I just finished the Poul Anderson novel, The Stars Are Also Fire, by Poul Anderson. (https://www.librarything.com/work/49353/covers/218131789 ). I started the book and actually put it down for a few years after reading the first chapter. I finally decided to go back to it.
It takes place far into the future, when the moon and asteroids are colonized. There are actually two stories, one from the settlement of the moon and the other further in the future when the moon people, lunarians, are looking for a way to leave and go further out.
Somethings I don't like. The author is opposed to government and wants freedom. The main company, Fireball, is bigger and in many ways more powerful than the world government. Why did they let a corporation get so powerful?
One of the issues is that humans can't bear healthy children on the moon. So they create a genetically altered race of humans, called lunarians. They look a little like the elves in Lord of the Rings. However, they are generally not very nice or heroic, people. Who can stand having them around, anyway?
In the future story, there is a big distinction between robots, which are not self-aware, and sophotects, which are. However, all the computers and networks have merged together into one self-aware intelligence called the terramind. The terramind doesn't really need people, but keeps them around almost like pets, or maybe for nostalgic reasons. Why did people let the terramind develop? It would have made more sense to limit the machines. That would have made an interesting story.
Finally, as the two heroes of the future story travel around earth they find different races of humans that were developed to deal with certain environments or functions. Then when that is no longer needed they don't have anything to do and the rest of the humans don't like them. It doesn't make sense that people allowed this to happen. What we have seen in human history is that standard humans can learn to adapt to any environment, no genetic alterations needed. And in our world all the humans can breed, no problem.
