THE STAR BEAST

'The Star Beast' is a 1954 science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein
about a high school senior who discovers that his late father's extra-terrestrial pet is more than it appears to be. The novel, somewhat abridged, was originally serialised in ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (May, June, July 1954) as "Star Lummox" and then published in hardcover as part of Scribner's series of Heinlein juveniles.

Contents

Plot summary

Editions

External links

Plot summary

An ancestor of John Thomas Stuart XI brought the long lived Lummox home from an interstellar voyage. The articulate, intelligent pet he inherited has grown from duffel bag size to a ridable behemoth after consuming a used Buick. Lummox is perceived to be a neighborhood nuisance; and upon escaping causes huge problems and substantial property damage across the city of Westville. John's mother wants him to get rid of it, and a court orders it destroyed.
In desperation, John Thomas considers selling his pet to a zoo. He rapidly changes his mind and runs away from home, riding on Lummox's back. His girlfriend Betty Sorenson joins him and suggests bringing the beast back into town and hiding it in a neighbor's greenhouse. The court that ordered Lummox destroyed is unable to carry out the sentence, much to Lummox's amusement
An advanced, powerful and previously unknown alien race appears and demands the return of their lost child. Initially no one associates Lummox with the alien newcomers, but Lummox is eventually established as a child of royalty and her new status and return become a worldwide cause celebre. After tense and complicated negotiations with the Terran authorities it is revealed that the young Lummox has been pursuing her only hobby and principal interest: the raising of generations of John Thomases. She explicitly states that it is her intention to continue doing so. This gives the chief human diplomat, Under Secretary Kiko, the leverage he needs to prevent the destruction of the Earth. At the request of Lummox (who wishes to pursue her hobby) the recently wedded John and Betty accompany her as part of the human diplomatic mission.

Editions

All paperback editions and the Science Fiction Book Club hard cover edition omit page 148 of Chapter VIII, "The Sensible Thing to Do", which existed in the Scribner's edition and the magazine serialization. In this chapter, John Thomas rereads the entries in his great-grandfather's diary of how Lummox was found. Of significance on the omitted page is that:
::The diary skipped a couple of days; the ''Trail Blazer'' had made an emergency raise-ship and Assistant Powerman J. T. Stuart had been too busy to write. John Thomas knew why ... the negotiations opened so hopefully with the dominant race had failed ... no one knew why.
The rest of the page summarizes John Thomas' grandfather's family history, discussing the first John Thomas Stuart, who had retired as a sea captain. The history, as reprinted in the paperback and Science Fiction Book Club editions, then resumes with John Thomas Stuart, Junior.

External links

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