Status
Available
Call number
Description
Fiction. Science Fiction. HTML: Every stand-in dreamed of the starring role�??but what actor would risk his life for the chance? One minute, down-and-out actor Lorenzo Smythe is, as usual, in a bar, drinking away his troubles while watching his career circle the drain. Then a space pilot buys him a drink, and the next thing Smythe knows, he's shanghaied to Mars. Smythe suddenly finds himself agreeing to the most difficult role of his career: impersonating an important politician who has been kidnapped. Peace with the Martians is at stake, and failure to pull off the act could result in interplanetary war. Smythe knows nothing of the issues concerning free interplanetary trade and equal rights for aliens and cares even less, but the handsome compensation is impossible to refuse. He soon realizes, however, that he faces a lifetime masquerade if the real politician never shows up.… (more)
Pages
243
DDC/MDS
| 813.54 |
Language
Awards
Hugo Award (Nominee — Novel — 1956)
Locus All-Time Best (Science Fiction Novel — 44 — 1987)
User reviews
LibraryThing member Lman
This book could be described as a lightweight romp from Heinlein, very entertaining and very readable, except for the philosophical discussions that RAH always manages to insinuate into his stories.
Lorenzo Smythe - an actor tagged the Great (especially in his own mind) and whose career is stalled
It must be emphasised that this book was written many years ago - which can be seen in the writing, in the characterisations of the main players and with some of the obvious outdated technological descriptions - but the xenophobic attitudes, the cynical political manoeuvring and the social structures are still relevant today.
Despite the sometimes incredulous assumption of the ease in which the whole deception is delivered I liked Heinlein's description of the structure and philosophy of alien societies, I liked his almost inexhaustible desire for impassioned, innovative men to succeed and I was left to contemplate whether, with enough knowledge, enough innate ability and enough desire, one's own persona can be totally transformed.
Light on the science fiction, weak with an improbable premise of a plot - and despite the constraints of the writing of the time - the story still manages to throw up quite a few intelligent questions for a reader to ponder.
I read this for a group read on this site and I'm glad I did.
Lorenzo Smythe - an actor tagged the Great (especially in his own mind) and whose career is stalled
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(to put it politely) takes on the role of a lifetime as the impersonator of a major politician in the Galactica. Through his need to mimic this man in entirety we learn about the society of the time, the beliefs of his cadre and the changes being attempted and challenged to the order of the day.It must be emphasised that this book was written many years ago - which can be seen in the writing, in the characterisations of the main players and with some of the obvious outdated technological descriptions - but the xenophobic attitudes, the cynical political manoeuvring and the social structures are still relevant today.
Despite the sometimes incredulous assumption of the ease in which the whole deception is delivered I liked Heinlein's description of the structure and philosophy of alien societies, I liked his almost inexhaustible desire for impassioned, innovative men to succeed and I was left to contemplate whether, with enough knowledge, enough innate ability and enough desire, one's own persona can be totally transformed.
Light on the science fiction, weak with an improbable premise of a plot - and despite the constraints of the writing of the time - the story still manages to throw up quite a few intelligent questions for a reader to ponder.
I read this for a group read on this site and I'm glad I did.
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LibraryThing member Archren
This is an interesting book of Heinlein's, one that I picked up well after I had read most of his standards. It seems transitional, in that he is moving away from the straightforward space writing in "Starship Troopers" and moving towards the social and political writing that would make him famous
In this book an actor is hired to be a body double for an incapacitated politician during a delicate phase of diplomacy with Mars and the Martians. That really is the essential plot. It is all from one point of view, and the plot unfolds quite linearly, with only a few twists.
The characters are starting to sound a lot like they will in Heinlein's later books, particularly like Jubal Harshaw will later. Now, Heinlein was never afraid to have characters stand around and explain why his philosophy of the world was right, but previously that had been subsumed by other things, whereas here it is starting to come further into the foreground. The other major difference here to his earlier career is that there is no military involvement at all in this novel.
One huge difference between this and what will come later is the lone female character: late his females will be hyper-compentent, able to do anything kind of gals. This one is a little useless. In most scenes she cries, and she even faints twice. It's a bit embarassing, really. To contrast that, however, there is a strong message of racial tolerance in this book. One of the characters is incredibly afraid of and bigoted towards Martians and is shown the error of his ways. Considering that the book was written in 1956, it was a bold statement.
