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The Rolling Stones

Robert A. Heinlein,

Spencer Murphy (Castor and Pollux Stone),

Caroline Fitzgerald (Hazel Stone),

David Baker (Narrator)

3.86 · Rating details · 6,656 ratings · 317 reviews

It doesn’t seem likely for twins to have the same middle name. Even so, it’s clear that Castor and Pollux Stone both have "Trouble" written in that spot on their birth certificates. Of course, anyone who’s met their grandmother Hazel would know that they came by it honestly…

Join the Stone twins as they connive, cajole, and bamboozle their way across the Solar System in th ...more

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Published February 1st 2005 by Full Cast Audio (first published 1952)

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Oct 11, 2019 Evgeny rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: scifi

The review is dedicated to the first human to conduct a free space walk Alexei Leonov (May 30, 1934 - October 11, 2019).

A science fiction book from Juvenile series by Heinlein which strictly speaking does not have plot, but which somehow works. It all started with Stone twins - Castor and Pollux (looks like their parents took the easy way when they named their kids) trying to organize a business deal. The kids (their age was never mentioned, but I thought they were well in their teens) were born ...more

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Jul 21, 2013 picoas picoas rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: 1991

If you're into stuff like this, you can read the full review.

Degeneration: "The Rolling Stones" by Robert A. Heinlein

(Original Review, 1980)

THE ROLLING STONES happens to be a fascinating example of degeneration --- Grandma quit engineering because three less-competent men were promoted over her, Mother is a competent but very womanly doctor, and Daughter (what little we find out of her) is mostly hormones. I think it's also fair to say that TRS is the most liberal portrayal of women that Heinlei ...more

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Jul 30, 2011 Lyn rated it really liked it

*** 2019 Re-read

I first read this pre-GR and my memory of it was such that I never wrote a proper review.

Now that I have refreshed my memory, I've bumped it up to four stars and count this as one of his best.

First of all, it’s one of the juvenile books first published by Scribner’s ( this one in 1952 and so the sixth in the series) and so is good classic SF. Enough science to count and more than enough RAH storytelling to make this extra worthwhile.

This features a show stealing Hazel Stone, one ...more

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Mar 19, 2019 Bionic Jean rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: read-authors-e-h, antiquarian-books, sf-speculative

Robert A. Heinlein is a much revered name in Science Fiction. He won many awards, including several Hugo awards, and in 1974 was named the first “Science Fiction Writers Grand Master”. Sometimes he is referred to as the “dean of science fiction writers”, for his numerous novels and short stories. Although always emphasising scientific accuracy, he wrote very accessibly, and was one of the first American science-fiction writers to break into mainstream magazines. So how does this early novel, ori ...more

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Aug 29, 2020 L.S. Popovich rated it liked it

Shelves: 2020, 3-star, american, audiobook-greats, science-fiction, space

I prefer Heinlein to Asimov and the other hard S-F G. A. GMs. This is not one of his classics, but it is an entertaining and harmless read. Recommended for audiobook, which is read by a full, talented cast, and is accompanied by cheesy sound effects and old time radio era aesthetic charm.

A fun-for-the-whole-family space opera adventure where there is sure to be a heartwarming ending and every sign of tragedy along the way is merely good for a gasp before the inevitable sigh of relief provided b ...more

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Jan 27, 2016 David rated it liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: troublesome twins, former revolutionary grandmothers, nuclear families in space

Shelves: science-fiction, audiobook, young-adult, teenagers, space

Heinlein's juveniles have always been among my favorite SF - I liked a lot of them more than some of his later novels written for adults. I read The Rolling Stones so long ago I barely remembered it, but some of it came back to me as I listened to it again as an audiobook.

Alas, the years have diminished my fondness for this light-hearted space romp somewhat. While it was a fun adventure about a wisecracking, hyper-competent family of adventurers seeking their fortune (and something adventurous) Heinlein's juveniles have always been among my favorite SF - I liked a lot of them more than some of his later novels written for adults. I read The Rolling Stones so long ago I barely remembered it, but some of it came back to me as I listened to it again as an audiobook.

