David Harris Ebenbach

I was still in highschool when I read Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein but it made such an impression on me I have never really forgotten it. In case you have never read it the book is about a man who was born and raised on Mars by Martians comes to the earth and starts a new religion. This book is not Stranger in a Strange Land but it does involve a human born and raised on Mars.

In this book six scientists, three women and three men, get sent on a one-way trip to Mars by the Destination Mars! corporation. Destination Mars! plans to build a reality TV show around the group but it turns out that once they get to Mars there isn't much in the way of TV moments. In fact, it is downright boring both watching them and being them. All of the scientists were supposedly sterilized plus there was a strict injunction against sex so a pregnancy should not have happened. But Jenny and Josh were attracted to each other and after the cameras were turned off because the reality show tanked they started having sex. Jenny, who wasn't supposed to be able to get pregnant even when she was on earth, tells Josh the news one day when they go for a walk outside the habitation dome. Of course they are wearing space suits and helmets and using a radio frequency that was supposed to be private but by the time they get back to the habitation dome (called Home Sweet) everyone else knows and congratulates them. The other two women, Trixie and Nicole, are physicians in addition to other specialties and they figure they can handle a birth. So, despite the Destination Mars! people wanting Jenny to terminate the pregnancy proceeds. Roger, the Canadian geologist, starts making booties and rattles so he is supportive of this. The other male, Stefan, who is Danish and an engineer, is not. In fact, he is showing decidedly antisocial behaviour. Josh, a psychiatrist, tries talking to him but Stefan continues to exhibit worrisome behaviour. That's a big problem because systems and machines keep breaking down and Stefan is the one who knows how to fix them. In fact, Stefan may be more than just antisocial; he has started hearing voices and he may be mentally unstable. Or maybe there really are Martians and Stefan is the one who has tuned in to them.

Interspersed between the chapters of the story are excerpts from the Handbook the Destination Mars! founder has written to guide the six scientists in this adventure. Some of them are pretty funny and some of them are more philosophy than instructional. They do tend to break up the narrative which can be good but some times I just wanted to get on with the story. All in all I thought this was a fun and interesting read.… (más)

Six people are selected for a one-way mission to Mars, and their exploits beamed back to Earth and edited into a Reality TV show.

It’s an interesting premise that doesn’t quite pay off. The story opens after the “marsonauts” have been on the planet long enough for the science to become routine and the TV show canceled. Then two of the crew do something that’s forbidden in the mission handbook and everyone has to learn how to deal with the consequences.

While there a six main characters the story is mainly told from the perspective of two of them, so I never felt I got to know the others. There are seeds of ideas sown that never get explored, and some pointless subplots that detract from the narrative.

The text is also periodically intertwined with pseudo science reports, and extracts from the eccentrically written mission handbook. At first the “handbook” sections were mildly amusing but grew to be more of an irritating interruption to the human story unfolding.… (más)