Battle Field Earth by Ron Hubbard

[padders]

This is another one of my favourite books. I read it in Easter and still think about it every now and again. I have not seen the film yet but i bet it will be rubbish compared to the book.

Anyone else read this book and what other books by hubbard would you recommend?

 

[padders]

no one read this? Trust me it is brilliant. Ditch the film and read the book!

 

[Akula]

Burn the film

Read it, only nine or ten times. Battlefield Earth is by far and away my favorite Sci-fi book, maybe book in general. I have not actually seen the movie, but a friend of mine, who I trust implicitally has already warned me not to bother. Although I've heard that the DVD version will have extra scenes to make it a little better. As for his other works, I haven't read anything that caught my fancy; although the fact that he created Scientology is good for a giggle.

 

[padders]

I so want a sequel to this but i just don't think it would work. It is such an amazing book. I am going to try and find something else of his to read, no one can write a book that good and not write other stuff worth reading!

 

[Akula]

You would think that was true. Maybe he used up all his talent on that one masterpiece. I really thought the movie would be closer to the book, cause Travolta is into Scientology, though he would take care of the book, but apparently he didn't.

But "They" did the samething to starship troopers, love the book, and the movie was great, as long as you were not expecting the book.

 

[Marvolo]

Maybe he used up all his talent on that one masterpiece.

I think he used up all his talent on the Xenu (or however you spell it) story that scientologists tried to hide. Woah, what a story.

I'm still made because I bought the book before I knew who he was. Gah, that still makes me angry.

The forward to the book is hilarious. When I first read the forward, my reaction was: "Wow, this guy has been there, a nuclear physicist who used to eat lunch with the guys who worked on the first warheads."

Of course, when I found out who he was and checked up on all that. OMG!!! He flunked out of one physics class in college and never was associated with proper physicists like that. What in the world?!?

Yeah, by the time I found it all out, my return time on the book had expired. I chunked it when we moved four months ago. Good riddance.

It might have been a decent novel. I'll never know. I'm scared some of his insanity might seep through the pages and into my brain.

 

[Who's Wee Dug]

Might give an idea what Scientology is really about.

 

[Werthead]

Re: Battlefield Earth by Ron Hubbard

Probably the single worst SF novel ever published. Atrocious on every level, from the unreadably bad sub-junior prose to cardboard cut-out characters to the utterly non-existent science (check the bit with the nuclear explosions that don't damage objects sitting right next to them) to the lack of logical cohesion (the caveman-tech-level humans who work out how to fly jet fighters). Battlefield Earth is rightly regarded as something of a bad joke in the SF critical community. It's only saving grace is that it is not as horrific as Hubbard's Mission Earth series, which steps over the 'bad' line into the 'outrageously mysoginistic, sexist, intolerant, homophobic, racist and elitist' area.

 

[Marvolo]

Re: Battlefield Earth by Ron Hubbard

Probably the single worst SF novel ever published. Atrocious on every level, from the unreadably bad sub-junior prose to cardboard cut-out characters to the utterly non-existent science (check the bit with the nuclear explosions that don't damage objects sitting right next to them) to the lack of logical cohesion (the caveman-tech-level humans who work out how to fly jet fighters). Battlefield Earth is rightly regarded as something of a bad joke in the SF critical community. It's only saving grace is that it is not as horrific as Hubbard's Mission Earth series, which steps over the 'bad' line into the 'outrageously mysoginistic, sexist, intolerant, homophobic, racist and elitist' area.

The funniest thing about the ten part series is that it kept being published mysteriously after his death. It made a lot of people wonder whether he was ever writing it anyway, or whether some of his lackies were.

 

[Ragnar]

I tried to read it once, many years ago before I knew any better. I got about 30 pages in before consigning it ot the dustbin. Utter rubbish.

Give the guy his due though, he might have been a bloody awful writer but he was a grand master at seperating stupid rich people from their money.

 

[Who's Wee Dug]

I tried to read it once, many years ago before I knew any better. I got about 30 pages in before consigning it ot the dustbin. Utter rubbish.

Give the guy his due though, he might have been a bloody awful writer but he was a grand master at seperating stupid rich people from their money.

And his followers are still doing it with great abandon. words!! fools and money abundence of spring ready to mind.

 

[Pyan]

Regardless of opinions on L.Ron as theologian, however, am I the only person here who enjoyed the book? - I even posted it as my "Guilty Pleasure"!

 

[chrispenycate]

Well, I read "fear" and "typewriter in the sky" before Scientology was invented.
They were unexceptionable, nothing special but not spectacularly bad, either.

I haven't, however, read any of his recent(ish) stuff, so can give no opinion.

 

[dwndrgn]

Regardless of opinions on L.Ron as theologian, however, am I the only person here who enjoyed the book? - I even posted it as my "Guilty Pleasure"!

Not at all, it is one of my favorites. Probably my all-time favorite scifi period (with the note that I don't read a lot of scifi). I tried some of his other books and they're crap IMO. Not a fan of the man or his religion but as I've said before, it makes no never mind to my enjoyment of the story.

 

[that old guy]

Damn, a six year stretch between posts #5 and #6 on this thread. Is that some sort of record?

FTR, I thought Battlefield: Earth was overall a rambling incoherent mess, the sort of shaggy dog story a four year old would come out with if they could keep it up for several hundred pages.

But, hell, David Eddings keeps selling books, so why shouldn't L.Ron's estate? Must be an audience for it somewhere.

 

[Fahim]

Despite the logical holes, I thoroughly enjoyed the book when I read it It's got the kind of we-will-overcome-all attitued for the humans that I always enjoy. Granted, maybe it's a bit unrealistic but you can't help but cheer for your own race, now can you?

In fact, I keep meaning to re-read the book sometime but not sure when I'll get around to it ...

 

[Gav]

Hubbard is a man whose work we could do without, and I want a time refund thanks. I think, to refer to him as a thelogian, is to give him more credit than he is due. As someone else has pointed out there must be a market for stuff like this so ...

It's criminal that there are much better authors out there who get bog all recognition.

 

[Blue Tyson]

A complete and utter waste of trees.

 

[MARKLS21]

Hi Hubbard ''fans''?,I bought Battlefield Earth while on holiday in Majorca,some years ago,and became so engrossed in it that i managed to forget the sun,and got burnt to a crisp.
This book was worth the pain and discomfort i suffered,upon returning to the UK,i lent it to a number of workmates,who like me,loved it.
I cannot understand how anyone cannot like this book,the whole point of science fiction books and movies is that it's FICTION!!!,if you want science fact,watch the discovery channel,or read popular science weekly,or something like that,for the duration of the book or film,you suspend your disbelief and accept it for what it is....entertainment,nothing more,nothing less.

 

[Marvolo]

Hi Hubbard ''fans''?,I bought Battlefield Earth while on holiday in Majorca,some years ago,and became so engrossed in it that i managed to forget the sun,and got burnt to a crisp.
This book was worth the pain and discomfort i suffered,upon returning to the UK,i lent it to a number of workmates,who like me,loved it.
I cannot understand how anyone cannot like this book,the whole point of science fiction books and movies is that it's FICTION!!!,if you want science fact,watch the discovery channel,or read popular science weekly,or something like that,for the duration of the book or film,you suspend your disbelief and accept it for what it is....entertainment,nothing more,nothing less.

Oh my lord, you are the resurrected form of L Ron Hubbard that scientoligists everywhere have been waiting for! Speak more my lord!

Seriously, the book and the man sucked.