Glory Road

By: Robert A. Heinlein

Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot

Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

E. C. “Scar” Gordon was on the French Riviera recovering from a tour of combat in Southeast Asia, but he hadn’t given up his habit of scanning the personals in the newspaper. One ad in particular leapt out at him: "Are you a coward? This is not for you. We badly need a brave man. He must be 23 to 25 years old, in perfect health, at least six feet tall, weigh about 190 pounds, fluent English with some French, proficient with all weapons, some knowledge of engineering and mathematics essential, willing to travel, no family or emotional ties, indomitably courageous and handsome of face and figure. Permanent employment, very high pay, glorious adventure, great danger. You must apply in person, 17 rue Dante, Nice, 2me étage, apt. D."

How could you not answer an ad like that, especially when it seemed to describe you perfectly? Well, except maybe for the “handsome” part, but that was in the eye of the beholder anyway. So he went to that apartment and was greeted by the most beautiful woman he’d ever met. She seemed to have many names but agreed he could call her Star. A pretty appropriate name, as it turned out, for the empress of twenty universes. And she sends him on the adventure of a lifetime.

Robert A. Heinlein’s one true fantasy novel, Glory Road is as much fun today as when he wrote it after Stranger in a Strange Land. Heinlein proves himself as adept with sword and sorcery as with rockets and slide rules, and the result is exciting, satirical, fast-paced, funny, and tremendously readable - a favorite of all who have read it. Glory Road is a masterpiece of escapist entertainment with a typically Heinleinian sting in its tail.

Robert A. Heinlein (1907–1988) was the dominant science fiction writer of the modern era, a writer whose influence on the field was immense. He won science fiction’s Hugo Award for best novel four times.

©1963 Robert A. Heinlein; renewed 1991 by Virginia Heinlein; 2003 by the Robert A. & Virginia Heinlein Prize Trust; Afterword 1979, 1984 by Samuel R. Delany (P)2012 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“A triumph.”( Chicago Tribune)

“ Glory Road maintains a delicacy, a bravura, and a joy that not only are notable, but clearly consign it to his heptology of major SF novels.” (Samuel R. Delany, American author and literary critic)

Heinlein's great story, a glorious spin by Pinchot

Unlike many Heinlein fans, I have loved "Glory Road" since I read it as a teenager. At that time, I had just read "The Lord of the Rings" and was delighted by what I saw as a beautiful fantasy adventure that wasn't quite so heavy and thoughtful.

WRONG. It's just as topical and political and sneaky about making one think as any of Heinlein's books... but more about that later. Suffice to say that E. C. "Oscar" Gordon (and why anyone would name a little baby boy Evelyn Cyril is beyond this writer; though my given name is also Evelyn I'm at least FEMALE) became a voice in my head as the competent, reluctant -- or not so reluctant -- hero, one I always remembered, and the book a sentimental favorite.

I adore Audible books, but often the casting is not to my preference. Hazard of the trade, I guess. The wonder is, after a few moments, Bronson Pinchot, an actor I've always liked but wrongly considered something of a lightweight, BECAME the voice of Oscar in my head. Pinchot's command of narrative, dialogue, nuance, and, yes, dialect, made this story come alive for me as never before. I could close my eyes and be THERE; his reading gave it an immediacy that I seldom get from **any** production, audio, video, or otherwise. I wonder if he's a fan?

Reading "Glory Road" time and again over many years, I have come to see the craft that seemed so effortless the first time through. Heinlein was current with not only the time he wrote this classic (1962 or thereabouts) but with the time I read it, in the early 1970s with the war in Southeast Asia still going on in its bloodiest, most nonsensical glory (yeah, folks, get over it, I AM that old). And sadly, he was correct about how "non-veterans" got treated after that war for many years.

I'm off to find more of Mr. Pinchot's audiobooks. I recommend this for fans of Heinlein, sword and sorcery, and just plain good acting and narration of a book. I had a whale of a lot of fun listening to it, and I'll bet you will, too. It's worth the time.

Heinlein's only fantasy

This is a great book. I've been wishing for a long time that Audible would get it. I've read it over and over again through the years, and I'm happy to say that now I'll be able to listen to it over and over again because Bronson Pinchot does a wonderful job with the characters' voices.

