A Case of Conscience - Blish

The big idea behind this book is simple enough. In the near future the human race discovers an inhabited planet. A Jesuit priest is on the initial expedition and has to help decide what kind of contact man should have with the aliens, called Lithians. He takes the opportunity to find out what kind religious beliefs they have and the answer will necessarily have a big impact on religious beliefs back on Earth.
(Spoilers.) He discovers a) that they have no religion and b) they don't seem to be able to sin. He has to decide whether that means that they are still in a state of grace or, more dangerously, if the entire planet was a satanic trap meant to lure humanity away from Christianity. Throw in a set of pupal stages that seem to confirm evolution and the priest has no choice but to condemn the place.
That's the first half of the book and it was very interesting. Blish creates an interesting world and race with the Lithians. He also has a compelling four cornered conversation regarding the future of the world.
And I wish I'd stopped reading then because the second half goes into the ditch. A Lithian is brought to Earth and raised there without the benefit of his natural environment or supporting society. He becomes something of a celebrity due to his habit of asking teenager like questions that embarrass adults. Sadly, it's not compelling or convincing.
Blish also has created a culture on Earth that is largely underground due to the leftovers from nuclear war fears. The book was written in 1958 so this probably meant more then but it clangs. He has the skyscrapers of New York virtually deserted because people are unwilling to live on the surface. Not because fears of war are imminent but because so much effort went into building the shelters.
Another thing that bugged me was the make-up of the survey crew. It's virtually unthinkable that the fate of an expidition would hinge on one crew member's religious feelings. Another member is a virulent xenophobe. Can you imagine NASA picking a four man crew and choosing a paranoid racist?
Not a great book and in some ways greatly disappointing. Blish shows that he can write and the ideas are certainly there. But the human sequences defies belief. I'd give it 3/5.