Stainless Steel Rat Books In Order

Publication Order of Stainless Steel Rat Books

Chronological Order of Stainless Steel Rat Books

Publication Order of Stainless Steel Rat (Game Books) Books

Harry Harrison was a well-established American author, who was born on March 12, 1925. He was widely known for the protagonist, Stainless Steel Rat. The author’s novel, Make Room which was published in the year 1966, was used to develop a motion picture known as Soylent Green. Before he became a writer and an editor, Harrison used to work as an illustrator in the field of science fiction. He was mainly involved in two main science fiction books, Weird Science and Weird Fantasy. In these two science fiction, Harry Harrison mainly worked with one, Wally Wood. Wally Wood’s main job was to ink over the layouts that Harrison had created. He also worked as a freelance for several other genres and publishers such as horrors comics and westerners. In the year 1950, this partnership came to an end and thus each of them went their way.

To publish and edit various magazines, Harrison had to use his two pen names, Hank Dempsey and Felix Boyd. Harrison also worked as a ghostwriter Vendetta for a one Leslie Charteries. Vendetta became one of the longest-running series and featured the protagonist, The Saint. The author’s very first short story was published in the year 1951. It was featured in the World Beyond issue, which was edited by Damon Knight. Previously this magazine had published some of his works before. While he was in New York, Harrison socialized at one of the organizations, which was mainly organized for Science Fiction writers, Hydra. Some of the authors in attendance include Isaac Asimov, a writer whose work he would, later on, come and parody. In the early months of 1950, Hydra Club included authors such as James Blish, Avram Davidson, Anthony Boucher, Theodore Sturgeon and Judith Merill. However, it took sometime before Harry Harrison became a household name.One of the series that shot Harry into the limelight is Stainless Steel Rat and the book Bill, the Galactic-Hero.

Personal Life

Harrison was born and raised in Stamford, Connecticut. His father was of an Irish descent and worked as a printer. His mother, on the other hand, was of Russian and Jewish descent. Harrison has lived in many parts of the world including Mexico, Italy, England, Ireland, and Denmark. At some point, he worked as an advocate of Esperanto. Later on in the year 1970, he relocated to Ireland where he constructed a prestigious house. In his new home, he lived with his family for several years. Harrison got married to one, Evelyn Harrison in the New York City in the year 1954.

Stainless Steel Rat (Series by Harry Harrison)

A Stainless Steel Rat is Born is the first book in this highly entertaining series. In this book, Harry Harrison introduces the reader to Jimmy Bolivar, an exceedingly smart and highly ambitious seventeen-year-old boy who not only feels trapped but also repressed in the extremely backward Bit O’ Heaven planet. In this planet, Jimmy’s parents were porcuswine farmers. During his early years, Jimmy learned that he was not only exceedingly clever but also unscrupulous enough to take whatever he wanted from other people and also he enjoyed considerably planning this little exploits. Thus, when his classmates were going through the piece of material, which he had already mastered, he decided to channel his time and energy learning something a little bit more useful. He learned fighting, but he also mastered the art of lock picking.

When he was old enough, Jimmy was sent to the adult penitentiary he met masterminds who were more advanced than he was. This, in turn, meant that they could teach him more nefarious skills. This is the main reason why Jimmy decides to rob a bank and get purposefully caught in the act. However, when he was taken to the adult jail, it was short of his expectations. The prison was full of losers. As he joins the prison, Jimmy does not learn anything from any of those inmates. One of the most brilliant criminals is Bit, whom unfortunately has never been caught before. Jim understands that he must be able to escape from the prison and find Bit as soon as he can. This book is a great addition to the series. It not only fills Jimmy’s backstory but it also gives the exact origin of these names. As expected a majority of these books are not only short but also fast paced and fun, thus making it a great read.

The fourth book in this series is Stainless Steel. To fully understand the enduring popularity and unique brilliance of this novel, it is exceedingly important to first understand the world that the author has created. The world that the author has created is in the far future, a period when the genetic manipulation have created the criminal and malcontent gene. Society is not only homogeneous but also sterile and lifeless. Just like all the other books in the Stainless Steel book series the protagonist is James Bolivar with his roguish and adventure filled mischievous schemes. He is an exceedingly exciting anomaly. The worldwide vies that the author creates in this installment is what makes the protagonist’s actions quite compelling. Bolivar is an exceedingly adventurous spirit, who would have been a treasure seeker or a fortune soldier in an earlier time.

In the far future where diGriz lives, a majority of anti-social and criminal behavior has been removed from the human gene. Thus, it becomes exceedingly difficult for the bad people to hide. To survive in this society, one would have to be a stainless steel rat, and Jim DiGriz is an exceedingly slippery fellow. Despite the fact that he is exceptionally cunny, he is not the type that kills. Thus, when he is finally caught, he is not fixed, but rather the cops decide to turn him into a police officer. Jimmy is not sure as to whether he wants to together with the good guys. However, before he knows it, he is working on his very first case. With that said, this book is a fun read. It not only has a quick pace but it is also exceedingly funny and full of action. All the villains in this novel have been overdone in the cheesy Batman/James Bond way. The main character is one of those villains that you will find yourself rooting for.