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Mars Audiobook
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(3.00) - 3,589 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
This grand epic adventure from six-time Hugo Award–winning author Ben Bova tells the irresistible story of man’s first mission to that great unconquered frontier, Mars—a planet pocked by meteors, baked by ultraviolet light, and covered by endless deserts the color of dried blood. Technically plausible and compellingly human, Bova’s story explores the political, scientific, and social repercussions of our greatest quest yet: the search for evidence of life beyond Earth’s boundaries.
Half-Navajo geologist Jamie Waterman has been selected for the ground team of the first manned expedition to our mysterious neighbor planet. Joining an international team of twenty-five astronauts and scientists, he endures the rigors of training, the dangers of traveling an incredible distance in space, the challenges of an alien landscape, and the personal and political conflicts that arise when the team must face the most shocking discovery of all.
Mars is an unforgettable portrait of space, politics, science, and humanity that captures for all time the mystery and wonder of an alien frontier.
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"Mars is a great story with some good scientific/technical insights to what a human expedition to the Red Planet might entail - as well as a plausible political scenario as well! This is a well-written story with good characterization and plot continuity and depth. Not a five-star favorite, but something I would recommend to a SF reader who is looking for a well-written story based in hard science."
— Ronschae4 (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Bova re-creates for us much of that first excitement we felt in reading about the possibilities of space flight or, later, witnessing the earliest manned exploration.”
— Los Angeles Times Book Review -
“An intelligent, entertaining story that may also serve as a rallying cry.”
— Omni -
“A sweeping, Michener-style saga of the first expedition to our neighboring planet…[T]he ultimate summer escape.”
— People -
“An exemplary summer read…adventurous, brilliant, over-the-edge characters…a carefully imagined, striking, and spooky portrait of the planet.”
— Voice Literary Supplement -
“Bova’s 1992 novel follows Jamie Waterman—a Navaho geologist—on the first manned mission to Mars. The multinational expedition is wrought with political and personal strife, as well as a mysterious illness that strikes the entire land crew and nearly brings the project to a halt. The earnestness and longing of the lead character comes through in Stefan Rudnicki’s voice as he narrates the story of Waterman’s dogged search for signs of life on the Red Planet. Whether or not there’s life beneath the frozen surface of Mars, Rudnicki’s spellbinding baritone brings all the members of the international crew to life, providing believable accents for Russian, Brazilian, English, Japanese, and Israeli members of the landing team.”
— AudioFile -
“A bulging, impressive, all-you-ever-wanted-to-know, you-are-there Martian odyssey.”
— Kirkus Reviews -
“Bova has done extensive research and his descriptions of Mars and the conditions under which the study is conducted are very plausible. All in all, a satisfying story.”
— School Library Journal
Mars Listener Reviews
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" 3.5 stars. I enjoyed this book, although not quite as much I hoped I would. I'm unsure if I will read the next book in the series or not now. It honestly got a bit boring at times with the lengthy character studies seeming to be more the focus than the overall story line. I found it hard to believe that a few of the characters would ever have been allowed to go on a mission such as this, too. I did like the main character, though, and his story alone might entice me to go ahead and read the next book to see what happens next. "
— DK, 2/18/2014 -
" Well written science fiction about a trip to Planet Mars....could it happen? "
— George, 1/11/2014 -
" Solid Sci-Fi. Very nice realistic account of what a mission to Mars might be like today. Decent plot and solid characters. "
— Hamish, 1/11/2014 -
" I listened to this book. The narrator didn't help the story at all. He made it sound like a 5th graders book. I could not finish it. Maybe it is a better 'read' than 'listen'. "
— Christy, 1/4/2014 -
" This is an entertaining novel, with a completely believable trip to Mars. The characters are interesting, and the descriptions of both Earth and Mars are vivid. Good story, too. "
— Salvatore, 1/2/2014 -
" Rather anticlimactic, more about interpersonal politics than mars itself. But, I think it sets up the next in the series....so.... "
— Ho'oki, 1/2/2014 -
" Man's first landing on Mars "
— Drew, 12/23/2013 -
" Very long and drawn out I suppose if you are into political science fiction it could be good but was a struggle for me to get through. "
— Aaron, 12/10/2013 -
" I have always liked good stories about Mars and this is one. "
