I read the unedited version of Stranger in a Strange Land, which returns over 60,000 words to the manuscript. While it might be interesting to see what was cut to make it commercially viable in 1961 (and there are editions that highlight the differences), the novel doesn't merit a second reading when so many other books remain on my reading list.

Valentine Michael Smith, the illegitimate child of two adulterous astronauts sent on a colonizing mission to Mars, returns to Earth after twenty years as an orphan under Martian care. His beliefs and customs derive from conditions on Mars—the sharing of water, for example, establishes a lifelong brotherhood between the sharers due to its scarcity on his home planet. He also possesses supernatural powers, a fact which—unconvincingly—remains hidden from the general population for the bulk of the book. Chief among his powers is the ability to "twist" objects (including humans), a process which erases their existence. Since life is eternal on Mars and communication with the "discorporated" (i.e. dead) is not only possible but common, Smith tends to be indiscrete with this ability and holds no moral qualms about its use.

Through his childlike protagonist's attempts to "grok" (understand) humanity, Heinlein as author questions many of the social customs and norms of his time. Smith investigates a megachurch that predates but is eerily reminiscent of the hypocrisy of Jim and Tammy Bakker's PTL Club; subsequently he founds his own Church of All Worlds. Members of the church become water brothers, address each other with the phrase "Thou art God" and practice a utopic, guilt-free version of polyamory. Indeed, the inner circle shares Smith's childlike qualities and the church closely resembles a cult. Fortuitously, Smith is wealthy (due to his agreement to relinquish his claims on his rights to Mars with Earth's government, the Federation of Free States) and he and his compatriots enjoy unrestricted freedom to spread their message.

Stranger in a Strange Land can be loosely read allegorically, if one views the Martians as gods. They deliberately send Smith to Earth to observe our culture; his reports will determine whether the planet and its inhabitants are allowed to continue to exist (the Martians have discorporated another planet they found unworthy). Discorporated Martians are essentially omniscient and border on omnipotent. Even without taking this perspective, the novel is an interesting read as a forerunner of the sixties counter-culture, absent the influence of drugs. ( )

Inventive plot but irritating and tedious overuse of dialogue as the principal means of advancing large parts of the story. By contrast, the non-dialogue portions of the narrative are more information-rich and thought-provoking.

The major flaws don't involve the sci-fi premises, but instead the depiction of human situations. It's amusing that key plot elements revolve around clever legal maneuvers and verbal arguments as a reliable way of opposing power - surely as naive a stance then as now.

And, as other readers have noted, there is also an unpleasant theme of misogynistic preaching embedded throughout the book. One of the key characters, Jubal (a proxy for the author), portrayed admiringly by all other characters as a wise multi-talented mover-and-shaker, reads like a humourless Mickey Spillane novel or James Bond caricature, and the female characters are mockingly depicted as objects of amusement or pleasure, inherently subordinate and eagerly subservient to those of men.

Apart from (or, for some readers, because of) that gratuitous slant, this is a compelling read that fitted an era of social conformity and promoted a particular blueprint for male libertine lifestyles during the 1960s for the more credulous of sci-fi readers, notably musician David Crosby. ( )

Read the first 50 pages. The dialog and this story was so dated, that the dichotomy between this very dated way of men and women relating to one another against this futuristic plot was downright weird. Read synopsis on wiki and kind of glad I skipped the whole religion part. Uhg. Serves me right for wanting to understand why my least favorite word was invented. I don’t groc it.

This book was listed in a book I have for 1000 books one must read. it didn't do it for me. Laying aside the misogyny I think the main weakness of this book is that it isn't Science Fiction. Rather the interesting set up of Tarzan from Mars was a ruse to enable Heinlein to regale us at length with his opinions on life, religion, politics, art etc. There was some similarity in the plot idea to Wyndham's The Midwich Cuckoos. But the huge difference is that Wyndham cranked up the tension cleverly to an exciting and memorable conclusion. This was soulless and boring in comparison. ( )

Is a captivating sci-fi novel that explores the concept of a human raised on Mars returning to Earth. It delves into themes of culture clash, spirituality, and the search for identity. A must-read for science fiction enthusiasts!