192:, with hereditary memberships. Since his uncle had been a member of the Astrogators' Guild and had had no children, Max hopes that before he died, his uncle had named him his heir. He begins hitchhiking towards Earthport to find out. Along the way, he finds a friendly face in hobo Sam Anderson, who later alludes to being a deserter from the Imperial Marines. Sam feeds Max and offers good advice, though he later absconds with Max's valuable manuals.
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232:-like sapients. Max and Ellie are captured, but Ellie's pet is able to guide Sam to them. They escape, though Sam is killed covering their retreat. Upon his return, Max is informed that the captain has died. Simes tried to take command illegally and was killed by Sam, leaving Max as the only remaining astrogator. To make matters worse, Simes hid or destroyed the astrogation manuals.
204:. Among his duties is caring for several animals, including passengers' pets. When Eldreth "Ellie" Coburn visits her pet, an alien, semi-intelligent "spider puppy" that Max has befriended, she learns that he can play three-dimensional chess, and challenges him to a game. A champion player, she diplomatically lets him win. Meanwhile, Sam rises to the position of
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When
Hendrix dies, the astrogation department is left dangerously shorthanded. The aging captain tries to take his place, but is not up to the task. When Max detects a critical error in his real-time calculations leading up to a transition (an instantaneous jump to another region of space), neither
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Vastly outnumbered by the natives, the humans are forced to attempt a perilous return to known space by reversing the erroneous transition. Max must pilot the ship; he must also supply the missing astrogation tables from memory. To add to his burdens, the remaining officers inform Max that he must
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By chance, he runs into an apologetic Sam. With Max's money, Sam is able to finagle them jobs aboard a starship using forged records of service as crewmen aboard other starships. Max signs on as a steward's mate third class, and then he absorbs the contents of the
Stewards' Guild manual using his
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Max pays heavy fines, but is allowed to join the
Astrogators' Guild, and is assigned as an assistant astrogator aboard another starship. However, he loses any chance for a romantic relationship with Eldreth; she returns home to marry her boyfriend. Max accepts this with mixed feelings, but looks
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When, through Ellie's machinations, the ship's officers discover that Max had learned astrogation from his uncle, Max is promoted to the undermanned command deck. Under the tutelage of Chief
Astrogator Hendrix and Chief Computerman Kelly, he becomes a probationary apprentice chartsman, then a
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Heinlein is doing something more than just earning a living at the work he does supremely well: he's preparing a whole generation – the generation that will live to see the year 2000 – for the Age of Space that's as real to him now as it will be, must be, to
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They locate a habitable world, which Ellie names
Charity, and the passengers become colonists. Meanwhile, the crew continues to try to figure out where they are and whether they can return to Earth. Unfortunately, it turns out the planet is already inhabited by hostile
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At the guild's headquarters, Max is disappointed to find that he had not been named as an heir, but he receives his uncle's substantial security deposit for his manuals. Max learns that Sam had returned the manuals and tried to claim the deposit for himself.
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pattern" and noted that "with its bold symbolism, the book makes a universal appeal". Despite "coincidence and occasional melodrama" in the plotting, Williamson concluded that "the novel is a fine juvenile reflects hopes and fears we all have known".
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probationary astrogator. In a meeting with
Hendrix, Max reluctantly admits to faking his record to get into space. Hendrix defers the matter until their return to Earth. The
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at the
Goodman Children's Theater in Chicago. Written and directed by Lieberman, the 2-act play ran for 25 performances in 1972. The title role was played by
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praised it for its "good character-development, rousing adventure-telling, and brilliant creation of several forms of extra-Terrestrial life".
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in 1954 found the novel to be "a richly textured and thoroughly mature tale" and the best of the seven
Heinlein juveniles available.
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take command, as the captain must be an astrogator. The pressure is immense, but Max succeeds and the ship returns to known space.
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to be "superior science-fiction. ... carefully plotted, lucidly and beautifully written".
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425:"Of Scoundrels and Sailors: Starman Jones by Robert A. Heinlein"
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ranked it "close to the best in mainline science fiction".
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Heinlein Prize for Advances in Space Commercialization
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The Robert Heinlein Interview and Other Heinleiniana
161:, features a farm boy who wants to go to the stars.
