BOOK · [2332]

The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress

Sci-Fi

A lunar colony, a sentient computer, and a revolution against an Earth that treats the Moon as a penal colony. A blueprint for off-world independence.

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Endorsed By

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Elon Musk
Paul Graham

paulgraham.com

“What I was actually trying to do was teach myself how to do that. I happened upon a novel by Heinlein called The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, which featured an intelligent computer called Mike.”

From his essay 'What I Worked On' — Heinlein's Mike is what pointed him at AI and, by way of that, at Lisp.
Bill Gates

gatesnotes.com

Recommended on Gates Notes.
Eric Raymond

esr.ibiblio.org

“Now that you've opened my eyes, I think The Moon is a Harsh Mistress stands comparison with The Shockwave Rider on this level.”

Eric Raymond's own comment (2011-01-03) under his essay 'Cultural literacy for hackers' on the Armed and Dangerous blog, conceding the book's central place in the hacker sensibility.
Andrej Karpathy

Andrej Karpathy's Books

Listed on Karpathy's personal science-fiction page.