Grumbles from the Grave by Robert A. Heinlein (edited by Virginia Heinlein) - Book Review

Ever read a book written by someone after they died? In a sense, this is what this book is. Grumbles from the Grave is a non-fiction work that contains the letters of Robert Heinlein and others back to him from throughout his career. This book was put together by Virginia Heinlein (Robert's wife) after Robert Heinlein's death, but it was his idea including the title.

In essence this book is edited correspondence between Heinlein, his agent and others that chronicles some of his struggles, thoughts and triumphs over the years of his career. There are chapters that cover various aspects of his life from his early career, his juvenile novels, his adult novels, his travels, his thoughts on life and the publishing industry of his time. There is much more as well about other topics. The reason it is called Grumbles from the Grave is that most of the correspondence focuses on the complaints he had about things and when people wanted to change his work.

What this book offers is a unique look inside the mind of Robert Heinlein. you see where he gets his ideas, how he develops his work, his motivation for writing and living and his conflicts with editors and publishers. It is very enlightening for a Heinlein fan to see that much of his realism came from being real. It is also interesting to see some of his dialogue in his books was inspired by some of this correspondence.

Stylistically, it is excerpts from real letters and they have been edited to get to the good parts. There are also several editor's notes from Virginia regarding certain subjects to help clarify and every one of them is helpful. In addition there are many pictures that show the man and his life around him.

Rating: 3 and three quarter stars. The big issue with this book is that if you are not a real fan of Robert Heinlein, it will not be entertaining to you unless you are a writer. In those two cases though, it gives good background on each book and many of the short stories as well. It also gives an inside look into the man who is considered the Grandmaster of Science Fiction. For the writer you can see that even the great writers have their struggles and that sometimes inspiration can come from odd places. I loved it but I am both a fan and a writer.

The Puppet Masters by Robert A. Heinlein - Book Review

Title: The Puppet Masters
Author: Robert Heinlein
Pages: 340
Publisher: Del Rey / Ballentine Books (New York), 1951

The Puppet Masters marks a great moment in Robert Heinlein's career as writer as it is his first novel that was a) not a reprint of a serialization and b) not a juvenile novel. Even though it was an adult novel, it had some edits in 1951 which toned down the sex and nudity, but in 1990 after Heinlein's death the book was republished with the edits restored.

Alien invasion is a popular theme in science fiction and in this case it is a combination of science fiction and horror as the puppet masters are a parasite that uses human hosts to do so. The 'slugs' become an insidious enemy that take over secretly by riding on their hosts and controlling their actions. They creep into society and only a botched space craft gets them noticed in the first place.

The plot centers around secret agent Sam Cavanaugh who follows the invasion from its earliest beginnings to the final days when all seems lost. In the end, Sam becomes the key to organizing and finally defeating the 'slugs'. The adventure takes him from being possessed by a parasite to learning everything he can so he can fight them.

Technologically speaking the book presented some interesting options for 1951 including the ideas of implant technology, advanced medical technology including burn grafts, and transportation that involves cars that could both fly and ride roads. For the aliens the issue is not technology by the idea of parasite control and borrowing the technology of all the interplanetary races they had encountered.

Sociologically, Heinlein is at his best even in the edited version. Because the parasites can attach themselves any part of the human body, the best defense is for people to be naked so they can be seen to be 'slug free'. At the beginning of the war, the chief antagonists are not the slugs, but the social mores of human beings. This changes very quickly when people become aware of the truth of the invasion. Heinlein was an avid nudist in life so this is an interesting take on it. What happens when nudity is your only defense against being completely robbed of life and humanity? Would the human race get over its own moral taboos or cease to exist?

Stylistically, this is pure Heinlein, his characters a real and the situations equally so. The plot has a lot of interesting twists and turns and the ending soul searching. The man makes you think in this one.

Rating: 4 and one quarter stars. This is truly classic Heinlein. He is still rough around the edges but not very much so. It is a long story, but it still entertains throughout the entire story. It is a combination of science fiction and horror so it has some rough and morally challenging spots but definitely worth the read.

Law of Connection by Michael J. Losier - Book Review

Title: Law of Connection
Author: Michael J. Losier
Pages: 145
Publisher: Wellness Central (New York) 2009

After reading and writing a review of Law of Attraction by Michael J. Losier, I decided based on that good experience to give his second book a try. Law of Connection did not disappoint. As a pastor and communicator in many forms I am always looking for ways to improve my communication skills and so this book promised a simple yet foolproof way to do just that by using Neuro-Linguistic Programing (NLP).

Like Law of Attraction this is work through book; that is, you are going to be doing something not just reading it. The basic outline is Rapport, Calibrating and Understanding Communication Styles. It is the third part that he spends the most time. He breaks down communication styles into four groups: Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic (Feel), and Digital (Mental). The basic idea is to identify the style of the person you are talking to and then adjust your language and listening skills to that style to build rapport. It talks about both the strengths and challenges of each style and how to relate better to people who are not your style.

