Stranger in a Strange Land

What a load of crap. The first few sections were entertaining, the last two were downright boring and painful to read. By the end I was quasi-skimming, desperate to be finished. Went from a four-star book to a three-star and then almost to a two-star by the end. Even the beginning, while it was interesting, felt like an overly elaborate setup with little payoff.

The writing is bad and the characters are bad (one character is basically a mouthpiece for the author, can do no wrong and his sole role in the story is to show how smart the author is). The book is racist and sexist. And the philosophy espoused was just not that interesting or compelling.

One quote did stop me in my tracks: “Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.”