Rating: 
Summary: it's cute, it's fun, you won't regret reading it
Review: if you think that this is a children's book, then you have most likely lost your sense to enjoy a story that is, well, cute. Following Lummox, a cuddly unearthly dinosaur like star beast with a kiddie's mind on his adventures through "strange" earth society - you won't regret that reading. Sort of like "Stranger in a Strange Land", but without the cynicism
Rating: 
Summary: Delightfully Humorous Science-Fiction
Review: Imagine this: your great-grandfather was an astronaut who brought a collie-puppy-sized alien home from one of his missions as a family pet. Lummox, your pet, grows larger with everything he eats. By the time you are a teenager (and Lummox has started feasting on dilapidated cars), Lummox is the size of a small elephant. What do you do when the townspeople start rioting over your pet - and a delegation of Lummox's species comes to Earth to bring him home?This is the premise of Heinlein's "The Star Beast," a humorous and comforting science fiction book. The cheerful resilience of John Thomas and his pet Lummox provide humor even in the book's darkest moments (which aren't very dark at all).
Rating:
Summary: Fine Heinlein juvenile
Review: In a future Earth, in which Earth is part of an interstellar society with many alien cultures, John Thomas Stuart lives in a bit of a backwater in the Rockies. But he has the talking alien creature his multi-great-grandpop picked up on an alien world, now grown from a couple of feet long to the size of a small truck. When one day, a series of accidents causes Lummox to go for a destructive walk, the authorities really start to take notice of Lummox. Nicely done, and with interesting concepts interwoven throughout--the child who has divorced her parents and lives in a group home, with coercion in choice of career a grounds for such a divorce, is an example. Even the details are finely drawn--the governor of John Thomas's state is mentioned as looking at papers that will send his best friend to jail, then later in the book he is mentioned as being in a grand jury session. Heinlein is not as subtle as he might be in his race message, regarding Mr. Kiku, the official who manages the affair, along with much else beyond the stratosphere. While Kiku rails against a superior who asks him to appear on a children's show because he is black, and states that it is the job of the parents to teach race tolerance, Heinlein jumps into the job feet first by having Kiku be the one to learn tolerance about a snake-haired alien, even to the point of sharing a coat with the alien. While it is a fine message, it is so unsubtle that it might be too obvious to the juvenile reader. But maybe it was what was needed in 1954. I particularly enjoyed the character of Betty, the strong willed girlfriend of John Thomas. While she is so different from the average Heinlein fluffhead, there is a suggestion at the end that John Thomas is going to be the one who wears the pants in their house. While this is a message that might play well in 1954, it does seem to go against both their characters. This is arguable, though, as John Thomas is successful, during the book, in asserting himself over her at each point of crisis . . . Well, you be the judge. All the same, it is a fine book. Well worth having on your bookshelves.
Rating: 
Summary: I'm not impressed
Review: In Heinlein's sci-fi classic The Star Beast, an enormous alien creature is smuggled back to Earth, where it lives for over a hundred years and is cared for by several generations of the Thomas family. The story begins when the creature, Lummox, innocently decides to take a stroll through town, and unintentionally wreaks havoc throughout the neighborhood. All though Lummox is one of the friendliest and gentlest characters, his mere appearance frightens and angers the people with whom he comes in contact. The small town's government is unable to decide what to do with the beast, and Earth's department for spatial affairs gets involved. The department must settle on a punishment for the alien in question, along with his teenage owner, John Thomas.
This is an early science fiction novel intended for young adults. As such, very few, hard-core sci-fi ideas are utilized, and the storyline is very simple. However, even as a young adult myself, I found the book to be, simply put, quite dull. The very long hang times between major events can leave readers napping between chapters, and even the big turning points leave much to be desired. I found that very few of the characters were worth paying attention to, and were mostly annoying, wimpy creatures that tend to exaggerate human nature. If you're looking for good science fiction, this is not your book. If you're looking for an easy and somewhat entertaining story, then this is probably worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: Solid entertainment
Review: It's more than a bit of a misnomer to call the series of novels Heinlein wrote specifically for teenagers from 1947-58 "juveniles"----they are actually just page-turning adventure sf with well-detailed backgrounds that just happen to have protaganists under the age of 21. What I'm saying is that they're just as entertaining for adults as for kids, as long as the adult in question isn't looking for literary experimentation or explicit sex. That fact is that, with one or two exceptions, Heinlein's juveniles are far more solidly entertaining than his later 'adult' novels. (The exceptions? Rocket Ship Galileo and Podkayne of Mars, but hey, no one ever bats .1000.) The Star Beast was always one of my favorites, mainly because of Lummox. But there's also one of Heinlein's best courtroom scenes, and plenty of other high points. The idea of a bond between a human boy and an alien 'pet' with the alien turning out to be an important member of an advanced civilization had been touched on before, in Red Planet, but it is taken to a fascinating extreme here. While it's true that the Stuart's seem to live in a 1950's small town, there is also a great evocation of a vast galaxy teeming with varied species and spacefaring civilizations, endless possibilities. You can't miss with Heinlein's juveniles, but this is one of the most charming.
