A Life for the Stars

If They Shall Have Stars set the scientific stage for the Cities in Flight series, A Life for the Stars sets the political landscape in which the flying cities of the title exist in at this point. Through the story of a teenager kidnapped from Earth by the thugs of Scranton, Pennsylvania, right before it takes to stars never to see Earth again, we learn the complexities of the political and social landscape of the world Blish has created. Nomadic cities, roving the galaxy, working odd jobs to survive. The differences between passengers and citizens, between desperate cities like Scranton and metropolises like New York, Blish creates an intricate backdrop in which to write a simple story of a boy living by his own principles and relying on his wits in the face of adversity. It also chronologically introduces the characters of Sgt. Joel Anderson and Mayor John Amalfi, characters who both feature in Earthman, Come Home, the third book chronologically but the first published.