Alas, the years have diminished my fondness for this light-hearted space romp somewhat. While it was a fun adventure about a wisecracking, hyper-competent family of adventurers seeking their fortune (and something adventurous) out in the solar system, there isn't much to impress the modern SF reader about flying a rocket ship to Mars, Venus, and beyond.

The Stones consist of Castor and Pollux, trouble-making teenage twins always scheming to get rich and prove they're the smartest people in any room, who drive most of the adventure with their original idea to buy an old mining ship. Somehow their parents are talked into this harebrained scheme, with a little manipulation by Grandma Hazel, who is a crusty old survivor of the Lunar rebellion in The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and can continue to hold her own with anyone a fraction of her age. The Stone family is rounded out by teenage daughter Meade and their little brother.

As in most Heinlein stories, everyone is super-competent: the twins have what nowadays would be considered a graduate-level understanding of mathematics, which their father, the moral center and patriarch of the family despite, by his own admission, having the lowest IQ, demonstrates isn't nearly good enough. Mrs. Stone is a doctor, Grandma Hazel is... well, Grandma Hazel, and even Meade, who does little more than fill in the "girl" box in the story, is smart and accomplished in a few domains.

The Stone family is a quintessential upper-middle-class white family circa 1952, when this story was written, flying out into space under the wise and benevolent leadership of Father Knows Best. And while Heinlein works out starship physics and planetary travel in great detail (gotta love those slide rules that always make an appearance!), making this story the sort of crunchy, "believable" hard SF that would have thrilled young would-be space pioneers back in the 50s, obviously to us in the 21st century, the idea that people will ever be jaunting about the solar system in private spaceships the way pioneers used to go west with little more than a mule and a pack of supplies certainly seems naive.

As an introduction to Heinlein's juveniles, with very little that is challenging or novel, but much to excite a young reader who's into space and adventure, I do think this book holds a worthy place in the canon of Golden Age science fiction. ...more

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May 16, 2021 César Bustíos rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, heinlein, 20th-century

"The dull ones stay home—and the bright ones stir around and try to see what trouble they can dig up."
⠀
Fun, fun, fun. A family road trip through the solar system from Luna to Mars, the asteroid belt and beyond. I almost felt like I was part of the family. ⠀
⠀
So far one of the best juveniles I have read, cheek by jowl with Farmer in the Sky. According to Mr. Internet, Hazel Stone, the grandma, is the same Hazel who appears as a child in The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, she is referenced as being part ...more

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Oct 20, 2017 Tammie rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: owned-kindle, companion-series, sci-fi, space-opera, young-adult, series-abandoned, fantasy-book-club-reads, owned-audible

It doesn’t seem likely for twins to have the same middle name. Even so, it’s clear that Castor and Pollux Stone both have “Trouble” written in that spot on their birth certificates. Of course, anyone who’s met their grandmother Hazel would know they came by it honestly.

Join the Stone twins as they connive, cajole, and bamboozle their way across the solar system in the company of the most high-spirited and hilarious family in all of science fiction.

3.5 stars. The Rolling Stones was our fantasy It doesn’t seem likely for twins to have the same middle name. Even so, it’s clear that Castor and Pollux Stone both have “Trouble” written in that spot on their birth certificates. Of course, anyone who’s met their grandmother Hazel would know they came by it honestly.

Join the Stone twins as they connive, cajole, and bamboozle their way across the solar system in the company of the most high-spirited and hilarious family in all of science fiction.

3.5 stars. The Rolling Stones was our fantasy book club pick for October and I thought it was a fun, light sci-fi read. The twins Castor and Pollux reminded me a little bit of Fred and George Weasley from Harry Potter. They, and their grandma Hazel were the best things about this book.

One thing I was slightly disappointed in was that the daughter kind of faded into the background, and her father didn't seem to have enough faith in her abilities. But then there is the very positive portrayal of the mother, who is a doctor and the grandmother, who is an engineer and very independent and I liked that.

A couple of things to note are that the "Trouble with Tribbles" episode of the original Star Trek series was a complete rip-off of the flat cats in this book, and there are numerous ideas from this book that seem to have influenced other sci-fi stories and books over the years. The Expanse series came to mind with its Belters and Martian colonies.

