The Martian Chronicles

Sometimes whimsical, sometimes prescient, this is a collection of stories of earthlings landing on Mars. As it progresses we realise that they are chapters of a continuing narrative with a dark undercurrent of how readily we otherise certain communities.

It's hard to set a particular date to the stories. Some seem to be set in the future and some in a bygone era of the American south.

The overall feel of the book is that I started out reading an innocent story that ended up with an unexpected sting in its tail.