Overall, if you've ever enjoyed a Heinlein book you'll enjoy this one, and if you've always loathed his writing, this won't change your mind. I for one, enjoyed it quite a bit.
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in the Sixties with "A Stranger in a Strange Land." As such it has elements of both worlds, but isn't in either of them.In this book an actor is hired to be a body double for an incapacitated politician during a delicate phase of diplomacy with Mars and the Martians. That really is the essential plot. It is all from one point of view, and the plot unfolds quite linearly, with only a few twists.
The characters are starting to sound a lot like they will in Heinlein's later books, particularly like Jubal Harshaw will later. Now, Heinlein was never afraid to have characters stand around and explain why his philosophy of the world was right, but previously that had been subsumed by other things, whereas here it is starting to come further into the foreground. The other major difference here to his earlier career is that there is no military involvement at all in this novel.
One huge difference between this and what will come later is the lone female character: late his females will be hyper-compentent, able to do anything kind of gals. This one is a little useless. In most scenes she cries, and she even faints twice. It's a bit embarassing, really. To contrast that, however, there is a strong message of racial tolerance in this book. One of the characters is incredibly afraid of and bigoted towards Martians and is shown the error of his ways. Considering that the book was written in 1956, it was a bold statement.
Overall, if you've ever enjoyed a Heinlein book you'll enjoy this one, and if you've always loathed his writing, this won't change your mind. I for one, enjoyed it quite a bit.
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LibraryThing member BobNolin
This is sort of a retelling of "The Prisoner of Zenda," and the plot succeeds or fails based on whether or not you buy the possibility that, with just a little grease paint and some talent, one man could pass himself off as another, at close range, to people who knew him. The other part of the
How different was the world of late 1950's sf publishing. Novels could be 140 pages long. No need for warp drive in order to meet aliens (though some sort of relativity drive makes it possible to get from the Earth to Mars in a matter of weeks), because they're right here! They live on Venus, and Mars, of course. Did we really know so little about conditions on Mars as to think big people-sized creatures could live there, in 1956? Hard to imagine we were that ignorant still. Of course, we had still not one satellite in orbit in 1956, let alone sent any robot vehicles off to the Moon and planets. But canals with shrimp growing in them? And an atmosphere that would allow someone to breath, albeit only for a short period. Mars would kill you in a matter of minutes, it's barely better than the Moon. Several themes of Heinlein's later work are on display here, though he develops them a lot more later on. His whole interest in the impersonating schtick is to explore what it would be like to inhabit another person's...life. In a later work, he has an old man taking over a young woman's body ("Time Enough for Love"). All of this raises interesting questions about what is it I'm talking about when I say "I"? Also, the motif/theme/whatever it is of the Wise Old Man is here, in the person of the politician, Bonforte. He's not preaching and pontificating yet, as he will in later novels, but he is there. I enjoyed reading this, but be prepared for some major boners in future-prediction. There are mountains of microfilm filling up vaults on the Moon, which I'm guessing the "robot brains" (computers) can read somehow. Slide rules still...rule. As another reviewer here said, it's more Ruritania than sf, but what the hey. Give it a read.