While there were some enjoyably funny moments, I did feel like the book was a bit dull at times. I did like that it was short and easy to get through, even through the parts that dragged. This was written way back in the 50s, so some of it feels a bit dated. Clearly Heinlein did not predict digital technology, but I'm not sure anyone would have at that point. If you want to try some classic sci-fi, then I say give this a try.

Every time I think about this book I think about a space ship with bicycles stuck all over the outside of it and I smile. 😂

Review also posted at Writings of a Reader ...more

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Apr 11, 2009 David Hill rated it it was amazing

My first Heinlein read. Fundamentally the story line is close to the Lost in Space television series of many years ago. The book is easy to read, and I highly recommend young readers take a look at how future space travel was viewed some 57 years ago. The book has valuable insights into family values, and dealing with nearly absolute isolation for long periods of time. And they did not have Game Boys!

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Jan 24, 2016 Wendy rated it really liked it

Shelves: humour, science-fiction, audiobook

The easiest way to describe this book is that it's an amusing family road trip... in space.

I've come to adore Heinlein's dry sense of humour, which often appears in one or two characters in his books, but here, we have a whole family of smartasses. From Captain to Doctor, to grandmother, to daughter, to entrepreneurial twins, and a determined little boy with typical little boy stubborness. Oh and flat cats, which are best described as, well, tribbles, but flatter.

The description of this book foc ...more

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Mar 13, 2012 Steve rated it really liked it · review of another edition

A lot of people seem to target Heinlein as juvenile and they colour their reviews based on a recent re-reading of these books. Even for the uninitiated new readers they will seem a bit clunky.

But look at when these were written, this story was published before sputnik, before computers were really available beyond a few building filling giants, even IBM didn't exist ;)

Read them for what they are, visions of a future far more remote than space seems now, read them as classics.

I loved these books ...more

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Mar 20, 2021 Kai rated it liked it · review of another edition

Previous encounters with Heinlein left me quite underwhelmed, and The Rolling Stones again greeted me with generic characters and an unexciting opening. However, the silly humor grew on me about 100 pages in and I was pleasantly surprised to find that it incorporated some heavy concepts of science-fiction. A space adventure from an older and simpler time.

Heinlein's early work is famous for being addressed to an audience of teenage boys and providing them with some pep talk that they can achieve Previous encounters with Heinlein left me quite underwhelmed, and The Rolling Stones again greeted me with generic characters and an unexciting opening. However, the silly humor grew on me about 100 pages in and I was pleasantly surprised to find that it incorporated some heavy concepts of science-fiction. A space adventure from an older and simpler time.

Heinlein's early work is famous for being addressed to an audience of teenage boys and providing them with some pep talk that they can achieve greatly in life. So, here too we have teenage twin brothers with exceptional talent and vision as the main protagonists. Castor and Pollux Stone have ideas of how to get rich by interstellar trade.

Throughout the book, they follow various variations of this project. In the first part, they try to acquire a spaceship. They succeed, but end up as crew members of a family trip rather than the commanders of their own freighter. So, with them on board are their mom and dad, their grandmother, and their older sister and toddler brother. At first, their plan is to sell bicycles on Mars, then they travel to a dangerous asteroid belt with the idea of selling luxurious goods to the prospectors digging there for precious metals. As it turns out, trading is a much more complex business than they anticipated. And there are other obstacles and dangers that need to be overcome.

For a modern audience, the adventures feel very old-fashioned. Occasionally, the events take unexpected turns (for instance, the talk about telepathy is totally a red herring) and some developments show a decent amount of ingenuity. Similarly, the humor is really from another time, but it's somewhat amusing. Like when at the end of a lengthy and eventful episode of selling their bikes to the Martian citizens, with already much less profit than they anticipated, the twins get to know about the steep taxes that Mars charges for this sort of transaction - and the two end up with hardly anything but experience. Or when their grandmother defends them in court, but in such a subpar way that even the judge asks them if they wouldn't rather drop her from the case.

