Home

A March-ing We Will Go

52 Comments


(photo from The Mars Society)

“When the chairman introduced the guest speaker as a former illegal alien, I got up from my chair and yelled, “What’s the matter, no jobs on Mars?” When no one laughed, I was real embarrassed. I don’t think people should make you feel that way.”
~Jack Handy

The Red Planet. Its unexplored mystery has been the inspiration for stories for time out of mind. And even now, when remote controlled rovers allow us to vicariously step onto its rust-coloured surface, it remains a focal point for wonder and imagination.

The month is fast approaching which shares a namesake with the planet and while the science fictional fire continues to burn bright (and since the Once Upon a Time IV Challenge doesn’t officially start until the 21st) I thought it might be a fun idea to focus at least some of my March reading on the red planet itself. In considering this idea I thought it might be fun to put together a list of novels and short stories centered around Mars. Which is where I need your help. Now I know I could probably just Google “Mars stories” and come up with a list, but where is the fun in that? I prefer the conversational aspects of list making. What follows are the books/stories that came to mind as I contemplated this post.

An * means that I have already read these sometime in the past

Books:

Red Planet ~Robert Heinlein

The Martian Chronicles ~Ray Bradbury

John Carter of Mars series ~Edgar Rice Burroughs *(the first three books)

The Mars Trilogy (Red Mars, Green Mars, Blue Mars) ~Kim Stanley Robinson

The Mars Trilogy (Mars, Return to Mars, Mars Life) ~Ben Bova

Marsbound ~Joe Haldeman

Desolation Road ~Ian McDonald*

Ares Express ~Ian McDonald (to be published April 2010)

Empress of Mars ~Kage Baker

Short stories/novellas:

“We Can Remember it for you Wholesale” ~Philip K. Dick

“The Hated” ~Frederick Pohl*

“The Martian Way” ~Isaac Asimov*

Expedition ~Frederic Brown*

Rescue ~G.C. Edmondson*

Dodger Fan ~Will Stanton*

This is far, far from an exhaustive list, so let’s make it one! What Mars stories are you aware of? What do you think of them? Where should one start on a journey to Mars?


(A Princess of Mars, painting by Frank Frazetta)

“You couldn’t get me on Mars if it were the last place on earth.”
~Erma Cohen

52 thoughts on “A March-ing We Will Go”

  1. I’ve just finished Mission to Mars by Michael Collins (yes, the Apollo 11 astronaut). It’s non-fiction, although it does feature a fictional account of an international mission to the red planet in… 2004.

    As for novels about Mars – I prefer ones which are about missions to, or settling, Mars, so here’s my list (the ones I’ve read are asterisked):

    *Baxter, Stephen: VOYAGE (1996)
    Benford, Gregory: THE MARTIAN RACE (1999)
    *Bova, Ben: MARS (1992)
    Bova, Ben: RETURN TO MARS (1999)
    Bova, Ben: MARS LIFE (2008)
    *Landis, Geoffrey A: MARS CROSSING (2000)
    *Robinson, Kim Stanley: RED MARS (1992)
    *Robinson, Kim Stanley: GREEN MARS (1993)
    *Robinson, Kim Stanley: BLUE MARS (1996)
    Robinson, Kim Stanley: THE MARTIANS ()
    *Rollo, William: THE OLYMPUS GAMBIT (1983)
    Zubrin, Robert: FIRST LANDING (2002)

    It’s by no means complete…

    (Incidentally, a review of the Collins book will be going up on my Space Books blog later today – see http://spacebookspace.wordpress.com/ )

  2. … and you read all of those while eating a Mars Bar right?
    (did I hear a groan?!)
    You know I am not a sci fi reader but an old book I have of my brothers is The Martian Chronicles ~Ray Bradbury.