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story is that this man whom you are impersonating is a key political figure in the story of mankind reaching out to the stars. He brings an end to human-centered government, and xenophobic relations between Earth and the other inhabited planets in our Solar System. Heinlein takes on this sort of theme much more powerfully later in "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress." This book is more of a romp, with some stuff to think about just coming along for the ride. How different was the world of late 1950's sf publishing. Novels could be 140 pages long. No need for warp drive in order to meet aliens (though some sort of relativity drive makes it possible to get from the Earth to Mars in a matter of weeks), because they're right here! They live on Venus, and Mars, of course. Did we really know so little about conditions on Mars as to think big people-sized creatures could live there, in 1956? Hard to imagine we were that ignorant still. Of course, we had still not one satellite in orbit in 1956, let alone sent any robot vehicles off to the Moon and planets. But canals with shrimp growing in them? And an atmosphere that would allow someone to breath, albeit only for a short period. Mars would kill you in a matter of minutes, it's barely better than the Moon. Several themes of Heinlein's later work are on display here, though he develops them a lot more later on. His whole interest in the impersonating schtick is to explore what it would be like to inhabit another person's...life. In a later work, he has an old man taking over a young woman's body ("Time Enough for Love"). All of this raises interesting questions about what is it I'm talking about when I say "I"? Also, the motif/theme/whatever it is of the Wise Old Man is here, in the person of the politician, Bonforte. He's not preaching and pontificating yet, as he will in later novels, but he is there. I enjoyed reading this, but be prepared for some major boners in future-prediction. There are mountains of microfilm filling up vaults on the Moon, which I'm guessing the "robot brains" (computers) can read somehow. Slide rules still...rule. As another reviewer here said, it's more Ruritania than sf, but what the hey. Give it a read.
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LibraryThing member RandyStafford
Sure, there are Martians and Venerians and Outer Jovians, but the last two are never on stage and the first isn’t very alien.
Sure, the story starts in Missouri (maybe) and goes to Mars and the Moon, but the settings usually have the exoticness of a beige office cube or, to be exact, of the many
Sure, it all seems vaguely 19th century with an Empire ruled by a constitutional monarch, King Willem of the Habsburg lips and Windsor nose. That’s because it’s yet another version of Anthony Hope’s The Prisoner of Zenda.
Our hero and narrator, Lorenzo Smythe, unemployed “Pantomimist and Mimicry Artist Extraordinary”, turns down a pitch to impersonate leader of the Expansionist Party. They want the Empire to include aliens, to not repeat “the mistakes the white subrace had made in Africa and Asia”. But his refusal is interrupted by an armed man and Martian. Soon, bodies are being cut up and being fed into the hotel oubliette, and Smythe is on his way to Mars.
It’s the voice of the conceited Smythe that saves this story and makes it quick and quite enjoyable. He’s one of Heinlein’s Competent Men except his area of competency happens to be acting, and he’s quite devoted to the art and ethics of his profession. He’s not young, but like the hero and heroines of many a Heinlein juvenile, he learns a lesson. Here’s it that the game of politics is “the only sport for grownups.”
The ending is predictable. It’s also poignant and plausible.
Sure, the story starts in Missouri (maybe) and goes to Mars and the Moon, but the settings usually have the exoticness of a beige office cube or, to be exact, of the many
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rocket ship staterooms where most of the action is set.Sure, it all seems vaguely 19th century with an Empire ruled by a constitutional monarch, King Willem of the Habsburg lips and Windsor nose. That’s because it’s yet another version of Anthony Hope’s The Prisoner of Zenda.
Our hero and narrator, Lorenzo Smythe, unemployed “Pantomimist and Mimicry Artist Extraordinary”, turns down a pitch to impersonate leader of the Expansionist Party. They want the Empire to include aliens, to not repeat “the mistakes the white subrace had made in Africa and Asia”. But his refusal is interrupted by an armed man and Martian. Soon, bodies are being cut up and being fed into the hotel oubliette, and Smythe is on his way to Mars.
It’s the voice of the conceited Smythe that saves this story and makes it quick and quite enjoyable. He’s one of Heinlein’s Competent Men except his area of competency happens to be acting, and he’s quite devoted to the art and ethics of his profession. He’s not young, but like the hero and heroines of many a Heinlein juvenile, he learns a lesson. Here’s it that the game of politics is “the only sport for grownups.”
The ending is predictable. It’s also poignant and plausible.
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LibraryThing member magicians_nephew
Try this for a scenario:
It's 1968.
President John Kennedy is just finishing up his second term in office.
The President asks for time on television to talk to the nation.
He reveals a deep dark secret: He's NOT John Kennedy.
John F. Kennedy was asassinated in Dallas in 1963 BUT the Democratic Party
I imagine he would just about get that far before the nation rose up in a body and tore him and everyone who supported the mascarade limb from limb
Yet that is the exact premise of Double Star by far my favorite of all Robert A Heinlein's novels.