I'm not sure that this is really a fantasy. It has swords and seems to have sorcery, but the magic gets explained in such a way that it seems to (almost) be advanced science. But it has the feel of fantasy. If Heinlein wrote this book today, the publisher would have insisted on a 20-book series, and I truly think our hero Oscar Gordon could have provided it to us.

Heinlein was born more than a hundred years ago, and attitudes toward male/female relations were different then. But just as we do not hold Shakespeare or Homer to 21st Century societal norms, so we must give Heinlein a pass here as well. He was trying.

I think that any young man who likes science fiction or fantasy will like this adventure story. And I think that women who can release their grip on modern feminism for the space of a few hours will like it as well.

Get this book.

Fun swashbuckeling tale full of monsters & maidens

One of my favorite books, it's Heinlein’s homage to Edgar Rice Burrough -
full of the swashbuckling, macho, romantic ideals of ERBs Barsoom (John Carter/Mars) series (including the silly romantic banter).

Heinlein’s witty, insightful, and caustic (at times) commentary on the military and the Vietnam War in particular are spot-on. The off Earth adventures are over-the-top, filled with sword fights and monsters. The character development is good, especially the grudging respect that grows between Oscar and Rufo.

All in all it is just plain fun and well worth the listen.

Full Figured Amazon

This was published in 1963 and marks the beginning of when RH seems to have one hand on the typewriter and the other. This is nowhere near as bad as what he will write in the future, but you can see it coming. I found this silly and not worth my time.

I am a fan of the Heinlein of the 50's, I wish I would have never read anything after Starship Troopers.

So glad t get on audible

Would you listen to Glory Road again? Why?

I've read just about every Heinlein book that was ever written. I read this MANY years ago. It is Heinlein's only true Fantasy. .

What did you like best about this story?

Well the hero was mature for his age, but not self conscious. You also have to realize the story was supposed to have been taking place around the time of the Vietnam conflict. So the What is considered PC now was not so then. How ever the story if you over look that one small thing again it is Fantasy so it takes you to places that may be more like the way we see things now that we did then.

Which character – as performed by Bronson Pinchot – was your favorite?

Bronson Pinchot is one of the best narrators that Audible has. I've listened to him narrate about 5 different books. Each of them having many characters from women to gruff monsters, Mr Pinchot does it all with class. Also expressing emotion as well.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I was trying to but I fell asleep and had to go back about 9 chapters. If you are a Heinlein fan and never read this book give it a shot. I was so glad I got this because Bronson Pinchot did a 5 star job of narration.

Any additional comments?

I think you should get Mr Pinchot to narrate more books.

Heinlein Taking a Stab At Fantasy

I read this over 30 years ago and after listening to it again on Audible, remembered why I disliked the book. It is a good story about a young warrior and a beautiful damsel, but the underlying theme of the young buck who has zero knowledge about the strange world in which they are adventuring insists on leading everything and being a picture perfect male chauvinist. It stopped the story cold when he even threatened to spank the damsel and was actually serious. Let me get this straight, you're some guy she picked up to help be a hero to do her quest, she has magical ability, seemingly endless knowledge, he's smack in love with her but he won't listen to her and orders her around like a petulant child. Shakes head in disgust.

I've been re-reading Heinlein young sci-fi stand alones recently and enjoying it, but he has this theme throughout his young fiction books of telling the women to literally "Be quiet and let the men do the thinking", which is so unpleasant.

The story is Ok, but I see why he went back to Science Fiction and left the fantasy world alone. His book isn't really a young adult (there are scenes where the local guy offers his wife and daughters for the night) but it's not a good fantasy and has no humorous aspects.

narration is all wrong for Heinlein

Would you listen to Glory Road again? Why?

Definitely not - I love the book, I'd better re-read it again. It is fortunate that I already knew the book, otherwise I would have dropped it. Bronson Pinchot is a very good narrator - just not for female voices and not for Heinlein.

Who was your favorite character and why?

All of them as it is a very well told story that maintains an ideal balance of characters, plot, humor and sheer joy of life.