  3. I wonder if Ian noticed most of the books he mentioned were already on the list, Carl. Anyway, here is my list of additions:

    A Martian Odyssey by Stanley Weinbaum
    The Sands of Mars by Arthur C. Clarke
    The Swordsman of Mars by Otis Adelbert Kline
    The Outlaws of Mars Otis Adelbert Kline
    Moving Mars by Greg Bear
    White Mars by Brian Aldiss
    Born Under Mars by John Brunner
    The Martian Time-Slip by Philip K. Dick
    Double Star by Robert Heinlein
    Podkayne of Mars by Robert Heinlein
    Red Planet by Robert Heinlein
    Mars is My Destination by Frank Belknap Long

    also: Leigh Brackett did four or five novels which were supposedly set on Mars, though it had another name in the books. And if the Barsoom novels of Burroughs are considered Mars books, then how about the Gor novels of John Norman?

  4. Richard: Thanks for all the great additions. I cannot believe that Podkayne of Mars didn’t pop right into my mind as I just read it a few months ago. Liked it!

    I think I have a copy of Swordsman of Mars. I also have a Leigh Brackett book somewhere in the basement but am not sure which one it is. And speaking of Brackett, this is one of the books I have on my wishlist. Just love this cover:

    http://www.amazon.com/Lorelei-Red-Mist-Planetary-Romances/dp/1893887243/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1267205275&sr=8-5

    I have a copy of Red Planet sitting on my desk that I checked out from the library last week.

    Haven’t read any of the rest of these, however, so great additions to the Mars list.

    Deslily: Hey, if I’m going to do it right I’d have to eat some Mars bars, wouldn’t I?

    Ian: Thanks for the additions…alphabetically too! So, does the fact that you only read the first of the Mars books by Bova mean that he wasn’t your cup of tea, or have you just not gotten to the others?

    I’ll check out your review on the space site, thanks!

  5. That looks like a Kelly Freas cover, though I don’t se his iconic signature.

    The Weinbaum has long been considered a classic. It was the first title that came to my mind. I can’t believe that you missed THREE Heinlein books!

    As for reading them, I have the Bova books in the TBR, got them a Christmas, have read most if not all of the Burroughs Mars books, have not read – though I have – the Robinson Mars set, and of my own dditions, have read only the Heinlein, Clarke, Dick and Brunner.

  7. Paul: Yet another author who I’ve read a lot about but haven’t tried. Thanks!

    Richard: I know I looked the cover artist up once a long time ago (yep, a little digging in my SF book covers of 08 post shows it to indeed be Freas. Well done!).

    I got Red Planet on my original list up there. Double Star wasn’t a surprise miss because the title didn’t reveal anything and although I know the title I have never looked anything up about it. Still find it silly that I forgot Podkayne, especially because I have thought about aspects of that book several times since reading it AND, even more embarrassing, was having a conversation about it last night just before I typed this post!

  8. Don’t forget Moorcock’s KANE OF OLD MARS. Although a homage, I think it still counts.

  10. Dave: I’m wanting to read some Baker this year, more so given the fact that she recently passed away, and Empress is a book I have in my library queue.

    Cameron: Off work today?!?! Moorcock’s name has been all over the internet lately. Given the fact that you and Jerry like his work so much, and that Jeff read much of it when he was younger, I really need to hold up my end of the ‘four corners’ and start with his Elric stuff.

  11. Moorcock. I doubt you’re going to like this, but each man’s mirror reflects his own truth. I tried, several times, to read and like his Elric books. I came to the conclusion that ** TO ME ** it seemed he was trying way too hard to be clever-creative and when looked at with any perspective the books are constructions of tissue, with little substance and a juvenile level of originality. I’ve often wondered if I just missed the point, or whether a lot of people like Moorcock because a lot of people say they like Moorcock.

  12. Yes, I see now you did have Red Planet on your original list. I missed it. For me, the second book I thought of, after the Weinbaum, was Clarke’s Sands of Mars. It had a huge impact on me when I read it.

