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place to play hide-and-seek. He searches several locations matching his brother's favorite hiding spots, using his size to access spaces that grown men would be too big to search. He eventually succeeds in finding his brother, who has passed out in a small crevice. The short ends with the parents swearing to never return to the Moon while Dick himself plans on eventually returning.
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told that the tour is too dangerous for small children. Unwilling to deny their "Baby
Darling", the parents raise a fuss until they are permitted to use a small space suit that had been special ordered for an elite's daughter. Dick is instructed to watch over his brother, however once on the tour he quickly becomes enthralled by the Black Pits' landscape and history.
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The short story is told from the viewpoint of Dick Logan, a Boy Scout who has accompanied his father on a business trip to the Moon alongside his mother and little brother, "Baby
Darling". They're encouraged to visit the Black Pits of Luna on the back side of the Moon, however upon arriving they are
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As the tour comes to an end the family discovers that Baby
Darling has wandered off. Searches are made for the child, however no one is able to locate the boy, who is at risk of running out of oxygen. Dick volunteers to help and quickly realizes that his brother would see the Pits as an excellent
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wrote that the character of Dick is portrayed as more responsible than his entitled parents, which she states is implied to be a result of his participation in the Boy Scouts. The short story was praised in the
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criticized the portrayal of the unnamed mother character, further noting that
Heinlein frequently received criticism from feminists because "he presents women who do domestic duty as irrevocably stupid."
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by
William R. Brice, who stated that "Although the plot and story line are somewhat juvenile, the descriptions of the lunar surface are excellent."
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Per Jerome Winter, "The Black Pits of Luna" is one of four short stories that helped
Heinlein reach a more mainstream market via
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417:""Maybe the Hardest Job of All— Particularly When You Have No Talent for It": Heinlein's Fictional Parents, 1939-1987"
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and his novel way of finding his lost brother. Included as part of his
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193:. The short has been translated into multiple languages.
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Works originally published in The
Saturday Evening Post
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177:on January 10, 1948 and featured illustrations by
171:"The Black Pits of Luna" was first published in
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325:The Pleasant Profession of Robert A. Heinlein
222:The Pleasant Profession of Robert A. Heinlein
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138:, January 10, 1948, and was collected in
44:Title page of its initial publication in
351:"Exploration of Space: Fact and Fiction"
269:(pp. 30-31, 80, 82, 84; illustrated by
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16:1948 short story by Robert A. Heinlein
459:Internet Speculative Fiction Database
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914:Short stories by Robert A. Heinlein
355:Journal of College Science Teaching
230:Journal of College Science Teaching
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878:The Worlds of Robert A. Heinlein
322:Mendlesohn, Farah (2019-03-07).
608:The Cat Who Walks Through Walls
388:Slusser, George (Summer 1995).
309:10.5621/sciefictstud.41.2.0436
301:10.5621/sciefictstud.41.2.0436
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924:Short stories set on the Moon
919:Science fiction short stories
826:The Notebooks of Lazarus Long
216:Critical reception and themes
181:. It was later re-printed in
678:Delilah and the Space Rigger
584:The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress
132:, it originally appeared in
929:Scouting in popular culture
390:"Heinlein's fallen futures"
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624:The Pursuit of the Pankera
415:McGiveron, Rafeeq (2003).
349:Brice, William R. (1977).
285:"All Hail the Slide Rule?"
671:The Man Who Sold the Moon
616:To Sail Beyond the Sunset
557:The Past Through Tomorrow
525:The Man Who Sold the Moon
250:Searchlight (short story)
198:The Saturday Evening Post
190:The Past Through Tomorrow
174:The Saturday Evening Post
147:The Past Through Tomorrow
135:The Saturday Evening Post
89:The Saturday Evening Post
46:The Saturday Evening Post
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26:
748:The Green Hills of Earth
533:The Green Hills of Earth
464:"The Black Pits of Luna"
455:"The Black Pits of Luna"
433:10.3828/extr.2003.44.2.4
202:The Green Hills of Earth
200:, the other four being "
184:The Green Hills of Earth
141:The Green Hills of Earth
22:"The Black Pits of Luna"
600:The Number of the Beast
289:Science Fiction Studies
720:It's Great to Be Back!
713:The Black Pits of Luna
328:. Unbound Publishing.
283:Jerome Winter (2014).
210:It’s Great to Be Back!
107:The Black Pits of Luna
762:The Menace from Earth
706:Gentlemen, Be Seated!
576:Methuselah's Children
457:title listing at the
856:Andrew Jackson Libby
651:"Let There Be Light"
592:Time Enough for Love
96:Published in English
657:The Roads Must Roll
167:Publication history
116:by American writer
909:1948 short stories
727:—We Also Walk Dogs
549:Orphans of the Sky
504:Robert A. Heinlein
144:(and subsequently
118:Robert A. Heinlein
32:Robert A. Heinlein
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886:Expanded Universe
834:Delos D. Harriman
335:978-1-78352-680-2
220:In her 2019 book
187:and subsequently
124:on a trip to the
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734:Searchlight
517:Collections
204:” (1947), “
114:short story
79:Publication
28:Short story
903:Categories
813:Characters
257:References
212:” (1947).
120:, about a
645:Life-Line
441:0014-5483
367:0047-231X
122:Boy Scout
796:Universe
782:Coventry
375:42984737
243:See also
154:Synopsis
69:Genre(s)
61:Language
870:Related
692:Requiem
637:stories
466:at the
109:" is a
64:English
53:Country
889:(1980)
881:(1966)
789:Misfit
635:Short
627:(2020)
619:(1987)
611:(1985)
603:(1980)
595:(1973)
587:(1966)
579:(1958)
568:Novels
560:(1967)
552:(1963)
544:(1953)
536:(1951)
528:(1950)
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371:JSTOR
305:JSTOR
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400:(2).
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330:ISBN
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126:Moon
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30:by
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