There is barely any character development, but I have to say that I started to take a liking in the heroes of the story. When reading Stranger in a Strange Land I was frankly appalled by its portrayal of women. This is not an issue here. In fact, I was quite surprised at how progressive this novel is for its time.

The grandmother is the superior engineer and it's often her who solves problems in a brilliant way. She is easily my favorite character. The mother is a very successful doctor and becomes the hero in her own subplot that revolves around an epidemic in space. Actually, I would have liked to follow the plot thread more closely. The father is successful, too, but he is clearly the least gifted member of the family. Actually, he has many qualities more traditionally associated with the loving mother stereotype. There is an exception, though. The sister is apparently too stupid to do other things than cooking and to look out for a husband to settle down with.

I liked how the story addresses the intricacies of space travel. Most importantly, at many points it emphasizes the importance of movement (including astronomical objects) and distance. Minimal deviations (the decimal places in your calculations) in initial conditions or in regard to your destination may eventually lead to enormous deviations. As is pointed out, this also makes it more difficult to model the events, as it's difficult for reality to closely instantiate the theoretical pathways. It even discusses more basic aspects, like the impacts that zero gravity may have on the human body (space sickness as opposed to sea sickness).

Certain events within the story are explained in more scientific terms. For instance, it is explained how thrust of less g is necessary to take off from the moon (as compared to the Earth), because of its weaker force field. It also considers how flights may be much cheaper at certain times and planetary constellations and even explores the social consequences that these circumstances imply (much more people staying on a planet to wait for these events, an immensely increased chance of collision at other times). It's pointed to how they create a frame of reference or how they use radar reflectors to later regain goods they throw in the direction of Mars.

Along the way, it introduces concepts such as escape velocity (necessary to overcome the gravitational field of a planet), burnout (the point when to turn off fuel burning), the Titius–Bode law (describing the spacing between planets in a solar system), or the slingshot or swing-by maneuver (by which planets are used to increase the speed of smaller bodies on their way to other planets). I was really impressed how such explanations feel very natural even within a story that is so lightweight in spirit.

Interesting side note: In court the mother excuses herself by saying that she is a "stranger in a strange land". So, this is a theme that was on Heinlein's mind many years before the release of the novel by that name. There is one thing that I still don't understand, though. Why is this book called "Two Times to Pluto and Back" (in German)? Is Pluto even mentioned in the story?

Rating: 3/5 ...more

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Feb 02, 2009 Mark rated it liked it · review of another edition

Here’s my latest re-read of Heinlein’s works.

By 1952 we’re well into the so-called Heinlein juveniles – books published that were written by Heinlein predominantly for teenage Boy Scouts. After Between Planets, Heinlein was clearly on a roll, and in demand. The Introduction to this edition, written by Heinlein biographer William H Patterson, talks of his books selling well, and his movie Destination Moon doing quite well, though his work for TV series Tom Corbett Space Cadet had left him rather ...more

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Sep 15, 2019 Scott rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

This is one of Heinlein's "juveniles", which means it doesn't have any adult situations and nothing too dire happens to anyone. It's also written in a lighthearted, whimsical fashion, with a lot of witty dialogue and rapid quips that reminded me of the old screwball comedy films (I laughed a lot). Yet it is chock full of real, hard science regarding astrophysics, space travel, and the physics of other worlds. What a great way to introduce science to young people! Recommended for ages 9-99. ...more

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Nov 10, 2013 Kat Hooper rated it liked it

Shelves: audiobook

Originally posted at Fantasy Literature.

Castor and Pollux Stone are 15-year-old red-headed twin boys who live in Luna City (a moon colony). They are young entrepreneurs and are making plans to buy a spaceship so they can start a trading business. When their father Roger Stone, a retired engineer and former mayor of Luna City whose current job is to write cheesy sci-fi stories for a television show, finds out about their plans, he decides to buy a space yacht and take the whole family on a trip. Originally posted at Fantasy Literature.