It's about a down on his luck actor who gets picked up to double "temporarily" for
a leading political figure who has been kidnapped - and then falls ill. But the politico dies - and the actor is asked to stay with the role - perhaps for life!
What's striking is that nobody asks the question - is it ethical for the party and the actor to lie to all the people on four planets who voted for "John Joseph Bonforte" and are going to be handed four years of some "actor fellow" pretending to be Bonforte instead?
Yes, a political leader is not a man but a team we get that. But if the leader of the team dies - then it's a new team? Right?
In the middle of having fun throwing around theatrical slang in the Space Age Heinlein seems to have ignored the main question - would "Bonforte" who believed in honest dealing and open government - agree to have his place taken by a small time (if very well intentioned) actor? Forever? I suspect not.
And people in politics who believe that the solar system would end in fire and flood if their man and their party were out of office give me a quick pain in the you-know-where.
Anyway the book is a good read and short. But if I could conjure up the ghost of Bob Heinlein, that's the first thing I would ask him.
It's 1968.
President John Kennedy is just finishing up his second term in office.
The President asks for time on television to talk to the nation.
He reveals a deep dark secret: He's NOT John Kennedy.
John F. Kennedy was asassinated in Dallas in 1963 BUT the Democratic Party
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quickly and secretly hired a good actor to take his place and carry out his programs for the good of the nation I imagine he would just about get that far before the nation rose up in a body and tore him and everyone who supported the mascarade limb from limb
Yet that is the exact premise of Double Star by far my favorite of all Robert A Heinlein's novels.
It's about a down on his luck actor who gets picked up to double "temporarily" for
a leading political figure who has been kidnapped - and then falls ill. But the politico dies - and the actor is asked to stay with the role - perhaps for life!
What's striking is that nobody asks the question - is it ethical for the party and the actor to lie to all the people on four planets who voted for "John Joseph Bonforte" and are going to be handed four years of some "actor fellow" pretending to be Bonforte instead?
Yes, a political leader is not a man but a team we get that. But if the leader of the team dies - then it's a new team? Right?
In the middle of having fun throwing around theatrical slang in the Space Age Heinlein seems to have ignored the main question - would "Bonforte" who believed in honest dealing and open government - agree to have his place taken by a small time (if very well intentioned) actor? Forever? I suspect not.
And people in politics who believe that the solar system would end in fire and flood if their man and their party were out of office give me a quick pain in the you-know-where.
Anyway the book is a good read and short. But if I could conjure up the ghost of Bob Heinlein, that's the first thing I would ask him.
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LibraryThing member thesmellofbooks
This is a nice little study of an actor in the very challenging role of having to perfectly emulate a well known public figure--not only to the voters, but to his intimates. It is also a portrait of an insecure, superficially polished, down at the heels man who, though he has great belief in his
Not to mention a well paced adventure story.
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talents and skill, achieved that skill through his father's abuse, and is a lonely and isolated individual. Through his involvement with a mission he had no personal interest in he is changed in many ways.Not to mention a well paced adventure story.
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LibraryThing member Veeralpadhiar
This is a lesser known Heinlein compared to 'Moon', 'Stranger' and 'Troopers' but is as entertaining. I felt that the first half of the novel was better than the last one.
LibraryThing member baswood
This 1956 Hugo award winning novel is included in the science fiction masterwork series and either has not aged well or was a lack lustre rip-off from the start. It takes as a basis for its story the plot mechanics from the Prisoner of Zenda, dresses them up in a pointless science fiction setting
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and trots it out in a fairly brief novel. The story is a good one, but if you know it from the earlier book or the film, then Double Star will hold little attraction. I look for a sense of wonder when going back to read novels from a golden age of science fiction, the only wonder I found here was how Heinlein managed to reinvent a good story in such a tawdry fashion that was convincing enough to win him awards. Nothing wrong with the quality of the writing, which is of a good standard for this genre, but ho-hum 2.5 stars. Show Less
LibraryThing member Stevil2001
I was surprised how much I liked this book. It's a relatively simple and predictable plot: Lorenzo Smythe is an actor hired to impersonate a politician at a key political moment. Only thing is, the politician is pro-Martian, and Smythe is racist against Martians. Plus, things kind of spiral out of
I was rarely surprised by what happened, but often surprised by how much I felt it regardless. This is a story of a man coming to understand what it means to be a good person, to stand for something bigger than the self. It's actually quite moving in parts, and dreadfully earnest, but earnest in the sense that you want people like this to be out there. But it's also not naïve (there are no Pollyannas here), and even if the set-up is contrived, Heinlein imbues it with enough procedural and character detail to make it work. For example, I liked the idea of the Farleyfile, but also the way in which it ultimately let Lorenzo down made sense.
