Space Apprentice by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky

 (Don't be fooled by the Silly cover)

I can't think of another Sci-Fi book that made me consider crying. Note: I did not cry. But I did think about it towards the end. If I'd been having a Terrible Day and been feeling Fragile, I probably would have. Thankfully, I finished this book at the end of a Good Day, and so, hence, and therefore: I did not cry.

The book patiently and carefully follows the path of the photon freighter Takhmasib on an intra-solar-system cruise as it stops off at the various extra-planetary research stations that we (in the not-too-distant future) have set up on, in and around Mars, the Asteroid Belt, and Saturn, respectively. It's set in the Strugatskys' Noon Universe, which continues to be my favorite fictional universe. Education, Discovery, and Fulfillment (and Love for others who are after the same things) are the prime motivators for our protagonists here. Money, Fame, War, Political Power...these things exist, but they are on the periphery, and pretty much everyone agrees that as far as Goals go, they are immature and petty ones to have.

One thing that sets this Noon Universe book apart from the others that I've read so far: there are still Capitalists around, and on more than one occasion there are debates between American and Soviet scientists as to the merits of one economic system or the other. That's not to say that the Strugatskys glorify, or even mention, the authoritarian Soviet system of government. The Noon Universe is a meritocracy where government is irrelevant and all people are free to do what they wish, and the happy ones are doing what they are best at.