  13. Richard: You forget you’re talking to someone who named his blog after The Stainless Steel Rat! Ha!

    Seriously though, I am interested in trying Moorcock for that very reason, to see just what I think of it. Jeff can speak to this better than me, because he read it when he was much younger and thus saw it through those younger eyes. But my friend Cameron has read many of these over the last few years and seems to really enjoy them. It is certainly something I wouldn’t continue on with if I didn’t like the first one, but I would like to at least give the first one a try at some point. That’s really the grand experiment I am doing with so many of these well known, “classic” authors.

    Thus far I’ve been mostly pleased with the experiences, though I am glad that I read a couple of Frederick Pohl short stories (and his recent Asimov blogs) before reading Gateway as I’m not sure I would be as hip on giving Pohl another shot if Gateway had been my first experience. The longer I am away from that reading experience the more frustrated I am with the story.

  14. Richard, I noticed some were on the list but my list specifically named “realistic” missions to Mars, so I didn’t double-check 🙂

    Here are some non-fiction books on the subject:

    Berry, Dana: RACE TO MARS (2007)
    Caidin, Martin & Jay Barbree: DESTINATION MARS (1997)
    Clarke, Arthur C: THE SNOWS OF OLYMPUS (1993)
    Collins, Michael: MISSION TO MARS (1990)
    Joels, Karry Mark: THE MARS ONE CREW MANUAL (1985)
    Hartmann, William K: MARS UNDERGROUND (1997)
    Ley, Willy & Wernher von Braun: PROJECT MARS (1961)
    O’Leary, Brian: MARS 1999 (1987)
    Matsunaga, Spark M: THE MARS PROJECT—JOURNEYS BEYOND THE COLD WAR (1986)
    Turner, Martin JL: EXPEDITION MARS (2004)
    von Braun, Wernher: THE MARS PROJECT (1953)
    Zubrin, Robert: THE CASE FOR MARS (1997)
    Zubrin, Robert: HOW TO LIVE ON MARS (2008)
    Zubrin, Robert & Frank Crossman: ON TO MARS (2005)

  15. Ian: Had even thought of adding nonfiction to the list, thanks!

  16. Ian, I popped over to your blog and was blown away. Though i’m not much for non-fiction, you have a very, very impressive blog and contents. The way things are going in this country ad the world, I’m beginning to doubt if we’ll land someone on the red planet in my lifetime, or ever. Sometimes I fear all the petty bickering (admittedly not petty to those doing it) will cause a sufficient devolution of progress that, with a strong does of complacency, humankind will just subside back into the swamp… Maybe I’m just kind of tired this afternoon.

  18. Richard – thanks for the kind words. I’m fascinated by the Apollo programme and what it achieved… and what it could have achieved. I decided to share that fascination via a blog. I’m happy that others share the same fascination,

  19. Carl, there’s the Mars of fiction – actually, there’s several. Much as I love the stories of Leigh Brackett, they don’t bear much resemblance to the real Red Planet. But I think there’s plenty of room for stories of the real Mars – both fiction and non-fiction.

  20. Ian: Oh, I agree. I like a well told story, whether that “story” be fictional or real, and the planet as is…or better said, as we currently know it…is just as wonder-inducing to me as are the tales of finding life there, of living there, etc.

    Richard: Good call. I didn’t really know much about Martian Manhunter until reading JLA when it rebooted several years ago. I came to really enjoy the character, even though I do not read many superhero comics these days (primarily a funds issue and where I choose to spend them.)

  21. de-lurking to mention two stories I haven’t seen here yet, both of them more on the fantasy side of things, but still involving Mars: “The Exiles” by Ray Bradbury (from the short story collection THE ILLUSTRATED MAN, which hooked me on Bradbury) and OUT OF THE SILENT PLANET by C.S. Lewis. Like most of Lewis’ writing, this book (the first of his Space Trilogy) is more of a fantasy exploring religious ideas than anything: he gives barely enough attention to science to explain how his characters got to Mars, and then gets on with the adventure & philosophy. Given that, when I read it in high school (as a fantasy fan), I really liked how he plays off the myths of Mars from his childhood: real canals, an explanation for its redness, etc. A lot of the main character’s thoughts about alien species in the first few chapters are fascinating as well.