Castor and Pollux Stone are 15-year-old red-headed twin boys who live in Luna City (a moon colony). They are young entrepreneurs and are making plans to buy a spaceship so they can start a trading business. When their father Roger Stone, a retired engineer and former mayor of Luna City whose current job is to write cheesy sci-fi stories for a television show, finds out about their plans, he decides to buy a space yacht and take the whole family on a trip. That includes their baby brother, their mother Edith Stone (a doctor), and their Grandmother Hazel Stone (an engineer). You may recognize some of their names from later Heinlein novels in which they are mentioned or make cameo appearances.

The family names their yacht The Rolling Stones and Mr. Stone appoints himself ship captain while his wife is, of course, the ship doctor and his mother is, of course, ship engineer. The twins help with the navigation by calculating flight plans by hand with their slide rules. To do this, they must take into account the shapes of orbits, reactive mass, changes in velocity and acceleration, gravity wells, relative motion, and kinetic energy. They are also concerned with making money, so they must plan for, and acquire, appropriate cargo.

The Stone family banters its way around the Solar System and has a variety of adventures including selling bicycles on Mars, visiting mining operations on asteroids, meeting a plague ship, and inadvertently breeding Flat Cats. (The Flat Cat plot inspired the Star Trek episode which was my favorite when I was a kid: The Trouble With Tribbles.) While the Stone twins are having adventures and making money, they also make some big mistakes and have to get out of a couple of scrapes. All the while, though, their family love and loyalty stays strong.

The Rolling Stones isn’t one of Heinlein’s best Juveniles, and it often feels dated (slide rules!), but it’s a fun and sweet little science fiction adventure that many kids and teenagers will enjoy. Heinlein fans will recognize many of the author’s favorite themes and character types. Taxes and regulations, of course, are complained about. Guns are carried. The members of the Stone family, like so most of Heinlein’s protagonists, are super super clever and are always challenging each other in ways that allow them to display their various sorts of genius. Their dialogue is full of supposedly witty banter (“Pull me in, you red-headed moron!” “Don’t call me red-headed!”), they do an awful lot of math (“we cut our teeth on differential equations … we can do a triple integration in our heads faster than Hazel can.”), and they discuss scientific principles as if they all have degrees in several academic fields. Father Stone is obsessed with running a tight ship, to the point of militancy. While I thought the family’s interactions were sweet, I found them to be more annoying than “hilarious” as the publisher’s blurb promises. Honestly, I was glad I wasn’t on that ship with the Stones. Their banter would have driven me nuts after about two hours. This gets better once we get off the ship in Mars and the boys are able to get away from their parents and grandmother.

I know I say this all the time when I review Heinlein, but one thing I love about his Juveniles is that his female characters are just as smart as the males. The Rolling Stones, which was first published in 1952, features a mom who’s an excellent and compassionate medical doctor, a grandmother who’s a brilliant engineer (and can’t cook) and a husband/son who admires and respects them both. That’s pretty awesome! Now, why didn’t Heinlein put those types of women in his books for adults???

A condensed version of The Rolling Stones originally appeared in the magazine Boys’ Life in 1952 before the novel was published. I listened to Blackstone Audio’s version of The Rolling Stones. It’s 7 hours long and was narrated by Tom Weiner who always does such a great job with these classic science fiction stories. I recommend this version if you want to read The Rolling Stones. ...more

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Mar 31, 2011 Allison rated it really liked it

Shelves: sciencefiction, youngadult

Ahh, so THIS book is where Hazel Stone is from. I really should not have read The Cat Who Walks Through Walls before working my way through Heinlein's bibliography.

The Rolling Stones is a fun space romp, about a family from Luna that decides to buy a spaceship and cruise around. It has requisite Heinlein characters: twin genius boys, a father who impresses upon them the glory, beauty, and absolute necessity of mathematics, a surgeon mother who still manages to play good housewife, a sharp witte ...more

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Feb 01, 2016 Helge Moulding rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Heinlein's earlier stories were written long before actual space travel became possible - when we started to actually put people in space his stories treated space travel with techno babble, handwavium, and unobtainium.

The Rolling Stones was written before 1960, and Heinlein speculates a bit about space travel. In retrospect (from 66 years in the future, now, but even at the time I first read this story in the late 1970s) his speculating is naive. But if you're OK with treating that part of the ...more

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Sep 10, 2008 Dmadden rated it it was amazing

It's actually the book, not the audio cd but I like the cover art better.