— Philip, 12/5/2013 -
" Realistic and gritty. Well thought out mission plan mixes with human drama. Good stuff. "
— J., 11/29/2013 -
" Listened to this book on tape. Great stuff. Read this book too. The moment Waterman glimpsed the 'object ' that is one of my favorite scenes from any story. "
— Mainrun, 11/9/2013 -
" If you're fan of astronomy and spatial technology this book is great. Unfortunatly the characters are so sketched and boring, you don't care what will happen to them next. "
— Stéphanie, 10/26/2013 -
" Don't remember much other than some people go to Mars and are attacked by scurvy. This guy comes up with some dumb but funny plots. "
— Bob(by), 10/8/2013 -
" Ben Bova doesn't disappoint with this vision of how a multi-national drive for Mars will play out. Read this for some imminent Sci-Fi. "
— Angus, 9/22/2013 -
" Excellent read by one of my favorite SciFi authors. "
— Michael, 7/29/2013 -
" One of Ben Bova's better books with lots of mars descriptions of day to day living and working on this harsh but beautiful planet. Should be read as 2 books as second book is where most of the dicoveries takes place and reader will want to know all that is hinted at. "
— Tim, 4/14/2013 -
" This was a very interesting and realistic take on how humans might someday colonize the red planet. Thought-provoking and smart, but it does get a little too long-winded and over-crowded with detail. "
— David, 3/10/2013 -
" Just started reading Ben Bova and really like his style. It's very clear and concise writing like Isaac Asimov. Great start to a three book series. Very interesting characters and plot. "
— Rick, 12/13/2011 -
" Lots of laughs! Good science fiction. The author acknowledges using photos of the planet to assist him which really got me wanting to read it. "
— Bruce, 9/24/2011 -
" I really liked Bovas epic story about Mars exploration and terraforming. Although it is long and quite dry at some points this is one of those books you would like to live in. "
— Lisa, 9/17/2011 -
" Boring. Underwhelming. Outdated. Ben Bova's Mars is mundane through and through. It is so slow and directionless that, by the time the story starts, you have turned the last page. I would only recommend it to those who particularly love this setting. Otherwise, move along. "
— Josh, 7/21/2011 -
" <br/>If you'd like to know what I thought of this book, please contact me directly and I'd be happy to discuss it with you.<br/><br/>All the best,<br/><br/><br/>--Symon "
— Symon, 6/18/2011 -
" Makes me forever sad that I can't go... "
— Kate, 12/30/2010 -
" this is good, but often very slow and had to put it down for a few days at a time. "
— Jason, 12/29/2010 -
" solid story telling and good characterisation. a tad cheesy but i loved it and the end was breathtakingly exciting "
— Sandyboy, 12/10/2010 -
" the rocks in this book have more personality than the characters. No I'm serious! there's this lovely martian boulder with a green streak in it that has all this.. this potential! this guy knows his science but can't write complex emotion for shit. "
— Anna, 10/5/2010 -
" This is an entertaining novel, with a completely believable trip to Mars. The characters are interesting, and the descriptions of both Earth and Mars are vivid. Good story, too. "
— Salvatore, 8/24/2010 -
" My First Ben Bova that has lead me to collect the rest of the Grand Tour of the Solar System books. I really liked the non fantastic approach to the technology and setting. "
— Colin, 6/27/2010 -
" A little slow to start, but it gets interesting as you go along. I'm planning on reading the next one. "
— Michelle, 6/9/2010 -
" If you like hard science fiction, it's hard to ignore Ben Bova. I think I would have killed a few of the characters, but then that wouldn't be good hard science fiction. "
— Mike, 6/4/2010
About Ben Bova
Ben Bova (1932–2020), American author of more than one hundred books of science fact and fiction, was awarded posthumously the Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award. His work earned six Hugo Awards. He received the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation in 2005, and his novel Titan won the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for the best science fiction novel of 2006. In his early career, he was a technical editor for Project Vanguard, the United States’s first effort to launch a satellite into space in 1958. He then was a science writer for Avco Everett Research Laboratory, which built the heat shields for the Apollo 11 module. He held the position of president emeritus of the National Space Society and served as president of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.
About Stefan Rudnicki
Stefan Rudnicki first became involved with audiobooks in 1994. Now a Grammy-winning audiobook producer, he has worked on more than five thousand audiobooks as a narrator, writer, producer, or director. He has narrated more than nine hundred audiobooks. A recipient of multiple AudioFile Earphones Awards, he was presented the coveted Audie Award for solo narration in 2005, 2007, and 2014, and was named one of AudioFile’s Golden Voices in 2012.