kinds of interesting adventures in space.
Despite the excess of mathematics and ballistics, this is a very readable and exciting tale. Taking place a few decades after the revolt of Luna in "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress", we are able to infer how the Free State has matured, and also become a place where pioneering souls are anxious to strike out from. Except for Meade, who doesn't have much of a storyline, the family is full of interesting characters with strong personalities. Also, I really really want a Martian `Flat Cat.'
(I recommend you read "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" prior to this.)

This book differs from most juvenile novels, including most Heinlein juvenile novels, in that the whole _family_ comes of age in this one, rather than one central character.

The story follows a family group moving from their settled life in the Lunar colony to a tour of the solar system. They find themselves in several fascinating settings and have some fun adventures. The relationships within the family, and their snarky dialogue among themselves, make for a lot of fun.

I don't think that most readers are annoyed that the members of the family are talented and competent in many fields but some people don't like that. Some readers seem to miss the times when Heinlein attacks sexism and they will miss those in this book also. But there are three generations of strong, capable, un-dominated and indominatable women in this book.

Most of Heinlein's juveniles don't particularly call for a sequel but I would love to read one.

Heinlein has a lot to answer for. The dialogue and character interaction throughout this book is the breezy, all-too-clever style that corrupts many an Analog story. Heinlein, at least, is a master at it, and it's not as grating as his imitators. Still, it took me quite a few pages to get used to it.
It's actually (I think) a Heinlein I've never read before, though I've heard about it. Its claim to fame in my memory is the "flat cats" episode, where a Martian animal is taken on board and begins multiplying like, well, tribbles. Star Trek writer David Gerrold, according to his book about writing his classic episode, was aghast when he realized his near-plagiarism. Heinlein, reasonably, took it in stride.
The story focuses on the usual supercompetent Heinlein family, who take off in a spaceship and visit Mars and the asteroids, having assorted adventures and getting into trouble along the way. It's very much a "sense of wonder" book, keeping interest through a series of events and marvels rather than an organized plot. A nice, relaxing read, and probably one of Heinlein's better juveniles, along with Citizen of the Galaxy.

Many of the excellent reviewers have told you why you will love this book, and I heartily agree. But let's not forget the flat cats. David Gerrold swears he didn't mean to steal the idea as the inspiration for the "Star Trek" episode, 'The Trouble With Tribbles', and Heinlein agreed that the idea wasn't stolen; but you will see the connection.
And when you read Heinlein's later, grownup books (the ones with the annoying sex someone else mentioned), you will need to know where Hazel Meade Stone came from. She starts out as a child in "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" and we will see her later in "The Number of the Beast".
And in any case, this book is good family fun; the family that travels the solar system together always has a handy airlock in case little brother really gets to be too much, but they never actually throw him overboard, and later, he saves grandma.

Some of the other reviews mention the great contributions Heinlein made to scifi, but the most important contribution of this book was not pointed out.
Anyone following the space program these days is familiar with the "gravity assist," whereby probes like Galelio make it to Jupiter by swinging around Venus and Earth to boost their speed for the voyage. The Rolling Stones was the first published mention of this technique way back in the early '50's.
Heinlein was a Naval Academy graduate whose chosen field was naval artilery ballistics. It was this background that gave Heinlein such a chillingly accuate eye towards his (soon not to be) fictional creations as the Atom Bomb, long range fire control to sink enemy ships, and more.

"The Rolling Stones" is one of my top favorite books. It is about a family from Earth's Moon (Luna), who buy a spaceship and go off to Mars and beyond. It is a true science-fiction adventure.

That is all you really need to know. Buy the book. Read the book.

Helpful hints: 1. Watch out for the "flat cats"! They appeared on the two most popular Star Trek episodes as "gribbles" (from the sounds assigned to them), but I never saw an acknowledgement of Robert Heinlein as their creator. 2. Watch out for the note attached to the cycles in space. The note poses a conundrum that is answered only by an inference that can be made after reading a much later Heinlein novel.

there were Martian Flat Cats.

This 1952 'juvenile' novel originally appeared in "Boy's Life" in a condensed form as TRAMP SPACE SHIP.

The action centers on the Stone family, grandmother Hazel Meade Stone (THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS) her son Roger, an engineer currently writing a space adventure serial, his wife Edith, an MD, their children, 18-year-old Meade, 17-year-old twins, Castor and Pollux and 6-year-old Lowell. The twins have two talents - mechanical engineering and getting into trouble - that have made them (in)famous throughout their Lunar City home. Their parents have decided that now the boys have finished high school they would go to college back on earth. The boys have different ideas, they want to purchase a space ship and head out to the Asteroid Belt. Eventually a compromise is reached, the entire family takes off on a two year 'vacation'.

