Rating: 
Summary: A must read for everyone interested in Mars exploration
Review: If you are interested in Mars, you must read these three books. As an engineer, I loved the technical explanations and how Red Mars gets into technological feats that are not out of our (near) reach. The characters are great and reading this book has opened my mind up to possibilities I would have never imagined, otherwise. If you like this book, you should also read Robert Zubrin's, "The Case for Mars" which tells how we can visit Mars with present day technology at a reasonable price (relatively speaking). I believe that pursuing a human colony on Mars is not only inevitable but definitely in Humanity's best interest. Hopefully it will happen in my life-time.
Rating: 
Summary: Yawn! Mars seems to be a straight world.
Review: Oh my, the characters are straigt. Being described during the first pages of the book, they don't stop to act in predictable pathways... if they act at all. Quite a lot of the pages are filled with boring details of technology and science. Of course technology and science are not boring, but this is supposed to be fiction, right? The action of the protagonists is being reduced to some kind of micropolitics. There don't seem to be feelings involved. Then suddenly the characters are old and so what!
Rating:
Summary: Mature science fiction with a multitude of issues
Review: Where can you start with this momumental book? It is so rich(in terms of themes, characters, emotion, description of landscape,etc.) it would take a whole book in itself to do it a just review.It is a completely plausible story, thanks to great attention to detail that gives it the accuracy and complexity that is found in the real world. It deals in such wide-ranging issues as politics, ecology, love, the effects of old age, the evils of capitalism, the future of humanity, and many other compelling themes. (In fact, where capitalism is concerned, it's pretty obvious that Kim Stanley Robinson views it as a flawed ideology - especially in Green Mars, Blue Mars, and his most recent book Antarctica. He sounds like a Marxist, or at least a modern anti-capitalist). But on top of these serious issues is the veneer of a great plot with political machinations and jealous characters. Then there's the vast scenery (Echus Overlook, the Valles Marineris, Olympus Mons) which - should a film ever be made of Red Mars (and it should) - would be absolutely breathtaking. And then layered on top of this is the cataclysmic ending, with towns exploding and floods gouging the land and the cable crashing down onto the planet. It's a cliche, but this book has something for everyone; human interest, science fiction, politics, beautiful scenery, action, and adventure. And it's just the start of a marvellous trilogy where the reader travels with old familiar characters and meets new ones, and ultimately goes to the far reaches of the Solar system with them. If ever a book so successfully depicted Mars as this, it would be a genius who did it. As it is, the genius of the moment is Kim Stanley Robinson.
Rating: 
Summary: Red Mars is an astonishing, enlightening piece of writing...
Review: I have just finished Red Mars, literally minutes ago. It is a superb piece of _Science_ fiction writing. The book's strongest point is the research that has gone into it. I love learning as I travel in new worlds (in any kind of fiction), and this has done a superb job of this. My one criticism (and the reason why only 4 stars) is that there are stretches where the novel _almost_ feels academic; where the science overwhelms the story & characters. STill, one of the best pieces of science fiction I have ever read. I can't wait to read the next one!
Rating:
Summary: Mars no longer holds any mystery for me...
Review: This book is my favourate out of the three. It has more lfe in it, no Jackey, and lots of Arkady. Great.
Rating:
Summary: A book Michener would write in 2200
Review: If you like James Michener, then you should love this trilogy. Like Michener, Kim Stanley Robinson's books provide such a rich span of ideas and a depth of detail in every aspect of life and science - geology, politics, biology, human development, economics, etc. I liked these books better than those by Clarke or Asimov because I felt they dealt with issues at a much more mature and intelligent level. Moreover, I am compelled, these days, to browse the pictures being returned by the Mars Global Surveyor to see if I can find some of the features described in these wonderful books.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing. One of the best books I've ever read.
Review: I don't know if I can say much more than that. I started the book expecting a GOOD read (from the reviews posted in the book), but I got much more than that; I got a SIMPLY AWESOME read that far exceeded my expectations. Kim Stanley Robinson's attention to detail and his extensive scientific research demonstrated in the book is truly great. Each one of his characters are superb and seem real (And that is a great feat considering the massive amount of characters in the story). I won't go on any further, as I could ramble on all day about his insightful issues discussed (such as female inferiority in Arab culture, and Atheism vs. Christianity), and other aspects of the book. I recommend this book to anyone, not just sci-fi fans. Trust me, you won't regret taking the time to read Red Mars. It's well worth it.
Rating:
Summary: A Colonists' Guide to Red Planets
Review: The most intriguing and detailed story about the colonization of mars in all aspects - from geology, meterology, physics to science and politics. Albeit you have to enjoy this genre in order to fully appreciate this work of science faction cocktail.
Rating:
Summary: The greatest SF since Arthur C. Clarke
Review: Hhmmmm... possibly my favourite trilogy of all time. If I could meet Kim Stanley Robinson I would shake his hand. And call him Master. The Mars trilogy are the most involving, educated, eloquent and moving science fiction books available. Having read these I developed my own interest in the Red planet, his depiction of Olympus Mons, Elysium Montes and Echus Overlook are truly engrossing. To cap this finest of SF books he presents the reader with the stark dichotomy of the eternal planet and its new inhabitants, the frailty of the human spirit over shadowed by the beauty of nature. Fan-bloody-tastic.
Rating:
Summary: All I can say is buy this book.
Review: Red mars blends politics and science fiction together to create a masterpiece. Not only does it describe the situation but it develops the characters so much that you become attached to them. Buy this book and the other two in the trilogy.
|
