READING RECOMMENDATION: WATER IS FOR WASHING, A SHORT STORY BY ROBERT A. HEINLEIN

Hello and welcome to another reading recommendation post. Once again, I'm reviewing a story from a known science fiction author Robert A. Heinlein. However, there isn't much science in this short story. It's  a tale set in California that might as well be the California of Heinlein's or our time. The premise of the story is that a catastrophic earthquake has caused California to be flooded.  The plot of the story focuses on the efforts of two men to save their own lives as well as those of two kids they found along the way. So, as fiction goes, this story isn't exactly 'hard science fiction.' Water is for Washing is a story that focuses on humanity and heroism. It asks the question: what does it mean to be a hero? In times of crises, sometimes we are surprised to find heroes among the least expected men. 

Indeed, this story has some typical Heinlein's subjects such as for example: duty, self-sacrifice and heroism. The story is well crafted and written. Right from the start, there is foreshadowing that indicates danger of the flood. The protagonist of the story is afraid of water. If bravery is doing things you're afraid of, then his bravery is definitely about to be tested. Soon in the story, the terrible catastrophic flood happens. The plot of the story is fairly simple but at the same time easy to believe. The author included details that really created the right atmosphere. His descriptions of the flood were realistic and economic, but non the less chilling for it. The story kept me extremely engaged. There is a strong emotional and philosophical aspect to it. Moreover, the ending is incredibly touching and poignant. 

I would recommend this short story to everyone. It focuses on the best in humans and that is our willing to sacrifice our lives for others. While it is a sad tale, it is at the same time uplifting and positive. I would also recommend it to those who would like to read something from Heinlein but aren't particularly keen on science fiction. As I explain, this story is only loosely 'science fiction'. I mean it could be labelled as another genre. Possibly it would have been if it had been written by another writer. 

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE STORY FROM WIKIPEDIA:

"Water is for Washing" is a science fiction short story by American writer Robert A. Heinlein,^[1] first published in Argosy (November 1947). It is based on the premise that an earthquake had catastrophically shattered the range of alluvial deposits separating the Imperial Valley from the Gulf of California, precipitating a tsunami moving north to transiently drown these lowlands.

In his notes, Heinlein said that he had a dream in 1946 in which he conceived of the entire story.^[2]

At the beginning of the story, Heinlein uses the character of a bartender in El Centro to establish the danger of the quake and inundation:

You've heard about the 1905 flood, when the Colorado River spilled over and formed the Salton Sea? But don't be too sure about quakes; valleys below sea level don't just grow — something has to cause them. The San Andreas Fault curls around this valley like a question mark. Just imagine the shake-up it must have taken to drop thousands of square miles below the level of the Pacific.

Heinlein's perspective character is a traveling businessman who had picked up two chance-encountered children and a vagrant while driving frantically to higher ground, and the dramatic arc centers on the efforts of the men to survive and save the youngsters from drowning.^[3]

When the story was first published in Argosy, the editor removed the final two paragraphs.^[2] At the time, Heinlein was upset about this, as he stated they contained "the story's major symbolism." However when the story was later (1959) collected in one of Heinlein's anthologies, The Menace From Earth,^[1] the paragraphs were not re-added. The manuscript, and therefore the removed paragraphs, was believed lost until Heinlein biographer William H. Patterson, Jr. discovered them in a misplaced manuscript in the UC Santa Cruz archives.^[2]

Although not tied directly to other of Heinlein's works, "Water is for Washing" is one of several short stories that take place in contemporary Southern California with no change in the political, social, or technological environment. Heinlein had settled in California after being discharged from the Navy^[4] and incorporated his environment into his fiction. Like "Water is for Washing," "—And He_Built a Crooked House—" and "The Year of the Jackpot" both take place partially in the desert areas east and north of Los Angeles, and involve earthquakes as plot points.

Robert Wilfred Franson describes "Water is for Washing" as packing "a neater punch than many whole novels of natural disasters and human reactions to them....As usual, Heinlein mixes a physical life-and-death challenge with considerations of knowledge, self-discipline, empathy, and spirituality."

"Water Is for Washing" is simple and straightforward, quite vivid and realistic. If it speaks to our fears, those are traditional fears, and entirely reasonable in flash-flood areas of the low desert.^[5]

James Gifford describes "Water is for Washing" as "unusual" and "barely science fiction." He comments favorably on the attention to detail, both in the location and its temperature. He also points out that not many reader notice that the salesman and the tramp are never named, unusual for Heinlein. He draws a link to "They," in which the major characters are also not named.^[2]

 DO YOU WANT TO READ MORE ABOUT ROBERT A.HEINLEIN'S WORKS?

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SHORT STORIES: DELILAH AND THE SPACE-RIGGER

NOVELLAS: WALDO    MAGIC INC.

NOVELS: PODKANYE OF MARS ,   SPACE CADET  ,  THE NUMBER OF THE BEAST ,   BEYOND THIS HORIZON , STARSHIP TROOPERS, THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS, THE ORPHAN'S OF THE SKY