Customer Reviews

Outpost Mars: A science-fiction novel

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Outpost Mars is one of the best novels about Mars from the 1950s, easily comparable to Robert A. Heinlein's "Red Planet," Arthur C. Clarkes "Sands Of Mars," and even Bradbury's "Martian Chronicles."

It's about the people of a colony on Mars attempting to become a self-sufficient community, as opposed to a number of industrial establishements - mines, etc. - surviving by trading with Earth. Their story is told mainly by following the daily routine of the colony's doctor, Tony Hellman, handling several minor medical problems (delivering a baby, etc.) as a legal crisis develops for the entire colony. A big pharmaceutical company has accused someone from the colony of stealing a large quantity of illegal drugs, and they'll be effectively quarantined and ultimately starved out if they don't turn over the missing dope. The political, criminal, and medical aspects are developed intrigueingly, and the drugs, the new baby's problems, and some mysterious happenings are all tied together at the end.

The characters are also developed better than most sci-fi from the era. The author, Cyril Judd, is actually the pseudonym of C.M. Kornbluth and Judith Merrill writing together. The style is nearly as good as Heinlein's, though from a bit more liberal perspective, and some of the most important characters are women, including the head of the colony's council and a brave hero.

Scientifically, about the only thing badly dated is the description of radio communication - they couldn't take a voice transmitter on a plane so they used morse code, and they relay messages, like old-time radiograms, from station to station. Also use of a typewriter is mentioned. They've developed a pill that let's people breath on Mars, and there's a lot of talk about mutations and drugs making people adaptable to the environment. I think if you assume some terraforming has already taken place as part of the background of the story, it's still relatively sound.