 Despite the alliance between the U.S. and Russia, this war has been described as demonstrating Heinlein's anti-communist beliefs, which saw "swarming hordes" of Chinese as a bigger threat.The novel draws some comparisons between the Chinese and the Arachnids, and suggests that the lessons of one war could be applied to the other.To Heinlein's surprise, "Starship Troopers" won the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1960.