Red Planet
Retro Hugo Nominee
Narrative Synopsis
Jim Marlowe and his friend Frank Sutton attend boarding school on Mars alongside Jim's bouncy native Martian pet, Willis the Bouncer. When Willis accidentally mimics and reveals a secret colonial administrator conspiracy to cancel the annual migration and trap colonists in lethal winter conditions, the boys lead a student strike and spark a frontier revolution.
A weapon is an adult tool. To deny it to a responsible person is to classify them as property.
Notable Passage
Historical & Editorial Context
Scribner initially demanded edits over teenage boys carrying sidearms and the biology of Willis; Heinlein restored the uncut text in later editions.