The First Novel is a Harsh Mistress

Robert A. Heinlein's first novel, written in 1939 and shelved after being rejected by two publishers, is finally in print. The New York Times describes how the utopian For Us, the Living finally made its way from oblivion to print via a Seattle garage, and why Heinlein refused to publish the book in his lifetime.

"It's completely rewritten my view of his career," Heinlein scholar Robert James told the Times. "The impression was that he was writing commercial fiction from Day 1. Like a juggernaut he dominated science fiction. Actually from Day 1 he was writing what society should be about."