The real strength of the book is the test that allows you to identify you dominate style and more importantly your weakest. This way you can know what you need to work on to communicate better. The test, if you let others take it, will also help you identify their style so you can know the challenges of how to communicate with them and build better communication because of it.

Probably the best way to illustrate this is using myself. When I took the test, I scored a 33 Digital, 25 Auditory, 22 Visual and 20 Kinesthetic. That means my dominate way of communicating is by sharing ideas and thoughts. My weakest being Kinesthetic means I have a hard time with people who use feeling language of touch or heart. It means when I talk I use words like "think, understand, I know ..." but it would be rare for me to use words like "How does that feel? etc." For me to improve my communication I need to work on this and start balancing my language between all four styles.

Another great feature is the many ways Michael shows how to use the Law of Connection in real life situations. Groups, Business, Dating, Marriage, Parenting, etc. are all covered. One that caught my attention was website issues and it gave me some real tools to evaluate my blog to see who it appeals to and how to make it appeal to more people. I have something for everyone but there are some areas that are more strong than others. Thanks Michael, I am going to put this to use.

Stylistically, the book is written to appeal to all styles of communication so it practices what it preaches. It also is another book that is a quick and easy read so it has a mass appeal and wont kill your time to read it.

Rating: 4 and a half stars: Law of a Attraction was a good book, Law of Connection I liked even better. This book was extremely helpful and I plan on putting it into practice. It is one of those rare books that breaks things down simply and gets its point across: I see it, I hear it, I feel it and I know it.

Between Planets by Robert A Heinlein - Book Review

Published in 1951, Between Planets is a basic science fiction adventure, but because Robert Heinlein writes it; it is not basic. In Heinlein's day Venus was still pretty much a mystery and so he was able to cast it as a jungle/swamp planet inhabited by various creatures and aliens. Even though it is juvenile science fiction, the publishing went off without a hitch and it became a reasonable success.

The basic plot revolves around the main character Don Harvey as he is unwittingly drawn into an interplanetary war between the Federation of Earth and Venus. Harvey was born between planets and so has dual citizenship both on Earth and Venus. The story is a great boy to man story where the backdrop is both space and an alien world. With the help of friends, including a dragon from Venus named 'Sir Isaac Newton', he discovers how important a simple plastic ring can be as he tried to deliver it to his parents on Mars and gets sidetracked to Venus.

The book explores the politics of interplanetary relationships and how the idea of 'home planet' can change depending on where you were born. It is also another book about human-alien relationships and the possibility of a major breakthrough in technology and how it would affect the world. It is also a great view of how some thing might change and some things would stay the same despite technological advance and interplanetary colonization.

This book has many Heinlein themes. The idea of freedom and rights being sacred and the faults of colonialism are present. The human race is not alone and does not have the inherent right to dominate everyone else in the universe is also there. Not many of Heinlein's moral issues come out as this is a juvenile book, but the hint at how space travel would change family and relationships is there.

Rating: Four stars. Solid Robert Heinlein but the story seems like Space Cadet redone a little. Even so the story telling is great and the science a little more solid this time.

Law of Attraction by Michael J. Losier - Book Review

Title: Law of Attraction
Author: Michael J. Losier
Pages: 152
Publisher: Wellness Central (New York) 2006

Books like this used to make me laugh a little, but now that I look at human behavior a little more, I can see that people do tend to attract more of what they think about and speak about than they realize. My idea of reading this book was to see what value this approach has in modifying my goal setting and other issues. As it turns out, there is some value to the ideas in this book and how significant they are depends on how much you take its message to heart.

I have to remark on style to start because this is one of the simplest books you will read, which is a good lesson if want to write a book with mass appeal. It also has several illustrative cartoons that help as well. At 152 pages it is quick read as well. In addition to all this, it is a work through book where you have to work though your own desires and wants into a workable plan of using the Law of Attraction.

The book starts out with the basic science of the law of attraction and the idea of positive and negative vibrations that influence each persons life. The idea is that we attract the same things as the vibrations we are putting out. If we are negative we attract the negative, if positive we attract positive. If mixed we get mixed. The book then goes on to help the reader come up with a plan to take deliberate action to move them from negative to positive vibrations in our life.

If one can have faith in the 'science' of attraction, I guess this would work. I have come to see this same idea from a spiritual perspective of faith but the principles are much the same. But the book does bring out that being positive is a far better way to live than the alternatives. It is not some unrealistic book either as Losier brings out that some negativity is from others in our lives that we cannot help but be there (family, coworkers). The idea is to control your own sphere of attraction and work on the rest. The book also give tips for teaching and dealing with others who are negative.

Rating: Four stars: If I (and this is me being the scholar) have a complaint, it is lack of depth. It also loses half a point for being somewhat incomplete but then again it assumes that you are going to buy Losier's other book the Law of Connection. That said, this is a good book if you want some basic information on the Law of Attaction. It also is a good help book if you want to apply that law to your life.