Inherit the Stars

By: James P. Hogan

Narrated by: John Pruden

Length: 8 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

The man on the moon was dead. They called him Charlie. He had big eyes, abundant body hair, and fairly long nostrils. His skeletal body was found clad in a bright red spacesuit, hidden in a rocky grave. They didn’t know who he was, how he got there, or what had killed him. All they knew was that his corpse was 50 thousand years old - and that meant this man had somehow lived long before he ever could have existed.

©1977 James Patrick Hogan (P)2013 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Pure science fiction…Arthur Clarke, move over!” (Isaac Asimov)

“Hard science fiction with a lovely vengeance but done so well that almost no scientific background is needed to understand and enjoy it…Highly recommended.” ( Analog)

“Intellectual action portrayed as excitingly as any space war - a truly absorbing read and a reminder that learning is one of the greatest human adventures.” ( Publishers Weekly)

great story, good narrator, inconsistent accents

love Hogan's work. narrator did a good job of sharing the story as opposed to reading the book. only quibble I have, and it's not limited to just this book ... if there's a British character, either do a consistent and recognizable British accent for that character throughout, or just ignore it entirely and read all characters in the same accent, please. it's a challenge finding narrators who can do a range of accents and do them credibly, but it's distracting to have inconsistent accents.

Great hard science SF book.

This is a great series about near future with a great mystery that becomes more complex with great twists that are totally unexpected.

A very enjoyable hard science story.

I really enjoyed this book. however all the smoking and cigars severely dated it. It was refreshing to just have a story and the people that sort out the details instead of a bunch of melodrama.

An old story but entertaining

Strange to hear of so much smoking! But the story is still interesting and entertaining

Great hard sci fi

I just finished “Inherit the Stars" but I highly recommend it. Written in 1977, it’s hard sci fi, no fantasy, lots of science and lots of speculative technology that's become reality in the years since it was written. And a nice complicated mystery involving alien races.

The Best of the 3 Giant books...

If you could sum up Inherit the Stars in three words, what would they be?

I first read Inherit the Stars 35 years ago... and I can honestly say that it was one of the inspirations that lead me to become a scientist. In a fit of nostalgia, I bought the audio book (along with the two direct sequels to the trilogy). Although the book feels very dated and sexist, it is still an enjoyable story without diverting too much into new age phooey (like the later books in the trilogy... most notably Giant's Star). The narration is passable at best.

Would you listen to another book narrated by John Pruden?

I would not seek out any particular book that John Pruden narrated

if only a book could have been an idea...

The idea is Amazing, Fabulous.
The story is boring to death.
the story should have been a short story, and than it would have been grate.
but it's not...

an interesting story and fun too

Would you consider the audio edition of Inherit the Stars to be better than the print version?

It's about the same. I read the book when it first came out(still have it) and have still enjoyed ti.

What other book might you compare Inherit the Stars to and why?

a lot of the science fiction of the era when it was written have the same optimism

What does John Pruden bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

nothing really he just does not spoil it

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

no not really

It was great 20 years ago, It was great now!

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

I read this boot 20 years ago and it was great! I am happy to see Audible has added it to their line up. Now we need the sequels!!

Great story. Technical in parts but interesting .

a great story. very intriguing. epilogue is anticlimactic. well worth my time. great science fiction.