Oh, yeah. Back in days when planning a family vacation meant choosing between a Hohmann ellipse and a hyperbolic cometary orbit. Great fun for all the family. Even smells like an old library paperback at Hugo's if you get the super old copy.

This contains the material that was stolen to make the Tribbles episode on the original Star Trek. Believe it or not. ...more

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Mar 05, 2011 Sarah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi, novel, ya

The intelligent, independent, and colorful Stone family, one of the founding families of the Luna Colony, sets off on a trip to Mars and encounters all manner of adventure along the way. This solid book of space travel is a great example of why Robert Heinlein is still a major name in Science Fiction.

According to Genreflecting, The Rolling Stones is primarily a Space Travel Science Fiction novel (223-4), as the story is centered on the Stone family’s trip through the solar system. Herald actuall The intelligent, independent, and colorful Stone family, one of the founding families of the Luna Colony, sets off on a trip to Mars and encounters all manner of adventure along the way. This solid book of space travel is a great example of why Robert Heinlein is still a major name in Science Fiction.

According to Genreflecting, The Rolling Stones is primarily a Space Travel Science Fiction novel (223-4), as the story is centered on the Stone family’s trip through the solar system. Herald actually lists two other Heinlein novels in this category: Citizen of the Galaxy and Have Space Suit – Will Travel, so this one of several Sci-Fi subgenres Heinlein is comfortable with. This novel also fits with Hard Science (210) novels surprisingly well. Even though Heinlein wrote The Rolling Stones a decade before human beings actually experienced space travel, his descriptions of space flight are incredibly accurate. His descriptions of the effects of weightlessness stick out especially, but throughout the story Heinlein takes a timeout from the action to explain the physics behind a certain aspect of space travel. Anyone who has seen the movie Apollo 13, will recognize the ship’s flight plan to circle the Earth and use it’s gravity to fling the ship toward Mars more quickly as serving the same purpose as the wounded Apollo spacecraft’s trip around the moon to return it quickly and safely to Earth. Considering that the Apollo mission’s improvised flight plan wasn’t created for another 20 years and that the US was still 5 years away from launching any kind of orbiting object into space, Heinlein must have had his fingers on the pulse of scientific developments of his day.

This was a good adventure story I would recommend to any patron interested in that kind of story. Because it is a family story there are no galactic overlords or grand space battles. But with a scheming entrepreneurial set of teenage twin boys, who land themselves in Martian jail, a little brother who can read minds, a wily grandmother who was one of the lunar pioneers to provide entertainment for the other three “filler” members of the family, the story still moves quickly enough to keep most adventure lovers interested. Heinlein’s solid foundation in real science will also keep readers especially interested in science more than intrigued.

The only problem I had with The Rolling Stones was the lack of character development. Every member of the family is introduced with sharp characters traits, however they seem to be more caricatures as their responses are always extreme and never really show any emotional depth or development. Near the end of the book there is a scene where ever thinks the seemingly unstoppable grandmother has died, and real emotional development seems imminent. However, it’s just a false alarm and everyone continues with their light-hearted adventures. I know that I should know better and not depend on Sci-Fi for character development. That is why I wouldn’t recommend this book to romance readers or anybody looking for the kind of character development I hoped for. The fascination in this story is with the scientific wonders of the new places the Stones travel to, not with the people in them.

Sources

Heinlen, Robert A. The Rolling Stones. New York: Ace Books, 1952.

Herald, Diana Tixier. “Chapter 6: Science Fiction.” Genreflecting: A Guide to Reading Interests in Genre Fiction, 4th ed. Englewood, Col.: Libraries Unlimited, 1995. (207-57). ...more

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Feb 12, 2011 Nancy O'Toole rated it liked it

Shelves: library, audiobook, science-fiction, middle-grade

Castor and Pollux Stone have big plans to make big money. But in order to complete these plans, they need a spaceship, and the chance to fly it. Only their father doesn't quite see it their way, and would prefer that the underage twins finish their educations on earth. They soon strike a compromise. The twins can go to space, but not alone. The whole family is joining them from Mars, to the asteroids.