  22. I just realized that the Northwest Smith stories by C.L. Moore, a collection of which I’m reading (“reading” being, at the moment, having a bookmark in it and it’s in an accessible area) take place on Mars. Title of the collection is NORTHWEST OF EARTH.

  24. Richard: The owner of our local comic shop FINALLY, at Jeff’s insistence, started bringing out some of their stash of books to sell so I ran by today to see what they had and ended up picking up, among other things, a copy of The Best of C.L. Moore for a dollar. I know I’ve read one or two of her stories in the past but none that are in this collection.

    Cassia: Great to have you de-lurk, thanks for the recommendations. I had Out of the Silent Planet when I was a kid but never ended up reading it.

  28. Richard: Mystery is wrapped up in the R.I.P. Challenge which I host from Sept. 1st through Oct. 31st. Although I have some mysteries that I am really wanting to read so I suspect I’ll be mixing mystery in with my fantasy reading here soon.

  30. Thanks Jim. I haven’t read any Stirling, though I do have a copy of Sky People that I picked up because of the wonderful cover art.

  31. That’s a song by King Crimson. Is there any connection? BTW, I just listened to it, thanks for the nudge, great song. September? I have a mystery apazine to publish, I can’t wait that long. So I’m going to put in things later that I read sooner. Or is that cheating? Hmmm, it sounds like it’s cheating, so it must be.

    Darn thing is, the current challenge (which I have, personally and arbitrarily extended until March 6) has gotten me so focused (this is all your fault, Carl and Jeff) on SF that my TBR is overflowing with the stuff. Got some fantasy in there too, but I really do need to get back to mystery fiction. My usual ratio is about 2 to 1 mystery to SF-F.

    Though I know he’s written a ton of stuff, all I’ve read by Stirling are short stories in the Man-Kzin Wars nooks (Niven’s universe) and in the collection More Than Honor in Weber’s universe.

  32. Richard: If you haven’t already seen evidence of the fact, “cheating” is something I strongly encourage by my own example. “List Your Top 10 Favorite Films”? I will inevitably come up with a way to sneak in an eleventh. “The Once Upon a Time Challenge begins March 21st”? I will no doubt read something fantasy related before that and count it for part of the challenge. To me the “challenge” part, the “rules” part is the least important, its all about reveling in whatever the genre of the moment is and sharing it with others.

    Your participation in this year’s Sci Fi Experience has certainly made it the most enjoyable one ever, and I thank you greatly for this. It is easy to stay focused and excited about the genre when folks like you and Jim and James and Jeff and Ian and all the other folks who have participated not only add something tangible to the conversations here on my site but also post such tempting fare on your own.

    Jan and Feb are the months I am most faithful to a particular genre/pattern of reading. SF has such a strong connection to my youth that I feel I am growing and moving forward while honoring the past whenever I read SF. Despite my love of the fantasy and gothic reads I partake of during my two more formally hosted challenges, I am never as faithful to them as I am to this period of time of reading. The 10 months of the year after Feb. are always filled with much more of a wide variety in my reading, and as I said earlier, there are a lot of mystery/detective books that I am itching to read soon, and between you and James Reasoner I know I will find others I want to add to my list.

    I say all that to say that it matters not to me if you save your current reads until Sept. or not. It won’t be cheating in my book, other than perhaps getting cheated now out of stuff you are enjoying and having to wait until later. Given that your pattern is 2:1 mystery to SF-F I think it is safe to say that you’ll be reading challenge-appropriate books in Sept/Oct anyway, right?!?!