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216:then departs for Halcyon, a colony planet orbiting
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188:Most occupations are tightly controlled by
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370:Learn how and when to remove this message
511:Jack Williamson, "Youth Against Space",
873:For Us, the Living: A Comedy of Customs
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177:Max Jones works the family farm in the
16:1953 sci-fi novel by Robert A. Heinlein
278:Surveying Heinlein's juvenile novels,
557:Internet Speculative Fiction Database
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348:adding citations to reliable sources
390:, who later performed the voice of
271:reviewer Villiers Gerson declared
165:published the book as part of the
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1276:Children's science fiction novels
1028:The Worlds of Robert A. Heinlein
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116:Print (hardback & paperback)
1261:American science fiction novels
723:The Cat Who Walks Through Walls
472:, January 1954, pp. 94–95.
400:Contemporary Children's Theater
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696:The Notebooks of Lazarus Long
286:as "a classic example of the
1256:Novels by Robert A. Heinlein
969:The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress
1266:American young adult novels
1251:1953 science fiction novels
1012:The Robert Heinlein Omnibus
854:Have Space Suit—Will Travel
448:Conklin, Groff (May 1954).
240:forward to his new career.
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937:Stranger in a Strange Land
739:The Pursuit of the Pankera
484:Astounding Science Fiction
423:Brown, Alan (2023-11-15).
1063:Take Back Your Government
731:To Sail Beyond the Sunset
680:The Past Through Tomorrow
640:The Man Who Sold the Moon
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610:
481:"The Reference Library",
312:Adaptation to other media
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1281:Space exploration novels
1177:Robert A. Heinlein Award
993:Job: A Comedy of Justice
648:The Green Hills of Earth
487:, May 1954, p. 149.
1271:American bildungsromans
1079:Grumbles from the Grave
715:The Number of the Beast
466:"Recommended Reading",
450:"Galaxy's 5 Star Shelf"
394:in Hollywood. In 1974,
261:P. Schuyler Miller
257:J. Francis McComas
163:Charles Scribner's Sons
454:Galaxy Science Fiction
309:
846:Citizen of the Galaxy
664:Methuselah's Children
555:title listing at the
515:17, 1977, p. 12.
1246:1953 American novels
1141:Andrew Jackson Libby
921:The Door into Summer
688:Time Enough for Love
502:, November 15, 1953.
344:improve this section
1167:Heinlein Centennial
977:I Will Fear No Evil
881:Beyond This Horizon
766:Rocket Ship Galileo
532:In Search of Wonder
456:. pp. 129–133.
31:First edition cover
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961:Farnham's Freehold
897:The Puppet Masters
838:Time for the Stars
806:The Rolling Stones
672:Orphans of the Sky
604:Robert A. Heinlein
536:. Chicago: Advent.
499:The New York Times
496:"A Boy in Space",
167:Heinlein juveniles
159:Robert A. Heinlein
126:The Rolling Stones
69:Heinlein juveniles
41:Robert A. Heinlein
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1213:Starship Troopers
1200:Virginia Heinlein
1126:Delos D. Harriman
1036:Expanded Universe
929:Starship Troopers
830:Tunnel in the Sky
790:Farmer in the Sky
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404:Betty Jean Lifton
388:Charles Fleischer
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105:Publication place
47:Cover artist
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1172:Heinlein Society
1106:Project Moonbase
1098:Destination Moon
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360:November 2023
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329:This section
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301:Starman Jones
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289:bildungsroman
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865:Other novels
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432:. Retrieved
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392:Roger Rabbit
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342:Please help
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297:Damon Knight
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173:Plot summary
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1151:Hazel Stone
1090:Screenplays
1074:(1954/1992)
1066:(1946/1992)
1055:Non-fiction
1004:Collections
913:Double Star
908:(1955/2006)
876:(1939/2003)
774:Space Cadet
755:Scribner's
183:astrogation
1240:Categories
1118:Characters
953:Glory Road
782:Red Planet
434:2024-04-27
410:References
402:edited by
396:Avon Books
282:described
89:Scribner's
757:juveniles
331:does not
244:Reception
218:Nu Pegasi
185:manuals.
169:series.
157:novel by
153:, a 1953
85:Publisher
1220:Tribbles
528:(1967).
469:F&SF
57:Language
1193:Related
1044:Requiem
429:Reactor
352:removed
337:sources
230:centaur
60:English
1215:(film)
1160:Legacy
1108:(1953)
1100:(1950)
1082:(1989)
1047:(1992)
1039:(1980)
1031:(1966)
1023:(1959)
1015:(1958)
996:(1984)
988:(1982)
985:Friday
980:(1970)
972:(1966)
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956:(1963)
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924:(1957)
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691:(1973)
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659:(1953)
651:(1951)
643:(1950)
214:Asgard
190:guilds
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65:Series
37:Author
513:Algol
307:them.
75:Genre
1225:Grok
335:any
333:cite
255:and
100:1953
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