I've read Heinlein before, of course, but everything I've read previously came from his imperial phase (Stranger in a Strange Land, Starship Troopers) or from his twilight era (Friday). I've never read anything from his early career before, when he was making his name as a solid, successful writer, but Double Star makes me want to read more of his early stuff. This is solidly successful sf; I zipped through the whole book in about an evening, and I enjoyed every word of it.
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control, and the impersonation keeps going on longer and longer...I was rarely surprised by what happened, but often surprised by how much I felt it regardless. This is a story of a man coming to understand what it means to be a good person, to stand for something bigger than the self. It's actually quite moving in parts, and dreadfully earnest, but earnest in the sense that you want people like this to be out there. But it's also not naïve (there are no Pollyannas here), and even if the set-up is contrived, Heinlein imbues it with enough procedural and character detail to make it work. For example, I liked the idea of the Farleyfile, but also the way in which it ultimately let Lorenzo down made sense.
I've read Heinlein before, of course, but everything I've read previously came from his imperial phase (Stranger in a Strange Land, Starship Troopers) or from his twilight era (Friday). I've never read anything from his early career before, when he was making his name as a solid, successful writer, but Double Star makes me want to read more of his early stuff. This is solidly successful sf; I zipped through the whole book in about an evening, and I enjoyed every word of it.
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LibraryThing member librisissimo
Vintage Heinlein, more overtly political than usual. Predicted the fall of Communism in 1956, but more as an Article of Faith than for any explicit reason. Still a good story, even with the now-antiquated (and ultimately anachronistic) technology -- he was always extrapolating the use of computers,
Quote on final page from Voltaire (maybe?): "If Satan should ever replace God he would find it necessary to assume the attributes of Deity."
What Voltaire missed is that Satan would fail, which is why he is not the Savior: he didn't have the capacity to become Deity. In a more secular mode, some people elected to the Presidency fail, spectacularly in some cases, to assume the attributes of the office. Ditto small-minded men elevated to a throne.
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but kept using slide rules; his 'hush cones' almost made it to cell phones but not quite. His political philosophy is civilized libertarianism; characters are just place-holders, although Lorenzo clearly had the same qualities as Bonforte, just nascent in the beginning.Quote on final page from Voltaire (maybe?): "If Satan should ever replace God he would find it necessary to assume the attributes of Deity."
What Voltaire missed is that Satan would fail, which is why he is not the Savior: he didn't have the capacity to become Deity. In a more secular mode, some people elected to the Presidency fail, spectacularly in some cases, to assume the attributes of the office. Ditto small-minded men elevated to a throne.
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LibraryThing member dvf1976
I like visions of the future from the 1950's.
There's always an overload of microfilmed data.
There's always an overload of microfilmed data.
LibraryThing member nm.sprin08.A.Palmer
This is an interesting book about political intrigue and the inner workings of a possible interplanetary, interspecies government. This book shows the rivalry of political dissidents as well as a loyalty not often seen in people today.
LibraryThing member briandarvell
A quick and moderately fun read but definitely not meeting my expectations. The book overall was quickly paced with little real story. Basically it touched on racism as the main theme but I found the main character to be mostly unbelievable.
LibraryThing member att
Another book that should have been judged by its time - an era of pulp fictions, but similar to the good fate of a minority of those , has emerged from there to last. It has been reprinted many many times. Mr. Heinlein has many times been critized of his opinions from his books for racism (remember
Double Star is classic Heinlein. Fun to read. Reminds maybe of classics like Prisoner of Zenda in plot, but still original in a lot of scenes like the adoption of the main character to local Martian clan...
