Other Mars novels besides the Martian.

[Tweeker]

There has been a lot of chatter about the novel the Martian. I have been trying to remember another Mars book I had read. I finally remembered the title, Voyage to the Red Planet.

anyone else remember this book? If you can find it it wasn't a bad read.

I also thought it would be good if anyone else had any recommendations of Mars novels and recommendations.

[Cydonian Monk]

Actually the first I've heard of the book, but not surprising considering when it was published. I was more interested in a different desert in 1991. And not really into science fiction yet.

Mars is a curious subject for literature. Most of the golden age stuff was published when the popular understanding of the planet was vastly different than now. Canals and aliens and whatnot. Even the works from the 80s and 90s are a bit off. Of those I've read I can strongly recommend Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars Trilogy (in which I've just made it to Blue Mars). And probably "The Martians" companion/short-story compilation assuming it's as good as the rest, but I've not read it yet.

There's really not much Mars Lit that I've read, come to think of it. I started into the Martian Chronicles in high school but never made it past the nuclear winter. Stranger in a Strange Land is good (from a certain viewpoint), but I find it hard to think of as Martian anymore. (It's more of an Earth story anyway.)

Edited September 23, 2015 by Cydonian Monk

[Bill Phil]

Red Mars. That's a goodie.

[Vaebn]

Voyage, by Stephen Baxter

[Tweeker]

Voyage, by Stephen Baxter

looks interesting, i'll have to hit it up on the kindle.

[legoclone09]

The Dunisian.

I'm sorry, I had to. But the Tripod series is rather good, even thoughh it isn't directly about Mars.

[Justicier]

"A Princess of Mars" by Edgar Rice Burrows was a fun read. If you can get past the difference in perspective (early 1900's knowledge of what Mars is like as opposed to what we know now) it's rather entertaining. It's also interesting to note just how much science was actually accurate in a book that was released during World War I.

[Plume & Akakak]

One of Philip Jose Farmer's sweet "Freudian xenobiology" novella takes place on Mars : "My Sister’s Brother" (variant title: "Open to Me, My Sister"). It’s the novella closing Strange Relations, 1960. There are other fine stories in the book, especially "Mother".

[Superfluous J]

I really enjoyed Ben Bova's Mars (Original title, I know). Great hard science story of the first manned Mars mission, with some good human drama that doesn't overtake the story.

The 2nd book - Return to Mars - I didn't like as much. I liked how the first book hinted at a great discovery but didn't allow the payoff. In my mind, those hints were far better than the actual payoff the 2nd book provided. i never read the 3rd book.

[Tweeker]

I really enjoyed Ben Bova's Mars (Original title, I know). Great hard science story of the first manned Mars mission, with some good human drama that doesn't overtake the story.

The 2nd book - Return to Mars - I didn't like as much. I liked how the first book hinted at a great discovery but didn't allow the payoff. In my mind, those hints were far better than the actual payoff the 2nd book provided. i never read the 3rd book.

I think I remember that one now that you mention it. I kept getting it mixed up in my mind with the one I mentioned, "Voyage to the Red Planet." I can't remember it clearly, or if I read the second one. But I remember I ejoyed it, Refresh my mind, Did they make the discovery in the 1st book?

[Superfluous J]

I think I remember that one now that you mention it. I kept getting it mixed up in my mind with the one I mentioned, "Voyage to the Red Planet." I can't remember it clearly, or if I read the second one. But I remember I ejoyed it, Refresh my mind, Did they make the discovery in the 1st book?

Sort of. The main character - a Native American - thought he saw adobe type cliff dwellings on the wall of - I think - the walls of Valles Marineris. Before he can get close enough to see for himself, though, certain things happen. Pretty much nobody believes him because his heritage could be affecting his judgement and we all know the trouble you can get into making guesses about vague shapes you see on Mars.

It's not until book 2 that we get up close and personal with what he saw from afar in book 1, and as I said I found the actuality lacking compared to the mystery.

[monstah]

The Martian Way, by Asimov. I love his depiction of the colonists, and in general I think his work is better when kept short.

[Dafni]

The Long Mars, by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter. It's the third book in the Long Earth series. I enjoyed those books a lot.

[RocketBlam]

Ray Bradbury wrote several Mars stories. One "collection", which is kind of called a novel but it's really all short stories about Mars, is The Martian Chronicles.

[obsidian_x]

While not strictly 100% Mars based Alastair Reynolds Revelation Space series, and stand alone short story collections have some Mars references. The short story named The Great Wall of Mars (in the Galactic North book) basically give an origin story for one of the main protagonists the series. Good stories, Mars doesn't feature too heavily though. Goes into Fictional Science though, and far future (space opera).

Also his latest Poseidon's Children (technically a trilogy, but are fairly independent books) features Mars, with some rogue AI "evolvarium". Starts relatively near future, and goes into pretty far future. Probably falls into Fictional Science (lots of genetic tinkering, "chibesa physics" and post chibesa physics.

[Vanamonde]

Fun one.

[dr_jt]

"A Princess of Mars" by Edgar Rice Burrows was a fun read. If you can get past the difference in perspective (early 1900's knowledge of what Mars is like as opposed to what we know now) it's rather entertaining. It's also interesting to note just how much science was actually accurate in a book that was released during World War I.

The old,(literally), beautiful, naked, red skinned, egg laying woman of Mars, oops, Barsoom. What more can a man want?

The interesting thing about the Barsoom series is that it was consider a fantasy romance novel for its day. The other interesting thing is that Dejah Thoris really doesn't have a very large part in it although she is the driving force for John Carter. I'm not so sure about the accurate science. I guess that the depiction of the planet needing atmosphere plants and that it was desert like, except for the moss in place of sand. Otherwise the whole thing about radium arms, light wave tech based on colors including lifting rays wasn't really very accurate. The Disney movie was a big miss as far as the books go, but it was entertaining to a degree.

- - - Updated - - -

The Dunisian.

I'm sorry, I had to. But the Tripod series is rather good, even thoughh it isn't directly about Mars.

I don't remember the Tripods being from Mars.

Edited September 29, 2015 by dr_jt

[davidy12]

A Case for Mars by Robert Zubrin. Duh!

[dr_jt]

A Case for Mars by Robert Zubrin. Duh!

Not really a novel. More of a tech paper I would think.

[RainDreamer]

May be someone can remind me a title of the mars-related book series, I probably have them somewhere in my paper library, but cannot find it now.

There is a series of stories, may be even entire books dedicated to fictional Mars history, from time it was wet and lush to the time it become dry and arid.

I cannot even remember the story (may be hero was able to travel time?),

but I have a single phrase stuck in my memory, it's like "martian women looked at him like a cats", or something like that.

Haven't read them, but could that be Kim Stanley's Mars triology? Red Mars, Blue Mars, Green Mars.