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saucy_bookdragon's review against another edition
challenging
funny
informative
slow-paced
3.0
I hope no billionaires read this book, I want them to go to space I think it’d be funny.
A City On Mars is for people who are either pro-space settlement or on the fence about it. I am neither of those groups, I think it's a stupid idea, especially as an answer to climate change (it seems to me that fixing earth would be a lot easier than making Mars hospitable, the Weinersmith's agree with me). As such I didn't personally get any new perspective in this book, just further confirmation that I'm right. This isn't a problem for the book, just I'm not the target audience.
I did find the information overall pretty interesting though. It went into impressive detail about why we can't settle space yet, from the science to the politics. I do think at times it went into too much detail, not with the information but with the writing being a bit too dense, especially for such an info heavy novel. A LOT of different topics are covered, astronomy, biology, engineering, psychology, physics, sociology, politics, economics, and history. And there are definitely several paragraphs that could have been worded in shorter ways.
There is humor sprinkled throughout, though I wish there was more. More humor also would've helped this feel less like a downer, even for someone as pessimistic about space settlements as I this was depressing. The book ends with an attempt at being optimistic, but it rings hollow, kinda wish they just ended it with "it sucks, let's not do it this century."
Overall, wish the writing was less dense and funnier, though there is a lot of interesting information. Your mileage may very based on the topic, though I do think it's important to cover all our bases with space settlements.
A City On Mars is for people who are either pro-space settlement or on the fence about it. I am neither of those groups, I think it's a stupid idea, especially as an answer to climate change (it seems to me that fixing earth would be a lot easier than making Mars hospitable, the Weinersmith's agree with me). As such I didn't personally get any new perspective in this book, just further confirmation that I'm right. This isn't a problem for the book, just I'm not the target audience.
I did find the information overall pretty interesting though. It went into impressive detail about why we can't settle space yet, from the science to the politics. I do think at times it went into too much detail, not with the information but with the writing being a bit too dense, especially for such an info heavy novel. A LOT of different topics are covered, astronomy, biology, engineering, psychology, physics, sociology, politics, economics, and history. And there are definitely several paragraphs that could have been worded in shorter ways.
There is humor sprinkled throughout, though I wish there was more. More humor also would've helped this feel less like a downer, even for someone as pessimistic about space settlements as I this was depressing. The book ends with an attempt at being optimistic, but it rings hollow, kinda wish they just ended it with "it sucks, let's not do it this century."
Overall, wish the writing was less dense and funnier, though there is a lot of interesting information. Your mileage may very based on the topic, though I do think it's important to cover all our bases with space settlements.
kitwhelan's review
challenging
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
10/10
I usually STRUGGLE to get through nonfiction books, even ones about space, but omg this was so hilarious and so well-written that it was a joy to pick up.
It is also a bummer for space settlement enthusiasts. But if you fantasize about Star Trek this really is a must read!
I usually STRUGGLE to get through nonfiction books, even ones about space, but omg this was so hilarious and so well-written that it was a joy to pick up.
It is also a bummer for space settlement enthusiasts. But if you fantasize about Star Trek this really is a must read!