The Rolling Stones is admittedly a strange choice for someone's second Heinlein book (my first w Castor and Pollux Stone have big plans to make big money. But in order to complete these plans, they need a spaceship, and the chance to fly it. Only their father doesn't quite see it their way, and would prefer that the underage twins finish their educations on earth. They soon strike a compromise. The twins can go to space, but not alone. The whole family is joining them from Mars, to the asteroids.

The Rolling Stones is admittedly a strange choice for someone's second Heinlein book (my first was The Moon is a Harsh Mistress). When I saw that my library had the Full Cast Audio version, I knew I needed to give it a try. Admittedly, my experience was not initially positive. I found the bickering among the Stone family to be a little annoying. I also had some issues with the voice actor who played Buster. Fortunately, once everyone gets into space, I found myself liking the book more and more.

The Rolling Stones is a comedy/adventure story filled with a large cast of quirky characters (making it perfect for the audiobook format). It's hard not to fall in love with the dysfunctional Stone family. Like many readers, my favorite character was Hazel Stone, a tough minded, fast-talking grandmother with at times questionable morals. I was floored when I realized that Hazel Stone also appeared in The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, but as the much younger Hazel Mead. Fans of The Moon is a Harsh Mistress will appreciate getting to see how Luna has grown from it's early days.

There are a few other things about this book that really stuck out to me. One is the humor. Although it occasionally falls flat, there were plenty of times when I just had to laugh out loud (once you get to incident with the flat cats, you'll see where I'm coming from). Given that this book was written for children, I was a little surprised at the girth of hard science. Heinlein painstakingly describes the effort the ship has to go through to bring the characters from one place to another. This made me really think about the apparent ease at which ships are able to zip from one planet to another in sci-fi movies without any thought of their individual orbits or gravities. Although this book was written in the 1950s, there weren't too many instances where the story or situations felt dated. When it comes to gender roles, there are a few remarks that make you aware that the story was written in a much different time, but it appears that Heinlein's portrayal of female characters (at least in this novel) was probably quite progressive for the time.

The Rolling Stones may not be as groundbreaking or engrossing as The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, but it's a lot of fun to read and likely to appeal to a wide variety of ages. Full Cast Audio's production is top notch as always. I'm quite happy I stuck with this and gave the book a chance. ...more

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Dec 31, 2015 ***Dave Hill rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: text, favorites

While rightly classified as one of Heinlein's juveniles, this book has a lot more sophistication than his older "Boy Scouts in Space" style tales. It's got wit, intrigue, some entertaining family dynamics, and some decent (if a bit outdated) crunchy SF to go with it.

Unlike most of the juveniles, Heinlein spends plenty of time on all the members of the family, not just the young protagonists, and the relationship between all of them -- where they conflict, where they complement, and where they d ...more

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Feb 24, 2011 Emily rated it really liked it · review of another edition

The family Stone goes Rolling across the solar system to see what they can see. Tough and wise Grandma Hazel, Captain and Doctor Stone, daughter Meade, irascible twins Castor and Pollux, and baby Lowell have all kinds of interesting adventures in space.
Despite the excess of mathematics and ballistics, this is a very readable and exciting tale. Taking place a few decades after the revolt of Luna in “The Moon is a Harsh Mistress”, we are able to infer how the Free State has matured, and also beco ...more

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Aug 03, 2018 Amy rated it liked it

Shelves: recommended-to-me, juvenile-fiction, and-a-half

3.5 stars

The Rolling Stones represents a juvenile novel that straddles the old-fashion Tom Sawyer/Ivanhoe feel with modern day fiction. It is fun, occasionally funny, and full of exciting adventures. It got a little too trouble with tribbles for my taste near the end...

But then went unexpectedly deep and heart-wrenching for a little bit which brought it back in my estimation. I don't think I am going to rush out to read more Heinlein, but at the same time I enjoyed it. ...more

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Jan 23, 2010 Jeff Yoak rated it it was amazing

Shelves: read-in-2013, read-in-2020, read-with-kids, read-in-2015, audio-collection, read-in-2010, read-in-2008, read-in-2006, read-in-2004, read-in-2000

The Rolling Stones is one of Heinlein's finer juveniles. I'm looking forward in a year or two to introducing my youngest, currently 4 years old, to Heinlein through this book.

