I'm easily entertained, and so I probably don't make a very good writing critic. But sometimes you find an author that manages to consistently weave intriguing, thought-provoking narratives with believable characters, and tells you about those characters in a way that is itself entertaining. When you read such writers' work, it's immediately apparent that they are a "virtuoso", a class apart. Like a non-guitarist hearing Steve Vai play, you don't have to be aware of the technical details to be impressed by the performance.

Robert A. Heinlein is one of those writers. I read "The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress" several years ago, and liked it so much that I've reread it at least twice since then. I read Starship Troopers last year, which is almost entirely unrelated to the movie and is much better. Last week I picked up my third Heinlein book, "Stranger In A Strange Land", and as I'm working my way through it at a feverish pace I'm remembering once again what captivating stories he writes.

It's an interesting coincidence that both "The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress" and "Stranger In A Strange Land" have a primary character named Mike who is not-entirely-human, posesses a consciousness somewhat different from ours (a computer that spontaneously achieved intelligence in one case, a human raised from birth by Martians in the other), but strives to learn our behavior and way of thought. Both Mikes appear innocent and naive at first, but you start to realize there is a wisdom concealed by their limited mastery of our language and customs. I wonder if that's a "thing" for Heinlein, or if it's purely coincidence.

"Stranger In A Strange Land" contains one of my favorite linguistic features found in books written in the 60s: The use of "So?" as a short form of "Is that so?" as in,

"I'm fed up with you, Peter. I'm leaving."

"So? Well, you will be missed."

I like the sound of it, and I'd love to use it in my own writing and conversation, but I think that, rather than striking people as odd until they think about it and figure out what it's supposed to mean, most would simply take it as the more contemporary use — that is, short for "So what?" — and not give it a second thought, except perhaps to wonder why I'm such a petulant jerk.