John Thomas is trying desperately to keep his enormous, beloved pet Lummox from being killed by the Westville authorities who consider this "star beast" a public menace. Meanwhile, a delegation of aliens have arrived on Earth, demanding the return of their young princess who was brought home to Earth as a "baby" by John's great-great grandfather from one of his interstellar trips. If she is not returned, the aliens threaten through an interpreter, Earth will be destroyed. All hell seems about to break loose, and Mr. Kiku (Under Secretary of the Department of Spacial Affairs) must find the missing alien or risk interstellar warfare.

Fortunately Lummox is hard to kill, and John Thomas (with help from his friend Betty Sorenson) are trying as hard as they can to keep Lummox hidden from the local authorities, while Mr. Kiku initiates an all-out hunt for this prize alien. But that's not the only problem: this "star beast" refuses to leave Earth without John Thomas!

Mr. Kiku is a master diplomat and brilliant negotiator -- and THE STAR BEAST should be required reading for all aspiring diplomats and negotiators, as well as recommended for science fiction readers and anyone with a good sense of humor.

Saturday Review wrote that THE STAR BEAST was "almost impossible to put down," and Andre Norton wrote, "Readers will hail the book ... The humor is delightful!"


"Not only America's premier writer of speculative fiction, but the greatest writer of such fiction in the world … [Heinlein] remains today as a sort of trademark for all that is finest in American imaginative fiction."
- Stephen King

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