Rating:
Summary: Solid entertainment
Review: It's more than a bit of a misnomer to call the series of novels Heinlein wrote specifically for teenagers from 1947-58 "juveniles"----they are actually just page-turning adventure sf with well-detailed backgrounds that just happen to have protaganists under the age of 21. What I'm saying is that they're just as entertaining for adults as for kids, as long as the adult in question isn't looking for literary experimentation or explicit sex. That fact is that, with one or two exceptions, Heinlein's juveniles are far more solidly entertaining than his later 'adult' novels. (The exceptions? Rocket Ship Galileo and Podkayne of Mars, but hey, no one ever bats .1000.) The Star Beast was always one of my favorites, mainly because of Lummox. But there's also one of Heinlein's best courtroom scenes, and plenty of other high points. The idea of a bond between a human boy and an alien 'pet' with the alien turning out to be an important member of an advanced civilization had been touched on before, in Red Planet, but it is taken to a fascinating extreme here. While it's true that the Stuart's seem to live in a 1950's small town, there is also a great evocation of a vast galaxy teeming with varied species and spacefaring civilizations, endless possibilities. You can't miss with Heinlein's juveniles, but this is one of the most charming.
Rating:
Summary: Fords Make Tasty Meals
Review: Lummox, The Star Beast, is the star of this book. A three-ton overgrown caterpillar who just loves to munch on the neighbor's prize rose bushes, add a few pieces of tasty metal cars, and raise John Thomases. Of course, John Thomas doesn't quite see things the same way as Lummox. When Lummox goes on a little trip through downtown, with the expectable result of absolute mayhem, John Thomas finds himself in trouble with his mother and the law with only his girlfriend to help him.
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How John's problems are resolved is an exposition in a teenager's maturation along with a very different (for Heinlein) portrayal of a truly competent and efficient government bureaucrat (for a completely opposed view of civil servants see his Friday or Stranger in a Strange Land). Along the way, Heinlein makes points about child rearing, the sometimes ridiculous workings of the law (along with some hilarious courtroom proceedings), prejudice, advertising/political campaigns, the shortcomings of making unfounded assumptions, self-blinded egotists, and the right of self-determination, all buried inside a fun and very good adventure story.
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Heinlein never wrote 'down' to his readers, one of the aspects that make his so-called juveniles so enjoyable for readers of all ages. Some younger readers may have a little trouble with the vocabulary he uses, though the meanings of his word choices are almost always inferable from the context. My 12 year old, who is currently reading this, runs into an unknown word about every two pages. While this is slowing him down a little, it is not detracting from his enjoyment of the story (and whether he knows it or not, he is learning a considerable amount from this book).
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Character development is a little sparse and the story line is comparatively simple. This is not the best of Heinlein's young adult books, but is a very entertaining and enjoyable book.
Rating:
Summary: A Simple and Fun Book Everyone Will Enjoy
Review: The is by far one of Robert Heinlein's more simpler novels. It is a fun story about a boy and his unusual troublesome starbeast who actually turns out to be more than anyone expects. It is a great story for anyone seeking to read an introductory Science Fiction story. It will make you smile and laugh at the simple wit and humor of the story. Far from a 'classic' but nevertheless a great little treasure from the Golden Age of Science Fiction.
Rating:
Summary: The Star Beast is a charming, sensitive look at ourselves
Review: The Star Beast is a delightful look at the different perspectives vastly different psychologies can have while telling a very entertaining story. While appropriate for children (and, indeed written for them in the Fifties), The Star Beast is sure to cause a wry chuckle in any adult. I recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: This book ruled!!
Review: The star beast is one of the greatest of the Dean of Science Fiction, Rober A. Heinlin's, books. Very well written, very different. This book is great for all ages!
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