 Hello, hello, hello, folks! I'm back with more of Philip Riesder Hugo's. I'm as excited about this as you are. Not only because I've been sick for the past days, do I sound like this, but also out of sheer bloody excitement. Now, today we're talking about Robert Heinlein's very first Hugo winning novel, Double Star. It got the Hugo Award in 1956, so we're still chock-full in the middle of the fifties, which is also known as not really anyone's favourite period in anything. Nope, can't think of anything too positive. The sixties is where it's at, and I cannot wait to get ten years in the future to re-re-dune and some other cool stuff. Now, let's get on with it, because this one is a lot. The first sci-fi novel I ever read by Robert Heinlein got me from the get-go with this quote. If a man walks in dressed like a hick and acting as if he owned a place, he's a spaceman. It is a logical necessity. His profession makes him feel like boss of all creation. When he sets his foot durside, he is slumming among the peasants. Our protagonist is the actor Lorenzo, a man whose narrative voice is immediately appealing, partially because of how strongly defined it is, and in part because you can't help but suspect Heinlein is having a go at a certain class of refined folks who project a reddition, yet are facile beyond belief. Take the following quote upon our protagonist observing a pair of new acquaintances almost come to blows. I had no thoughts of interfering. Every man is entitled to a neglected time and manner of his own destruction. A good line. Yet I can't help, but feel there is a little something pointed at our fancy Tesfian, self-titled as The Great. Lorenzo is indeed a most skilled actor, but also a foul human being, racist as anything you've ever seen. I quote, nobody could accuse me of race prejudice. I didn't care what a man's color, race, or religion was. I quote, nobody could accuse me of race prejudice. I didn't care what a man's color, race, or religion was, but men were men, whereas Martians were things. They weren't even animals to my way of thinking. I'd rather have had a warthog around me any day, permitting them in restaurants and bars used by men struck me as outrageous. There was the treaty, of course, so what could I do? Here I'll freely admit, Highline easily won me over since he turns this character deficiency into criticism, and without any subtlety addresses it, which I am fond of. Subtlety has its time and place, which I would argue is not applicable in combating racism, and that as it turns out is a motive near and dear to Highline's heart. So he was something of a political zigzagger throughout his life and a libertarian, which I absolutely don't believe is a real thing, even though I have seen many people who are, I have even spoken with some of them. Never a fun experience that. He was, Highline, I mean, staunchly anti-racist, and of the tree-hew books I've read at the time of writing this, his is the most socially progressive sci-fi of the 50s. But let's return to Lorenzo for another minute. His character development helps propel you through Double Star. It's very appealing, seeing massive growth from a starting point, best defined by thoughts that go a little like, unfortunately, my aristocratic features are entirely to distinguish, too handsome, a regrettable handicap for a character actor. And obviously you can tell that, other than being incredibly self-satisfied, our actor is a humble one as well. This lack of humility will serve Lorenzo well when he is contracted to play the part of one of the most influential politicians of his day, the progressive John Joseph Bonfort, known as Chief, to his coterie of followers. The Chief is leader to the opposition, Expansionary Party, classical liberal, and part civil rights leader intent on political change. The beneficiaries of this change are not human, racial minorities, note, because this is the future after all, but the Martians, hated passionately by some backwards-thinking peasants, as the smooth-talking spacer Captain Duck calls them. Lorenzo himself, we find out, feels repulsed by the Martians during their because of their acrid smell. A physiological reaction easily changed through hypnosis. This change allows our intrepid actor to rethink his prejudices and see so much where before he was blinded by them. It is kind of a magical waving of the hand. I don't think you can change at so deeper level a person with hypnosis. I mean, hypnosis, does it really work? In the 50s, they really, really, really loved it. Now, it seems to have lost much of its appeal, doesn't it? The play Lorenzo pulls is itself a delight to follow, another toll free of complications that force him to live deeper and deeper into Bonfort's persona. Policies that are at first loathsome to the actor eventually become his own, and the distance between Tespien and his role increasingly shortens. There are some wonderful sides, like this quote about the way language works. It is nevertheless the case, I answered, that a line which looks okay in print may not deliver well. Mr. Bonfort is a great orator, I have already learned. He belongs with Webster, Churchill and Demosthenes, a rolling grandeur expressed in simple words. Now take this word intransigent, which you have used twice. I might say that, but I have a weakness for polysyllables. I like to exhibit my literary erudition, but Mr. Bonfort would say stern, I wrote, stay, barker, would say stubborn, or mullish, or pigheaded. The reason he would is naturally that they convey emotion much more effectively, and that is a great point. Anglo-Saxon words, like mullish, pigheaded, really resonate better emotionally than words whose origins rest in either Latin or French. And I can say that because I have done English studies as my bachelors. Another favourite of mine is the following exchange about the nature of politics. Politics is a dirty game, no, Clifton answered insistently. There is no such thing as a dirty game, but he sometimes run into dirty players. What am I doing with this accent? I don't see the difference. There is a world of difference. Kiroga, who is the opposition politician, the McConnell to Bonfort's Biden? No, it doesn't really fit. It's a turd-rater and a stooge in my opinion, a stooge for villains. But there is nothing to write about John Joseph Bonfort, and he has never ever been a stooge for anyone. As a follower he believed in the cause, as the leader he has led from conviction. I really like this. It gives a positive spin on politics and it seems to inspire and it did feel to me inspirational in the sense that I felt kind of a stirring to be more politically active than I did before I read this novel. It's also a book I feel I've learned a great deal from. I never knew before what a farleafile was, for example. One point of contention is that Heinlein's view on women in the future isn't much more advanced than best layers. So there is at least a major female character, Penelope, she's still relegated to the role of secretary. Now she is insanely capable and the reasonable renter doesn't fall apart several times over, which does paint her in certainly more complex a light than what we saw in Bester's work. You can watch my previous video. If you haven't, on Philip Ries, The Hugos, the first in the series, I spoke more extensively about that issue at play over there. But you will still find certain elements of her portrayal which leave something to be desired. Double Star is a clear favorite for my favorite character-driven sci-fi of the 50s so far. It's probably the one to have the easiest flow across all the 1950s hugo winners and I'm eager to see how it compares to the other Heinlein novels that earn the award. It's an easy enough recommendation to make. Having read Starship Troopers since, I also think this is by far the superior novel, but that is a discussion for another time. Tell me, have you read anything by Robert Heinlein? He is a well-known name in science fiction of old. Maybe you've heard it, even as the author behind what would eventually be the Starship Trooper movie, a movie I grew up on, which probably I will discuss to some extent at some point during my Starship Trooper review. Did I manage to win you over with this one? Does it sound appealing? It's not exactly a new spin. No, it's not exactly a new idea rather, but it is an excellent execution on a familiar imposter storyline. And you should of course absolutely subscribe to my channel, press that like button and tell all your friends. We're reviewing all the hugos here, boys and girls, so don't, don't be afraid to dust off your paperbacks of ancient science fiction books from 60 years hence. Where is it more? It's more actually, it's the going on 70 years. My god, time is passing. Anyway, I will see you next time. Bye!