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magnetgrrl's review
4.0
A couple of the stories in here were really great - I especially liked the ones by Ellen Klages, Kage Baker, and Cory Doctorow. Even the ones that didn't really grab me were pretty good, just not my taste. Overall I found this to be an enjoyable, thought-provoking, and worthwhile anthology.
librariann's review
I might have missed a story or two in this one, but I read most of them. I especially liked Cory Doctorow's story.
katherinem310's review
3.0
This short story collection contains 12 works from contemporary science fiction writers. The protagonists of the stories range in age from 12 to mid-forties. These stories are varied in their themes and language (some with profanity) so it is difficult to give appropriate age range. I would like to say that the only common denominator is that they are all about the colonization of Mars at different stages of development, and that the authors use the same Martian topography and scientific details that were recovered from NASA missions to add credibility. There are stories of friendship, racism, suicide, social class, dedication, and the idea that colonizing Mars to escape problems on Earth will never work as long as we are still human.
The problem with this collection is that it feels too long; it would be a stronger book if it cut half of the stories, particularly the Chris Roberson story which was lost in videogame and role-playing game jargon with no gripping plot. The stand outs are the stories by Kage Baker, Alastair Reynolds, Cory Doctorow, Ellen Klages, Rachel Swirsky, and John Barnes. Though these 6 writers are varied in their subject, their stories have the most appeal to teens and adults and are written in an engaging style.
The problem with this collection is that it feels too long; it would be a stronger book if it cut half of the stories, particularly the Chris Roberson story which was lost in videogame and role-playing game jargon with no gripping plot. The stand outs are the stories by Kage Baker, Alastair Reynolds, Cory Doctorow, Ellen Klages, Rachel Swirsky, and John Barnes. Though these 6 writers are varied in their subject, their stories have the most appeal to teens and adults and are written in an engaging style.
thiefofcamorr's review
4.0
Katharine is a judge for the Aurealis Awards. This review is the personal opinion of Katharine herself, and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of any judging panel, the judging coordinator or the Aurealis Awards management team.
To be safe, I won't be recording my review here until after the AA are over.
To be safe, I won't be recording my review here until after the AA are over.
slcrow's review
4.0
As is always the case with short story collections, some of these are more memorable than others, with Rachel Swirsky and Cory Doctorow's standing out for me among the rest. This was shelved with the "YA" tag in my library, but in spite of the younger protagonists in most of these stories, I can bet that most adults would enjoy them as well.
I hope kids are reading this stuff, however, and dreaming of Mars. Since this current generation has really sucked up the areas of space flight and exploration, maybe if more of the younger generations are intrigued by the horizons of the red planet and beyond, we'll have the possibility to actually succeed in becoming a bi-planetary species.
I hope kids are reading this stuff, however, and dreaming of Mars. Since this current generation has really sucked up the areas of space flight and exploration, maybe if more of the younger generations are intrigued by the horizons of the red planet and beyond, we'll have the possibility to actually succeed in becoming a bi-planetary species.
eowyn's review
4.0
I picked this up because it was in the young teen section at the library and I wondered if Samuel would like it. A lot of authors I really enjoy are in here plus some new to me and overall, it's a good collection. Many of the protagonists are kids or teenagers but I don't think Samuel would enjoy it yet. I'd recommend it for late middle school/high school.
richardmtl's review
4.0
Turns out this book is mostly for, and about, teenagers, but I enjoyed all of the stories to various degrees nonetheless.
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