Red Mars

A very deep dive into what it would be like to colonize Mars - the science, the engineering, the environmental politics (to terraform or not, and if so, what are the limits), the economics, and the interpersonal relationships. This book was fascinating, and at times very moving, but also very... long. Each section of this book is told from a different colonist's perspective. Some of those colonists I loved spending time with, and others I had a hard time tolerating. Overall a fascinating book, with depressing commentary on our own condition on Earth.

3.5/5.0 ~ I really liked how they portrayed the development of the Mars Colony, with all the science information and some of the problems involved. My problem was with connecting with the characters, specially because there were so many, all of them were likeable enough but I didn't feel they were realistic.

Ordinary situations taking place in an extraordinary setting. Put a group of one hundred brilliant scientists in a spaceship heading to colonize a new planet, and what do they do? They fuck like rabbits, they squander and gossip among themselves and they immediately aim to ignore everything they were ordered to do in their mission. The “founding fathers” of this new world are portrayed as teenagers going to college, anxious to rebel against their parents and the norms of society to do as they please.

There is some discussions about Americans trying to impose they're freedom to everybody and the Russians favoring the communism way of living. Also some hints of atheism scientists vs religious fundamentalists.

The scenes are devoid of emotion and these social conflicts are too prosaic or paltry described to bear any interest. They just weren't enough to constitute a meaningful reading experience, unlike 1984 or Brave New World which brought up social conflicts and integrated them into a good novel.

Read 3:22 / 23:05 15%

Didn't enjoy this as much as 2312. The future history of Mars is interesting, but the characters just weren't for me, and I need both plot and character to really enjoy a story. I also felt this could have been way more tightly edited. Of course, this is a hugely popular trilogy, so most likely it's a great book that just isn't my cup of tea!