What about Bronson Pinchot’s performance did you like?

Actually I did not particularly like it. His Oscar is very good. But others... Why use a funny accent for Rufo? - after the hero learned the languages, there is no reason to assume that Rufo talks with some ridiculous kind of accent (and those irritating hissing "sheeeeee"s are horrible). The gorgeous proud, smart and funny empress comes across more often than not as a simpering sniveling little maiden in distress - nothing could be farther from Heinlein's heroine.Heinlein himself practically never used funny accents or dialects - his heroes usually speak clear concise English and his humor is dry.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I love the duel with Cyrano de Bergerac in the Dark Tower.

Any additional comments?

I do hope not to hear a narrator to imitate crying in a book again ))) LOL that was so over the top I nearly switched it off for good.

Heinlein definitely should stick to Sci-fi

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

I preface this with the fact that I am a huge Heinlein fan. This book is a turd. The concept is really cool and interesting but poorly executed at best. This book would have needed a complete re-write to be acceptable. As the author is dead that isn't going to happen. I have to say this is one of the few books by the author I do not like.

Would you ever listen to anything by Robert A. Heinlein again?

Of course..

Which character – as performed by Bronson Pinchot – was your favorite?

All of them. I don't like his TV and movie work but Bronson Pinchot is a genius at narrarating audiobooks.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Glory Road?

Really this story is more like a draft than a completed work. I'd keep the main concept and the first few chapters and scrap the rest.

Any additional comments?

Heinlein is one of the most prolific authors of all time the fact that this is one of the few stinkers he ever wrote is a testament to how talented the guy was. You can't hit a home run all the time but most anything else he wrote is excellent.

Great redition of a classic

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Any Heinlein fan would find this novel enjoyable. While his only fantasy, most of the technology in this book was explained as science and not magic. The character creation and word play is vintage Heinlein.

Any additional comments?

The only complaint I have on the reader is that the volume on the primary female character, Star, drops off considerably from the other characters. When you're listening in a convertible, it means cranking up the volume.

Heinlein first published this book 50 years ago this year and it's been 40 since I first read it. While some people feel that the interplay between the sexes has changed so much in the intervening decades, I note them and enjoy seeing how much has changed. Surprisingly, these distracters never criticize Dickens, Wells, Dumas, or Bronte for their writing in their own milieus.

Heinlein is known for his strong feminine characters (based loosely on his wife Victoria). The hero in this novel, like many of Heinlein's, could not succeed without the assistant of the primary female character.

I usually don't give up on a book halfway through

What was most disappointing about Robert A. Heinlein’s story?

I enjoyed The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, and I usually like fantasy more than sci-fi, so I thought I'd try Glory Road. The story is moderately interesting in the beginning when it's set on earth. But as soon as the fantasy elements show up, it gets bland. It's as if Heinlein thought that by writing fantasy instead of science fiction, he never had to think very hard about why anything happened.

As I read on, the sexism became harder and harder tolerate, and eventually I had to give up. The casual racism also makes the book hard to read. I know the book is a product of its time, but there are plenty of books from the same era that are much less problematic.

Enjoyable reading of perhaps Heinlein’s best book

I first read “Glory Road” in 1963 when it was serialized in “The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction”. I subsequently bought the book in paperback and, carrying it with me around the world, reread it several times. I think “Glory Road” is one of the few Heinlein books that doesn’t suffer quite so much from the author’s penchant for taking a story so far and then not knowing what to do with it while his sometimes obstreperous libertarianism is not quite so grating here. “Glory Road” consists of two distinct parts: the first is a thoroughly fabulous, swashbuckling “Quest”; the second is a rather insightful examination of the mundane, “real-world” consequences of having undertaken and completed The Quest. It spoke directly to me both before and after becoming an expat.

I know the book very well in other words (I have parts of it memorized) and it was with some trepidation that I bought the audiobook version. I was not disappointed. Bronson Pinchot is an accomplished voice actor. (How many people know/remember that he played “Balki Bartokomous” in the mid-80s/early-90s US sitcom “Perfect Strangers”?). His characterizations (especially of the supporting roles) are a joy to listen to. Admittedly his “Star” is not what I imagined her (he makes her sound like a sultry Doris Day) and his Rufo wanders sometimes disconcertingly between Peter Lorre and Pepe Le Pew. Nevertheless his voice acting makes a huge contribution to the enjoyment of this production, which is much more satisfying that any straightforward reading could have been.