This is a fun adventure story. One that will make the reader think about the various problems that will face people as they spread out to the stars. It is also hilarious particularly the descriptions of the boys misadventures in the business world. Among these business ventures is the trade in 'Martian Flat Cats', creatures that will be familiar to Star Trek fans as Tribbles.

As with all of Heinlein's work the main characters are sympathetically drawn while most of the secondary characters are rather cardboard. The technical aspects are consistent with theories that were current for the time written and sometimes even a bit ahead. Many of the equipement described that was wildly futuristic when written has become commonplace while other aspects remain charmingly quaint. For example, the family computes their orbits by hand rather than computer.

Another sour note common with Heinlein's work of this period is his sexist attitude. The boys are expected to attend college on earth but no mention is made of their older sister doing so. In fact the only career plans mentioned for her involve finding a husband. She is also expected to shoulder the domestic duties of cooking and supervising the youngest child, is expected to handle household chores while the boys are studying etc. In spite of this, THE ROLLING STONES is a fun read for any age group. It would be a good place to begin for anyone unfamiliar with Heinlein's work and is a definite 'must read' for fans.

"The Rolling Stones" is a wonderful coming-of-age novel inside a family space romp. It has a loose-knit plot that mimicks an endless space adventure serial. The best part of the story is the rich set of characters in the Stone family: the red-headed, precocious teenage twins called Castor and Pollux, their older sister Meade, their younger brother Lowell , their grandmother Hazel (who carries a cough-drop dispensing sidearm), their mother Dr. Edith Stone and their father Roger Stone. The twins are the primary focus of the story but only because they get into the most trouble and do the most growing; however, the heart of the story is the family dynamics and some of the most enjoyable scenes occur when they all get into the act. The banter, wit and quips among this highly intelligent group are hilarious. Heinlein weaves this deftly with the hard science he is famous for. The novel instructs us on the details of space travel, navigation vectors, gravity wells and much more. Lastly, this short novella contains some classic gems of wisdom like the three stages of technology, the best way to earn money, who gets rich in a gold rush and what's more important than money. By far, the most well known quote is on the three stages of technology:
"Every technology goes through three stages: first a crudely simple and quite unsatisfactory gadget; second, an enormously complicated group of gadgets designed to overcome the short comings of the original and achieving thereby somewhat satisfactory performance through extremely complex compromise; third, a final proper design therefrom."
In conclusion, this short novel makes you wish you were aboard the ship called the "Rolling Stone" heading out with the Stone family towards adventure in the outer reaches of our solar system! Remember, a rolling stone gathers no moss.

This book, published in the UK as "Space Family Stone", is fairly typical of the early Heinlein, when were there fresh ideas and fresh characters in each book. After "Stranger in a Strange Land" Heinlein never wrote a new book, but only the same book over and over again (different cover, different setting, same characters, same philosophy).
Note that indeed Star Trek's "tribbles" were lifted from Heinlein's "flat cats". Apparently also "Star Fleet" was lifted from the "Interplanetary Patrol" of Heinlein's "Space Cadet". In making "Star Trek" the producers went back to the SF classics.

Usually Heinlein injects something interesting into all his books, even the young adult stories like this one. They normally make a comment about racism, sexism, or militarism. You may not agree with his sentiments (normally I don't), but at least they are thought provoking. Unfortunately, this book is very shallow, with none of the underlying thought of his other books. It's the story of a family from the Moon (Mom, Dad, 4 kids of various ages, and Grandma) who have wanderlust and set off to Mars and the mining communities of the asteroid belt. The mother is a doctor, and I can't help but think hers would be the only interesting story, but instead of following her off on her calls to the sick (including a mysterious epidemic on a passenger liner and serious injuries to the asteroid miners), we watch her leave and suffer through another mundane episode of the sons' "get rich quick" schemes.
This book was written for young adults, but it reads more like a Hardy Boys episode. I fear that Heinlein missed his intended audience (were teenagers really that much less sophisticated in the early 60's?). If you're looking to sample Heinlein's early young adult fiction, I would suggest Space Cadet or Between Planets. If you're like me, and have to read everything by Heinlein, then keep your eyes open for the "Flat Cats" - David Gerrold must have been inspired by these Martian animals when writing his Classic Star Trek episode, the Trouble With Tribbles.

How disappointing! I adore Heinlein and wanted my grandson to read all these wonderful young adult books, but at $7-8-9 a book that makes for a pretty large investment. *sigh* I work in the publishing business and I strongly believe if you lower the price you'll sell more books.