I've seen the Starship Troopers movie a few times (though it's been a while since I last watched it), and I remember watching the 1999 animated tv show when it was on the Sci-Fi channel. Have always really enjoyed the franchise in the movie/show format, so I had elevated expectations going into the book.

I was originally going to give this book 4 stars, but there was one very specific moment in Chapter 12 which is why I am giving this 5 instead. The scene in question was Colonel Nielssen's interactions with Rico and the other cadets with him.

Rico is about to receive his commission as 3rd Lieutenant and while Colonel Nielssen admits that Rico was requested by Colonel Dubois to wear his 3rd Lieutenant pips, but the commandant gives Rico his pips hoping that Rico can break the bad luck streak they seemed to have.

There was a great deal of actual military tradition within this entire book that reminded me of my own time in the military while also making me wish I had seen interactions like what were described. Specifically within Chapter 12 was the challenge of why things are done rather than how they are done that is often the desired conveyance in any training setting. There is also the commonplace tradition of rank insignia being passed from one member to another. Heinlein captured this perfectly while also translating it to a futuristic, sci-fi military based on an extremely limited democratic and interplanetary human society.

<blockquote>“Citizenship is an attitude, a state of mind, an emotional conviction that the whole is greater than the part...and that the part should be humbly proud to sacrifice itself that the whole may live.”</blockquote>

The above quote contains, I think, the foundational moral of this story: the whole of society is greater than individual parts, and sometimes parts have to stand up for others to maintain the whole.

This book will forever be on my "must read" recommended list.