Highly recommended as an enjoyable reading of what may be Heinlein’s best book.

Enjoyable story

I was not sure what to expect for this one as the review score average is a bit low. I was pleased to find it perfectly enjoyable. As well as being a nice story, I found the interactions and relationships between the three main characters to be interesting. I also found that the circumstances they faced to be thought provoking to some extent. As usual, there was quite a lot of comparing different cultures, including alien ones, which I find interesting thinking food.

Classic Fantasy from The Man

Read this book a few times over the years and looked forward to hearing it as I drive to work. The Story has held up well, although probably a bit none PC for modern tastes.
Whilst the reader made a decent fist of the narrator, he made STAR a simpering cry baby, RUFO a faux Frenchman and CYRANO DE BERGERAC Irish!!
Not exactly music to my ears!

Not quite what I remember!

I loved this book as a teenager and decided to add it to my Audible library 40 years later. It is a bit of a pubescent fantasy and in my view is now unfortunately dated beyond my recognition. My enjoyment was further hampered by what I thought of as a very strange narration. The interpretation of Star, one of the key characters made me uncomfortable and the stereotyped French accent given to Rufo was painful. If I hear "sheeee" or "herrrrrrrrrr" in that accent again I may give up completely.

Good start, bad middle, could not face the end

Definitely a story of its time which would not be so sexist if the voice of the heroine was not so quiet and simpering. She is meant to be an multi-universe empress, but sounds like a mid-western housewife who wouldn't say boo to a goose. The way the story is rendered loses all the humour that the words imply. Eventually I found I could listen no longer, my mind just switched off and had no interest in the outcome of a story which had a good and original start. Shame, I used to like Heinlein's work a lot.

Real Old School Sc-Fi

One of Heinlein's best stories but now so out of it's time it quite difficult to listen to without flinching at some of the attitudes expressed.
I always found this story difficult to put down because the universe described is so alluring it was almost a culture shock to come back to reality.
Sadly, (or fortunately) this narrator cured me of that problem - the most irritating French accent I've ever had to suffer. Strange and poor choice for this performance.
Try reading the book yourself first perhaps.

Classic Playboy Era Sci-fi

I read this for the first time back in the seventies and it seemed the height of sophistication to the spotty adolescent I was then. Now it seems a bit chauvinistic and the end unnecessarily drawn - out. Despite this it remains a sexy adventurous romp, far superior to most of the modern day sword and sorcery stuff and is undoubtedly one of Heinlein's best.

Yep, it's not "woke".

This is perhaps my favourite Heinlein novel, and this reading has only increased my respect for it. The pacing. the characterisation, the use of language, the intricate changes in the narrator's viewpoint, these all come through with renewed clarity when it's read out loud.

The voice acting was excellent, with Oscar Gordon sounding just right (with more than a touch of John Wayne!), although Rufo was a bit of a shock. I'd always heard him in my head as sounding quite a bit like Edward G Robinson. And the Eater of Souls, Irish? Wasn't he supposed to be....? The Rumormonger was a treat though.

What I can't understand is all the people who have come on here to complain that Heinlein, or even the Hero Gordon, didn't have the same worldview and sense of ethics as, say, your average TikTok subscriber. I could say thank God. I will say this; I was surprised, on hearing them read out loud, at some of the things Gordon came out with. IT DID NOT SPOIL MY ENJOYMENT. Any more than similar pronouncements spoiled my enjoyment of Dumas, or Kipling, or Tennyson.

Why on Earth (or Nevia, or Center) would anyone whose judgment of literature depends purely on the political complection of the author choose a book by Heinlein, of all people?

A good book

A well read version of a well written novel. Not my favourite book by R.A.H. but a good one

Old fantasy

I don’t feel like this has aged as well as some other fantasies, there were some interesting plot points like the phoenix but a lot of it came across as churlish wish fulfilment