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Macroscope
by Piers Anthony
This is an early work by Piers Anthony before he turned to his hit fantasy series
Xanth ,
Apprentice Adept (Blue Adept)
and The Incarnations of Immortality
In this novel we are introduced to The Macroscope, an uber-Hubble telescope that uses Macrons rather than light to explore the origins of the universe.
But the universe is only one small thing explored in more than 400 pages. The book centers on a boy genius raised with other child geniuses in an experimental
community, the enigma of the Macroscope and the characters themselves. This is as much a story of science as it is of political machinations and of
the alien race that is blocking the use of the Macroscope in a devious and destructive way.
This is speculative hard science fiction and a somewhat immature early work by the author.
Amazon Score: 4.5/5
Thrift Books: 5.0/5
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Stranger in a Strange Land
by Robert A. Heinlein
This is classic science fiction. Orphaned on Mars, a boy is raised by the indigenous population. Years later he is rescued by a team from Earth and is
returned to his native planet. While marooned, the boy has grown to be a young man and has learned much from the Martians.
From him, we learn what Valentine Michael Smith himself has learned: There is God in us all (Thou art God) and when one truly understands, one Groks.
But Valentine's homecoming isn't sweet, having been raised away from the intrigues of Earth, without the company of Women and no concept of our world's religion.
Worse, he returns home heir to a vast fortune and, as far as some are concerned, the owner of the planet Mars.
Heinlein explores our humanity through the innocent eyes of a child. This is a masterpiece and winner of the 1962 Hugo Award. And having been written in the
early 60s there is a refreshing idealism entwined with realism that is often lost in more modern Sci-Fi Action/Adventure.
Amazon Score: 4.0/5
Thrift Books: 5.0/5
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