  33. Wow. Thanks, Carl. Darned nice of you, and I know I’ll try to stay in bounds wit the challenges. Will there be a wrap-up post for the Sci-Fi Experience where we list our reads, or at least the count, or whatever?

    Whaa? I smell bacon. It’s time for breakfast. Browser has to go down now.

  34. Richard – I always think there is no ” cheating ” in the challenges. I think of them as a time to concentrate a little more in specific areas and we tend to share more with others in those areas during those times. There’s just no way I can read exclusively one genre only for two to three months at a time. Variety is the spice of life.

    Unlike Carl my first love is fantasy and in that genre I LOVE huge sprawling multi book series that never seem to end. I’m drawn to very character driven stories where the journey matters most to me. So I tend to ” cheat ” during all of the challenges for my first love. Now this doesn’t mean even during the Once Upon challenge that I don’t also cheat over to Scif or mystery or whatever. I’m a reader who always gets excited for the latest great story I’ve heard about.

  35. Okay, we’ll take the “cheat” word out of the discussion, and fine by me.

    Jeff, aside from Tolkein, Jordan and Eddings, who are your favorite epic fantasy authors and books?

  36. Richard: Bacon?!?! Now where did I put that transporter?

    I will do a wrap up for the Sci Fi Experience and will probably combine it with my February wrap up in a day or so.

    Jeff: Although I do consider science fiction my first love, I am not sure that I can honestly say I like it ‘better’ than fantasy, it is just different to me. When I say “fantasy” I of course mean all the categories I include in Once Upon a Time (fantasy, folklore, mythology and fairy tales…and all the sub genres). Fantasy touches a different spot than science fiction does. I’m looking forward to the OUaT reading coming up. But I’m also not ready to lay SF aside!!!

  37. Tolkein is certainly in my Top 5. I have read the first few Jordan books and enjoyed them. I want to read more of them one day. I have never Eddings though. I have heard mixed on him and just never have tried him over the years.

    As for my other favorites besides Tolkein. I would have to rate George RR Martin as my all time number one favorite. I also have really have enjoyed Robert E Howard, Raymond E Feist, Fritz Leiber, and Neil Gaiman.

    I have gathered some books over the last few months in anticpation of this year’s OUaT challenge. I hope to finish a Patrick Rothfuss novel during this year’s challange called In the Name of the Wind. I have read a quarter of it already and have enjoyed it quite a bit thus far.

    I also have books by Scott Lynch, Joe Abercrombie, Steven Ercikson that I hope to crack into as well as books by Alex Bledsoe and Gene Wolfe that I hope to finish during the challenge.

    Additionally an anthology called Warriors is slated to come out March 16th that I will snapping up as well as it as a lot of new original tales by some of my favorite authors and is edited by George RR Martin and Garder Dozios.

    Carl- I know what your saying. I define fantasy more narrowly for myself. My fantasy is wizards, warriors, and magic in a sword and sorcery world. I acknowledge other fantasy but for me a real fantasy should involve a dragon of some kind as well. I’m just old school. 🙂

  38. Speaking of sword and sorcery, I have that last volume of Conan stories that I never finished. I’m kind of exciting to think there are a couple of Howard short stories that I have yet to read. Then again it has been long enough since reading the first two collections that I’m sure I would enjoy reading them all over again.

  39. I can read Queen of the Black Coast every year and I’m sure I will again during this year’s OUaT challenge.

  40. Sounds like a plan. I should actually read and review that one Conan version with the Brom cover that came out a few years ago.

  41. If I was you I would finish Vol. 3 over the Brom cover one just because that way you will have read all the Conan tales. Just a thought.

