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For us, the living
329 pages
A raw, exposition-heavy time capsule of utopian world-building that serves as the philosophical blueprint for a science fiction legend.
What it feels like
Reading this early, posthumously published work feels less like experiencing a traditional narrative and more like sitting in on a passionate, freewheeling lecture about the future of humanity. The pace is decidedly meandering, prioritizing deep dives into utopian economics, social credit, and liberated social mores over propulsive action. It possesses an earnest, didactic tone, wrapping a profound optimism for human potential in raw, unpolished prose. The mood is highly intellectual and inquisitive, though undeniably steeped in the sensibilities of the late 1930s. It is a fascinating, if clunky, read that will thoroughly delight science fiction historians and completionists eager to witness the unfiltered genesis of the themes that would define a Grand Master's legendary career.
- Mood
- intellectual
- optimistic
- inquisitive
- dated
- Tone
- didactic
- earnest
- philosophical
- speculative
- Pace
- meandering
- Themes
- utopian ideals · culture shock · societal evolution · economic reform · the nature of freedom
- The writing
- Raw, unpolished, and heavily reliant on exposition, the sentences function more as vehicles for sociological lectures than narrative storytelling.
- The arc
- The journey shifts from abrupt disorientation to a slow, intellectual awakening as the protagonist embraces a radically reimagined society.
- Who it's for
- Science fiction historians and Heinlein completionists who want to explore the unfiltered, foundational ideas of a genre giant.
Content notes
- fatal car accident
- outdated social attitudes
- discussions of eugenics
About the book
SciFi - Originally written in 1938-9 but never published, RAH's first novel is a raw work filled with themes used throughout his career. Perry Nelson, a Navy flier, is killed in an auto accident in 1938; he awakens in 2086 and spends the novel contrasting reality of 1938 with the semi-utopian 2086.
Description from Open Library.
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