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From: norman@batcomputer.TN.CORNELL.EDU (Norman Ramsey)
Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers,net.books
Subject: Re: Spider Robinson's NIGHT OF POWER
Message-ID: <410@batcomputer.TN.CORNELL.EDU>
Date: Mon, 17-Mar-86 11:03:09 EST
Article-I.D.: batcompu.410
Posted: Mon Mar 17 11:03:09 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 22-Mar-86 01:53:52 EST
References: <20159@styx.UUCP>
Reply-To: norman@batcomputer.UUCP (Norman Ramsey)
Distribution: net
Organization: Theory Center, Cornell University, Ithaca NY
Lines: 24
Xref: watmath net.sf-lovers:12815 net.books:3215

In article <20159@styx.UUCP> mcb@styx.UUCP (Michael C. Berch) writes:
>NIGHT OF POWER is a Heinleinian novel, much in the tradition of THE
>MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS or IF THIS GOES ON. It is a novel of ideas
>and politics; the characters are *utterly* competent like Heinlein's but 
>are somehow not as interesting as the usual Robinson cast. (With the exception 
>of Jennifer, a precocious 13-year old, and her bodyguard and friend, Jose.)
>The plot follows the fairly routine path of Ordinary Family Gets Mixed
>up in Major Events. (The main characters, parents of the 13-year old,
>are of course an interracial couple, which I suppose is the Lowest
>Common Denominator of race relations.) Throughout the book, Robinson shows 

THere are a couple of things I would like to add to this review which I 
think are worth mentioning. First is that when I read this book it
all but screamed I AM A STUDENT OF ROBERT HEINLEIN from every page.
I would have enjoyed it more without this. The other is that the book's
ending is very weak: MILD SPOILER --- the main character, Jennifer's Dad,
suddenly, inexplicably, and unbelievable stops behaving like the well-bred,
right-thinking man we all know he is. This goes on for a short time,
then suddenly he undergoes another psychological reversal (truth and
justice are revealed, or whatever), and the psychological "conflict"
is "resolved." I found the whole business very artificial and it badly
weakened an otherwise enjoyable book.
-- 
Norman Ramsey     norman@tcgould.tn.cornell.edu       Pianist at Large