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The Martian Race
Copyright 1999 by
Gregory Benford
I read this in February 2001.
A commercial business commences a manned flight to Mars, quasi-
governmental consortium launches in competition to them. In fact the
race isn't important, it's primarily background. The book is really about what happens
to the people on Mars and what they find. Earth, its concerns and
priorities, are reduced to video playbacks of distant events
Hey, this was pretty good. It's not just one long scientific
experiment. There's a little drama and excitement, OK, it's not chock-full of wild action,
but it feels realistic, like I was there. Julia, Victor and Marc felt to me like real
people, not that I know many astronauts. What they find is good, exciting and
thought-provoking: vacuum runs and strange alien life amongst a host of
other things.
I always read Benford's books, though I'm often a little disappointed -
in some way they lack impact for me, even though they are full of grand
science. This book, though, I'll read again.
Loaded on the 16th February 2001.
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Cover art by Don Dixon and Don Puckey
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