The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress
I will undoubtedly be branded a science fiction heretic, but I just don't see what all the fuss is about. I can respect Heinlein's technical proficiency as a writer, particularly the highly consistent dialects and comprehensive rendering of technology. I can appreciate how forward-thinking (in some respects) Heinlein was in anticipating the space era in a novel written in the mid 60's. I can also see how this novel undoubtedly influenced many writers down the line.
None of these merits, however, makes The Moon is a Harsh Mistress either enjoyable, informative, or insightful to the contemporary reader. Its technological futurism is obsolete, its view of humanity mired in a bygone era of chauvinism and nationalism, and its social commentary amounting to little more than Ayn Rand in Space.
I care about none of the characters, because I cannot relate to them -- thus it fails as a story (to me). Nor does the story bring me to any new understanding of the human condition, because its postulates in this regard are archaic -- thus it fails as art (to me).
My impression of Heinlein's masterpiece is something analogous to the Deuteronomic Code: it has its set place in the establishment's canon, mostly for historical reasons, but ultimately has very little worthwhile to say to contemporary society.
