I initially read Robert Heinlein's "Friday" back when I was a child. This became rather shocking to me now that I've finally re-read it. It's not a book for children. I had just checked it out at the local library...was probably 11 or 12. Anyway, I enjoyed this book very much and had not remembered much about it from my initial read. So it was very much like a brand new book to me. There's a particularly brutal scene early in the book that had stuck with me a little. The rest of the book, though, has a lot of adult themes such as political liberties, staying alive in a hostile world, sexual freedom, and seeking belonging.
I grabbed my copy for next to nothing on eBay.
The book resonated with me as a child but did much more so as an adult. Friday is a specialized courier and an artificial person. She isn't a test-tube baby exactly - it is more like her genes were assembled from various people to be the closest to ideal as possible and then she was given life as a zygote and grown and raised in a creche. There is a lot of prejudice in her society related to artificial persons, so she struggles with that throughout the story.
Initially I had thought her job seemed too low-key but the book starts out running and never slows down. Courier may not sound as sexy and exciting as spy or assassin, but, in her case, she makes her role and her execution of it admirable.
The book is written in the first person. It is exceedingly fun to tag along with Friday and to glimpse into her mind. She is strong, willful, and has good survival skills. She's also got a very human side as she longs for an acceptance that she glimpses from time to time but that eludes her for the bulk of the novel.
This is a fantastic book and, although many of my reviews are directed at folks that have already read what I am writing about (meaning there are spoilers), I'm resisting going into too much detail on the actual story arc here. Not so much because I'm trying to keep it a secret. But, rather, Heinlein tells the story so much better that I don't believe I could give it justice in just a few minutes' read. If you have any love for science fiction, and especially if you love Heinlein's strong protagonists, I highly recommend reading this book. Just maybe wait until you're an adult if you aren't already (but, of course, that's not required...)
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