Space Cadet

by Robert A. Heinlein, Ari Fliakos (Read by)

Overview

This classic "Heinlein juvenile" was one of the original Scribners YA titles, the origin of the early 1950s TV show, Tom Corbett, Space Cadet, which is where the colloquial phrase "space cadet"comes from. We are reprinting in hardcover as we have prior He

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798228580565
Publisher:	Blackstone Publishing
Publication date:	01/03/2026
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 7.50(h) x (d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Robert A. Heinlein (1907–1988), often called the Science Fiction Grand Master, was the author of such ground-breaking novels as Starship Troopers, Red Planet, Stranger in a Strange Land, and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. He is generally considered the greatest and most influential science fiction writer of the twentieth century. In addition to being a bestselling author, Heinlein’s novels won four Hugo awards, three “retro Hugo” awards, and the first “Grand Master Award” from the Science Fiction Writers of America.

Ari Fliakos is an actor with experience in television, radio, film, theater, and voice-overs. He has earned four Earphones Awards, and his narration of Seth Patrick’s Reviver won the prestigious Audie Award for Best Narration for paranormal fiction. On screen, he is best-known for his roles in Law & Order, Pills, and Company K.

Date of Birth:

July 7, 1907

Date of Death:

May 8, 1988

Place of Birth:

Butler, Missouri

Place of Death:

Carmel, California

Education:

Graduate of U.S. Naval Academy, 1929; attended University of California, Los Angeles, 1934, for graduate study in physic

Editorial Reviews

One of the most influential writers in American Literature.”

The New York Times Book Review

The Barnes & Noble Review
To mark the centennial of the birth of one of science fiction's greatest writers, Robert A. Heinlein (1907-88), several of Heinlein's early works are being re-released to a new generation of fans.

Space Cadet (1948), one of the very first published novels by the man described in The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction as quite possibly "the all-time most important writer of genre SF," has been the inspiration for countless novels featuring young spacefaring students since its publication more than half a century ago. With an idealistic young man -- Des Moines, Iowa, native Matthew Brooks Dodson -- as the novel's protagonist, Heinlein interweaves a compelling coming-of-age tale with a military science fiction-flavored adventure replete with long-lost spaceships, cunning villains, and bizarre aliens. While determinedly making his way through the grueling Patrol Academy, Dodson -- who has dreams of being a member of the elite Interplanetary Patrol -- learns a little bit about the world around him and a lot about himself as he is confronted with one crisis after another…

Science fiction fans who know Heinlein only from his award-winning standards (Starship Troopers, Stranger in a Strange Land, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, et al.) should definitely take the time to read lesser-known -- but just as enduring -- novels like Space Cadet. Amazingly, more than half a century after it was first published, this story shows very little signs of aging. Aside from a few dated colloquialisms ("oh shucks," "go soak your head," etc.), this science fiction classic is virtually timeless and very suitable for readers of any age. Paul Goat Allen

Not only America’s premier writer of speculative fiction, but the greatest writer of such fiction in the world…[Heinlein] remains today as a sort of trademark for all that is finest in American imaginative fiction.”

#1 New York Times bestselling author Stephen King

Heinlein…has the ability to see technologies just around the bend. That, combined with his outstanding skill as a writer and engineer-inventor, produces books that are often years ahead of their time.”

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Heinlein wears imagination as though it were his private suit of clothes.”

The New York Times

One of the grand masters of science fiction.”

The Wall Street Journal

There is no other writer whose work has exhilarated me as often and to such an extent as Heinlein.”

New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz

The lively story of a group of boys—Matt and Tex, from Terra; Oscar, from Venus; Pierre, from one of Jupiter's moons; and others—who train to uphold the peace of the solar system. This account of their training and their subsequent adventures is good, colorful fiction by an author who can write it ably and entertainingly.” —Chicago Tribune on Space Cadet

“Throughout the story there is a constant stream of Heinlein's noted wit and satire, superbly told . . . The Hugo Award committee need look no further.” —San Francisco Chronicle on Glory Road

“Heinlein...wrote adventure stories grounded in credible scientific speculation. Even the wonderful stories collected here feature his trademark cool reasoning. . . .Superb stories - old friends, really - that are well worth the book's price.” —Booklist on The Fantasies of Robert A. Heinlein

From the Publisher