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Sixth Column), pro-sexism (remember stranger in a strange land:)) and etc. Forget the film and game version, original book version of Starship Troopers have an important mid-eastern character:) :) Double Star is classic Heinlein. Fun to read. Reminds maybe of classics like Prisoner of Zenda in plot, but still original in a lot of scenes like the adoption of the main character to local Martian clan...
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LibraryThing member RRHowell
A great short book for thinking about acting and politics. Written for the YA audience, readable by all. SF, but applicable to those who are not particularly enthralled by that genre if they can stomach a little unreality in the mix.
LibraryThing member annbury
One of Heinlein's best, in which down-and-out actor Lorenzo Smythe is drafted as a body-double for a famous statesman. The description of how he does this is fascinating, as is the story of how he has to keep doing it. Lorenzo is an appealing character despite his manifest weaknesses and follies,
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and actually manages to evolve. An interesting slant on the world of politics -- written in the mid-1950's, years before Reagan began to build a political career. Show Less
LibraryThing member LisaMaria_C
This isn't my favorite Robert Heinlein book, and it's not in my opinion his best book, nor his most famous book, but it may very well be his most fun--science fiction writer Brian Aldiss thought so. It's one of only four of Heinlein novels that won him a Hugo in his lifetime. (The others were
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Starship Troopers, Stranger in a Strange Land and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress.) Lorenzo Smythe, an actor who bills himself as the "Great Lorenzo" is shanghaied to Mars and offered the role of a lifetime--to impersonate a kidnapped Mars politician and thus avert interplanetary war. The fun comes from seeing Lorenzo grow into, and play, his role. The book isn't perhaps as thought-provoking as Starship Troopers and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, but it does have interesting things to say about politics and politicians and has plenty of intrigue and adventure. It's told by Lorenzo himself and he's one of Heinlein's most vivid characters--as befits an actor a fine observer of people around him. The book was published in 1956, and sure, some details social and technological are dated, but it's still tremendously...yeah fun. Show Less
LibraryThing member bfgar
What would you do if a politician's staff came to you and asked you to be the man's double for a few days because he had been kidnapped? Especially if you were an actor with an enormous ego? Would you turn them down or would you think that this would be an incredible opportunity to show just how
This is the premise of Double Star. It's not a long book, in fact, it's a pretty quick read. However, the situation that the protagonist finds himself in doesn't need very much room to be told. It's a who-dun-it but also an excellent look at the politics of the 1950s on Earth as well as at the author's future history.
The 1950s were far from boring, even if President Eisenhower was not the most charismatic man eve to sit in the Oval Office. Between the Cold War, bush wars popping out all over the world (the Vietnam War actually started in 1948 -- we were simply late-comers to it), and angry words were exchanged between even the best of political friends. It was the time of the Communist Conspiracy (which never really existed), Wisconsin's own Joe MacCarthy, and nightmares for every child on earth. Somehow, Heinlein manages to weave all this into his tale of intrigue and ego, and come up with a story about a not so likable man who, because he has to "become" a great leader, actually learns how to lead.
This is not a great, earth-changing story. It is, however, one that I come back to every once in a while because it shares that one thing all the Master's books possess -- good writing.
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good an actor you were?This is the premise of Double Star. It's not a long book, in fact, it's a pretty quick read. However, the situation that the protagonist finds himself in doesn't need very much room to be told. It's a who-dun-it but also an excellent look at the politics of the 1950s on Earth as well as at the author's future history.
The 1950s were far from boring, even if President Eisenhower was not the most charismatic man eve to sit in the Oval Office. Between the Cold War, bush wars popping out all over the world (the Vietnam War actually started in 1948 -- we were simply late-comers to it), and angry words were exchanged between even the best of political friends. It was the time of the Communist Conspiracy (which never really existed), Wisconsin's own Joe MacCarthy, and nightmares for every child on earth. Somehow, Heinlein manages to weave all this into his tale of intrigue and ego, and come up with a story about a not so likable man who, because he has to "become" a great leader, actually learns how to lead.
This is not a great, earth-changing story. It is, however, one that I come back to every once in a while because it shares that one thing all the Master's books possess -- good writing.
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LibraryThing member TadAD
This is one of Heinlein's best.