  42. True…I was actually thinking of reading the Brom cover book instead of re-reading the other collections, not to take place of the stories I haven’t read. But I wasn’t very clear though, was I? 🙂 I also want to pick up where I left off in the Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser Dark Horse reprint series, want to try out some of Howard’s other characters, need to read the two Patricia A. McKillip books sitting on my shelf that I haven’t gotten to, have Game of Thrones, two Detective Inspector Chen books, fantasy stories from the Jack Vance collection, and the list goes on and on and on. I have every bit as many on-hand books that would count for the Once Upon a Time Challenge as I do SF books that I have yet to get to as the last “official” hours of the 2010 Sci Fi Experience winds down!

    As we’ve all said before though, it is a good problem to have.

  43. From the name of my blog, you know I am more sf focused but I still enjoy a lot of old school fantasy. This year I am re-reading some Zelazny fantasy. I am not sure what other books I will be reading for OUAT.

    Another Mars book I forgot to add to your list is “Jesus on Mars” by Philip Jose Farmer. I found it to be entertaining and interesting. Not his best book but still worth a read.

  44. Jim: Farmer is yet another author that I have never read. And now that I think about it I cannot recall if I’ve ever read anything by Zelazny either.

  48. Okay, I’m back. So much to catch up on.

    Carl – ” I’m kind of excited to think there are a couple of Howard short stories that I have yet to read.”

    So you have read the Solomon Kane, all the Conan except those few, the Kull, right? How abut the Bran Mack Morn stories? The westerns? The detective stories? The boxing stories? Just curious.

    Jeff, your up next.

  49. Jeff – Let’s see, where to start? Okay, Eddings. The Belgariad is excellent. The so-so things you’ve heard about Eddings probably had to do with the later trilogies and quartets or about him retreading some of his concepts in later books. I thought the second series, the Malloreon, is darned good too.

    “I would have to rate George RR Martin as my all time number one favorite.” Okay, I won’t quibble with that, I haven’t read as much Martin as you have, or as I probably should have. I read Songs of Stars and Shadows way back when and liked it. Ten years ago or so, whenever the paperback came out, I bought A Game of Thrones and got about 50 pages in and got pulled away and it sits with the book mark in it to this day. I have no idea why I stopped not any memory of the story. You’re not the first person to give Martin high praise.

    “I also have really have enjoyed Robert E Howard, Raymond E Feist, Fritz Leiber, and Neil Gaiman.” Boy it’s a regular Gaiman love fest aorund this place, eh? He’s not my style, or vice-versa so we’ll skip him. Howard is good, the Conan the best of them. Feist is okay, better, certainly than Stephen Lawhead, but not as good as Saberhagen. Have you read Empire of the East? The Books of Swords? Great stuff.

    “I hope to finish a Patrick Rothfuss novel Name of the Wind [over the challenge]. So do I. I haven’t started it but the OUAT will be the catalyst. All reviews have been very good indeed.

    I’m not familiar with either Scott Lynch, Joe Abercrombie or Steven Ercikson. There are so many people writng fantasy these days. I got the two Gene Wolfe books on Carl’s recommendation, and will read them in coming months.

    I don’t know of the Warriors anthology, I’m sorry to say. Sine it’s edited by Martin you may enjoy it, though I find liking the editor and liking the collection to be different matters entirely.

    And I do encourage you to red some of the Fritz Leiber Fafahrd and Grey Mouser stories!

  51. Richard: I see you caught me in some Carl-to-Jeff shorthand as what my ” I’m kind of excited to think there are a couple of Howard short stories that I have yet to read.” comment meant was there are a couple more Howard CONAN short stories that I haven’t read. I have a copy of the Kull collection…a nice collectible Subterranean Press edition…and have Bran Mak Morn. Also recently got a copy of a collection of some of his Weird Tales stories. But I’ve not read any Howard BUT Conan at this point.

  52. Well, the Conan is he best of it, thought the Kull stories aren’t bad. Skip the mysteries, boxing and westerns would be my advice. The Solomon Kane stories are pretty good, don’t let the recent film fool you, though they are kinda dark.

Comments are closed.