Rite of Passage

By: Alexei Panshin

Narrated by: Elizabeth Evans

In 2198, 150 years after the desperate wars that destroyed an overpopulated Earth, Man lives precariously on 100 hastily-established colony worlds and in the 7 giant Ships that once ferried men to the stars. Mia Havero's Ship is a small closed society. It tests its children by casting them out to live or die in a month of Trial in the hostile wilds of a colony world. Mia Havero's Trial is fast approaching, and in the meantime she must learn not only the skills that will keep her alive, but the deeper courage to face herself and her world.

Published originally in 1968, Alexei Panshin's Nebula Award-winning classic has lost none of its relevance, with its keen exploration of societal stagnation and the resilience of youth.

©1968 Alexei Panshin (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

• 1968 Nebula Award, Best Novel

Predictable

A reviewer claims this book is similar to Heìnlein's juvenile. Perhaps in that their is a lot of ideological pontificating. The plot is rather mundane, with some fun details about life aboard ship but not as much world building as could be hoped for. What I would not expect in a Heinlein is two 14 year olds making love, even if written with tenderness and fumbling.

Great story marred by a terrible narrator and direction

This is an amazing and deep book but the narrator sounds like a chirpy airline hostess. Fascinating details about life in a huge spaceship become incredibly boring and profound ethical questions are completely lost in this treatment. I’m glad I had already read it before listening to this terrible version.

Tradition Coming of Age SF

This is a 1968 coming of age story in the tradition of early, juvenile writer Robert Heinlein. The framework is a former colony ship that travels between the stars. After the ship delivered colonists to their target worlds, 150 years before, the ship's crew continued to live on the ship. They regulate their population to stay within the capacity of the ship, scorning 'free-birthers' and surviving by withholding technology so they can trade goods for raw materials.

Our main character, a preteen girl, is followed as she matures and trains to pass a 'rite of passage' by surviving on a colony world. After the rite of passage the children assume the roles as adults. We follow her as grows from narrow minded prejudice to something of an awakening. She is a Heinlein-type hero where the future is full of possibilities and older people provide mentoring to the young. Fans of Starship Troopers will like the punishment of breakers of rigid rules.

Issues of prejudice, rigid thinking, and slavery are addressed, as well as the responsibility to limit population. In the epilogue the ship's population struggle with their own unwillingness to change from the past and move into a new future. In the end they make the wrong decision but there is hope that the new generation will start a change in direction. (Aw, the 60's. We had such hope.)

The story suffers from some unrealistic world building. All the colony worlds are earth-like and they can eat what grows there. The colonists speak the same language, with an accent. Also troublesome is that the ship drops the young on colony worlds and expect the children to make their way on their own among strangers with different customs - on horseback. The colony world looks and sounds a lot like the rural South.

Also, troubling in today's values is requiring the children to kill a tiger, with knives, during their training.

The writing is good, it is the story that lowers my rating. Recommended for young audiences. As an adult with years of reading SF, it was slow and flat.

A coming of age tale

Alexei Panshin's Rite of Passage is a futuristic common of age story. Earth has burned itself out and humanity's diaspora to the stars has created dozens of fledging worlds that are centuries away from achieving a degree technological sophistication. The colony ships that had transported the colonists have now become enclaves in their own right, judiciously and stringently sharing their technology in exchange for raw materials to keep their communities alive. On one such ship a young girl is coming of age which requires a trial by fire of surviving for 30 days on a colony world totally unaided. What transpires is her adventure on a world with extensive hostility toward the spaceborn.

Panshin creates a universe where the advanced technology of Earth has been incompletely transferred to colony worlds in their haste to establish them. On some, there has been some degree of devolution with social mores mirroring the limited technology. At the same time, there is much discussion on the cultural difference between the space and ground peoples.

The narration is well done with good character distinction. pacing is brisk making for a quick listen.

Excellent and timeless story, beautifully narrated.

I first read this in the 70’s, and have enjoyed revisiting it as an audiobook. The narrator does a great job with complicated material, holding interest through narrative, technical, and sociological passages. Anyone who enjoys this book should also google information on the relation between Panshin and Heinlein… this book is both Heinleinesque and a criticism of many of Heinlein’s attitudes.