LibraryThing member Hectigo
Double Star is a much more straightforward adventure novel than Heinlein's other famous books, but as such it is very successful. The setting is imaginative, the main character flawed and interesting and there are plenty of sticky situations. Maybe not a masterpiece, but a very enjoyable piece of
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craftsmanship nevertheless. It does have some interesting insights into politics, and so isn't entirely void of food for thought either. Show Less
LibraryThing member pauliharman
Reasonably entertaining tale of an actor recruited to stand in for a kidnapped political party leader. Comes with all the usual trappings of 50s/60s science fiction, where men are men and women are secretaries, and engineers pilot their rockets using slide rules.
LibraryThing member Traveller1
Read this one way back, in HS. A minor Heinlein, but one immensely entertaining, and, in a small way, thought provoking. The provoking part for me was the change in the character of the protagonist (Lorenzo). In the opening pages of the novel he is a second rate, failing, but admittedly talented
As the novel progresses Lorenzo is taught how to impersonate and stand in for a statesman (the man himself having been kidnapped). In doing so he is exposed to a wider world, forced to re-think his beliefs and mis-beliefs, and become a better person.
From my recollection of the Heinlein oeuvre this is one of the few (single) instances where a character changed in this fashion.
The story itself is a ramble through a future, a few centuries hence, when several planets in the solar system have been colonised, and the system government is a constitutional monarchy, with the Hapsburg's on the throne(!) The protagonist is an enlightened politician who fights for equal rights for Martians, Venusians, and everyone (no mention of homosexuals).
A little different from the 'normal' Heinlein—if there is such a thing.
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actor. He is 'prissy', and petty in his thoughts, for example, displaying a physical prejudice against the (harmless and politically associated) Martians of this fictional universe. As the novel progresses Lorenzo is taught how to impersonate and stand in for a statesman (the man himself having been kidnapped). In doing so he is exposed to a wider world, forced to re-think his beliefs and mis-beliefs, and become a better person.
From my recollection of the Heinlein oeuvre this is one of the few (single) instances where a character changed in this fashion.
The story itself is a ramble through a future, a few centuries hence, when several planets in the solar system have been colonised, and the system government is a constitutional monarchy, with the Hapsburg's on the throne(!) The protagonist is an enlightened politician who fights for equal rights for Martians, Venusians, and everyone (no mention of homosexuals).
A little different from the 'normal' Heinlein—if there is such a thing.
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LibraryThing member MickeNimell
You can tell right away that Double Star is from the fifties - almost all sci-fi elements feel ridiculously anachronistic. There are rocket ships, but you still need to dial the operator when you use your car phone; at least two other alien races exist but microfilm is still in use and every
Luckily the futuristic stuff are more of a backdrop to the straightforward political intrigue that is the plot.
The narration is heavy on dialogue but is easy to get in to and avoids being lecturing and retrospective.
In the beginning I felt that Smythe, the narcissistic and self delusional main character, was going to be an 'unreliable narrator' and make me guess what part of the plot really happened. I am a little disappointed that this didn't happen. That being said, I very much liked how the story was told. A pleasant surprise all in all.
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executive have a female secretary.Luckily the futuristic stuff are more of a backdrop to the straightforward political intrigue that is the plot.
The narration is heavy on dialogue but is easy to get in to and avoids being lecturing and retrospective.
In the beginning I felt that Smythe, the narcissistic and self delusional main character, was going to be an 'unreliable narrator' and make me guess what part of the plot really happened. I am a little disappointed that this didn't happen. That being said, I very much liked how the story was told. A pleasant surprise all in all.
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LibraryThing member MissJessie
I liked this book very much. The writing was good, not too much lecturing by the author. Additionally I liked the resolution and found the entire book very uplifting and positive.
LibraryThing member anissaannalise
This was just fun to read. The narrator made me laugh with his observations & sky high opinion of himself.The political intrigue was paced well & I thoroughly enjoyed it. A quick & easy read.
Publication
Del Rey (1986), 256 pages
Subjects
Original language
English
Original publication date
1956 (Astounding Feb ∙ Mar ∙ Apr)
Physical description
243 p.; 6.87 inches
ISBN
0345330137 / 9780345330130