I picked up a copy of this book just the other day, and I skim read the first chapter or two. I can see why it is a classic of scifi, but so far, Starship Troopers by RA Heinlein seems to flow a little better. Have any of you who have read these classics notice something similar, not just in writing style, but the feel the more that is trying to be done, the slightly harder it is to read, I'm still trying to make my way through Assimov's Foundation series, and I've barely finished the firts book.
I found Starship Troopers boring as hell. Ringworld is one of my favorites though. It may seem to start off a bit slowly, but once it gets going it's one wonder after another. Niven's Known Space universe is rounded out by several more novels and a number of short stories, all fascinating (to me, anyway). Asimov's Foundation trilogy is a bit dated, but is still a very good read. It's more political in nature than scientific, but I found it quite enjoyable. Later, he added more followup novels that were nowhere near as good, and he tried to tie it all in wth his Daneel Olivaw novels (The Caves of Steel, The Naked Sun...). Another classic series that is dated, but still enjoyable, is E. E. "Doc" Smith's Lensman series. The technology breakthroughs lack credibility in how quickly they evolve, but there is plenty of action and heroism.
The Ringworld is an artificial world, a solid ring a million miles wide and 200 million miles in diameter, rotating around a central star. the edges of the ring are lined witn mountains a thousand miles high, and the ring's rotation gives the effect of gravity through centrifugal force. The thousand mile high walls keep the air in. An inner ring of rectangular panels linked by super strong cables produce shadows, giving a day/night cycle. Huge fusion jets along the edge mountains adjust the ring's position to keep the ring's center at the star. The surface area of the ringworld is so great that you could peel the surface of the earth like an orange, drop it on the surface of the ringworld, and if you look away you might never find it again. The Ringworld is a compromise between an ordinary world and a Dyson sphere. Plot synopsis (very brief): Spoiler The Ringworld novel tells of the discovery of a ringworld and an expedition to observe it. The explorers find themselves stranded on the Ringworld, and have to find a way off.
I like Starship Troopers, at first, it's a bit hard to follow, but it's a pretty easy read, it follows Juan's growth from trooper to leader. So it's just a slow start? That's a relief.
