Little Fuzzy

It took me five years to follow John Scalzi's advice and read this, but I'm so glad I kept it in mind. I do think that [b:Fuzzy Nation 9647532 Fuzzy Nation John Scalzi https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1316132345s/9647532.jpg 18280046] runs with the ideas with a little more success, but this is so charming, it really should be read for its own merits. Just the descriptions of Jack's interactions with the Fuzzies are worth it. Sure, the courtroom logistics are as tortured and silly as any Hollywood has ever turned out, and the “far future” is quaintly outdated, with baked-in sexism and amusingly analog technology. There are a few too many characters to easily keep track of. But the ones who stand out are so lovable and clever, it's well worth paging back once in a while to track whether a minor player is Company or Government aligned, etc.Check this out - it's a quick read, and it's full of wonderful characters and concepts.

A classic from the old days. It's set on a planet that has the culture and laws of the mythical Old West of the USA.
Lots of pretty interesting discussion of what it means to be intelligent.
The native beings on this planet are pretty well thought out but a lot of the humans are interchangeable.
I recommend it.

This is a rather odd book from H. Beam Piper, an American gun enthusiast whose best works were alternative-history stories. It describes an alien planet on which some little furry creatures are found; the good guys love them, believe them to be intelligent (sapient), and want to prove it. The bad guys (big company executives) are motivated by financial considerations to deny sapience and exterminate them.

This is an amiable book and (not really a surprise) the good guys win in the end. Is it a good or interesting book? This is of course a very subjective question. The question of what defines sapience is much debated in the course of the story, and it is an interesting question, although in the end the Fuzzies seem to be clearly sapient rather than at the margin of sapience: they don't severely test the definition.

I read it back in the 1970s and put it aside as a book that was OK, but not one of my favourites. Rereading it now, it seems a little better than I remembered, but still not one of my favourites. It poses the question, “If we find small, furry, cute, friendly, intelligent creatures, do we make friends with them or exterminate them?” Not really a very difficult or interesting question.

But it shows a rather nice side of Piper's nature that he thought of writing such a book, and the book passes the time pleasantly enough, if you like that kind of thing.

Still good on a decades later re-read. Classic SF.
Jack Holloway, the main protagonist, is an engaging character. IMHO he embodies many of the traditional male virtues. He is stalwart and unflagging in his support of those he cares for. In this story he comes to care for Little Fuzzy and his family – and by extension all of the Fuzzy species.
(I reckon Piper's Fuzzies – terminally cute, smart little guys – were a seed for George Lucas's Ewoks.)
Little Fuzzy is a book of its time with lots of smoking and bits that might be taken as a somewhat sexist now. But still a fun read.
4.5 stars rounded up.

Short Review: This is a 1962 science fiction classic about what it means to be sentient. It is campy, dated and odd in places. But it also has some interesting discussions about what it really means to be human (or sentient.). It is the basis for John Scalzi's Fuzzy Nation. I liked them both, but prefer Fuzzy Nation. Both ended up with the them of the rule of law protecting the weak. Piper was protecting the weak against prejudice and Scalzi was protecting them from corporate greed. Both clearly products of their age. The audiobook of Fuzzy Nation has both books on it. Little Fuzzy is in public domain so you can find it free in the kindle store or other places on line in ebook form.

My longer review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/little-fuzzy/