A Little Science Fiction Talk for Your Summer

Summer is always a time when we want lighter reading. At least I do. I remember summer vacations from school when I lived on science fiction. 

Two classics are being discussed on podcasts that might spur your interest or just get you to find new angles to that book you love so well. There is one of each below for me.

The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein

Discussed by: Mythgard Academy podcast

I've read a lot of Heinlein but never cared much about this book. However, there's something about Corey Olsen's enthusiasm that has pulled me through a lot of books I didn't care about and turned me into a fan, most notably Ender's Game and Le Morte d'Arthur.

Here they tackle a classic that I've often been urged to read. Revolution on the moon with a lovable computer ought to be right down my alley but for some reason it never appealed to me. So this is the summer that I finally tackle this award winning science fiction classic.
 

 

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Discussed by: The Literary Life podcast, 3 episodes

This is Ray Bradbury's famous book set in a dystopian world where firemen start fires (in order to burn books) and ideas are enough to get you chased by ferocious mechanical hounds. I'm not reading the book along with them because I know it well enough so that listening to the conversation is enough. 

Scott and I discussed this at A Good Story is Hard to Find way back in 2012. I remember being struck then at Bradbury's prescience in people's fascination with social media, audio, visual gaming and, in essence, amusing ourselves to death. The conversation at The Literary Life reminds me that we have gone a lot further down that rabbit hole in the 9 years since then. It's a good conversation and hits chords that a lot of the usual discussions don't hit, in part because they  are working from a classical education perspective, which feeds into a homeschooling, Christian audience.