As always, Heinlein's flare for creating wonderful characters shines through. Typical of the early works, the plot is gripping and set against a backdrop of space travel. It is always a pleasure to encounter Hazel (Mead) Stone who is a recurring character in one of the universes that Heinlein creates, though startling (even ...more

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May 10, 2010 Jane Greene rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: young teens and adults who like Science Fiction

Recommended to Jane by: my husband

Listened to this book on a long car ride. What a fun book...a full cast of readers and music made this audio book especially fun! Even though this book was considered juvenile fiction and my husband had read it as a teen, we still enjoyed it! As we listened we were able to guess where many future story lines originated! "Flat cats" and tribbles??? Family traveling in space and Space Family Robinsons?? As usual, though this book was written about 57 years ago, Heinlein spoke of many concepts/idea ...more

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Feb 10, 2010 Valerie added it · review of another edition

I'm not clear what people mean by 'adventure', if they don't count this. I picked up quite a few things from this, like the design for a space scooter in the Asteroids, and the utility of bicycles on Mars.

Hazel Stone, mentioned in other reviews as included in The Cat Who Walks through Walls, is also found (as a very young girl) in The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress.

This book was originally published under the title Space Family Stone.

David Gerrold, author of The Trouble with Tribbles, has admitted tha ...more

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Nov 30, 2015 Buck rated it liked it

Shelves: wwend-2015, science-fiction, reviewed

This is a good, old-fashioned, family space opera. Clearly intended for a younger audience -this is one of Heinlein's juvenile series- a fun read nevertheless. I heard the audio book by Full Cast Audio, the same company that did Have Space Suit, Will Travel. It may even have been the same cast. They did a pretty good job, (On par with the cast at your local dinner theater) except for the youngest boy in the Stone family, who sounded like a little kid in The Simpsons cartoon show.

Grandmother Haze ...more

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Jul 24, 2009 Rebecca rated it really liked it

A delightfully fun book about a pair of brilliant and mouthy teenagers and their space-traveling family. Lots of adventures, with a bit of Heinlein-esque education thrown in here and there. A look forward to space travel of about our time, from the great "depths" of the 1950s. I've read it over and over, most recently in 2008. ...more

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Jan 05, 2014 Denis rated it liked it · review of another edition

It has all the classic elements of a good RAH juvenile novel: Does not talk down to youths, good family values, strong male and female roles... I just didn't get into it as much as some of the others; some of the characters were a bit annoying - that's family I guess- yet overall it was a fine novel. ...more

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Mar 23, 2020 M.M. Strawberry Library & Reviews rated it liked it

Shelves: author-robert-a-heinlein, science-fiction

I was torn between giving this a 3 or a 4 star rating and ultimately have to give this a 3.5. I had already read several other books Heinlein wrote in later years (particularly the World as Myth books) so it was interesting to read about several characters that were to appear in these books (The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, The Cat who Walks through Walls, Number of the Beast)

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About Robert A. Heinlein

Robert A. Heinlein

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Robert Anson Heinlein was an American novelist and science fiction writer. Often called "the dean of science fiction writers", he is one of the most popular, influential, and controversial authors of "hard science fiction".

He set a high standard for science and engineering plausibility and helped to raise the genre's standards of literary quality. He was the first SF writer to break into mainstre ...more

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“The Belt, for all its lonely reaches—or because of them—was as neighborly as a village. They gossiped among themselves, by suit radio. Out in the shining blackness it was good to know that, if something went wrong, there was a man listening not five hundred miles away who would come and investigate if you broke off and did not answer.” — 3 likes

“Don't 'Father' me! I can tell a hawk from a handsaw." "Anybody can," Grandmother Hazel commented. "The Hawk class is a purely commercial type while the Hanshaw runabout is a sport job. Come to think about it, boys, a Hanshaw might be better than a Douglas.” — 1 likes

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