The Martians

Mars Trilogy #3.5

by Kim Stanley Robinson

Kim Stanley Robinson’s Mars trilogy is one of science fiction’s most honored stories, with Red Mars winning the distinguished Nebula Award, and both Green Mars and Blue Mars honored with the Hugo. Now Robinson returns to the realm he has made his own—the planet Mars—in a brilliantly imagined drama with a searing poetic vision.From a training mission in Antarctica to blistering sandstorms sweeping through labyrinths of barren canyons, the interwoven stories of The Martians set in motion a sprawling cast of characters upon the surface of Mars. As the planet is transformed from an unexplored and forbidding terrain to a troubled image of a re-created Earth, we meet the First Hundred explorers—men and women who are bound together by Earth’s tenuous toehold on Mars. Presenting unforgettable stories of hope and disappointment, of fierce physical and psychological struggles, The Martians is an epic chronicle of a planet that represents one of humanity’s most glorious possibilities.Praise for The Martians“A uniquely rewarding experience of state-of-the-art science fiction.”—The New York Times Book Review“No one familiar with Robinson’s trilogy can read through these final, valedictory stories without feeling moved.”—The Washington Post“The stories are beautifully written, the characters are well developed and the author’s passion for ecology manifests itself on every page.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Short Stories, Collections, Science Fiction Fantasy, Speculative Fiction, Space

448 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Kim Stanley Robinson is an American science fiction writer. He has published 22 novels and numerous short stories and is best known for his Mars trilogy. His work has been translated into 24 languages. Many of his novels and stories have ecological, cultural, and political themes and feature scientists as heroes. Robinson has won numerous awards, including the Hugo Award for Best Novel, the Nebula Award for Best Novel and the World Fantasy Award. The Atlantic has called Robinson's work "the gold standard of realistic, and highly literary, science-fiction writing." According to an article in The New Yorker, Robinson is "generally acknowledged as one of the greatest living science-fiction writers."

Reviews

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I tell people that short story collections aren't novels. This, you might think, is obvious. Yet many people insist upon reading them as if they were novels; start at page one and carry on until page the last. I think this might be why some people end up not liking the short story form: they think the way to read them is 10 - 20 at a time by one author, one shortly after the other. This may not be the best way. I encourage people to think of each story as the basic element, not each volume. Read them in any order you like, read only one then put it back on the shelf, if you want. They are almost always published individually in magazines prior to collection in paperback volumes. Treat them that way and they might appear in a new light.

If my theory were a submarine, this book is the depth charge that sinks it: not only is it necessary to read the stories in order for it all to make sense, it is best read whilst the details of KSR's Mars trilogy are still fresh in the mind (which wasn't the case for me), because we're back on Mars with the First Hundred and others for some stories that didn't quite fit in the novels and they are told in chronological order...except when we aren't, that is. You need to keep your wits about you: some of the stories aren't set on Mars - some are set in an alternative timeline from that set out in the novels. Many assume you know the characters and plot of the novels. Some of the newer characters recurr so that later stories will make much more sense if you've read the earlier ones.

The alternative timeline isn't the only experimental aspect of the collection. Some of the pieces are just documents, e.g. a series of abstracts from scientific papers debating the origin of nanobacteria - native Martian or Earth contaminent? The Martian Constitution in full and a commentary on it. And there's more: a story about KSR finishing writing the Mars novels, a small collection of "poems" - see later.

The quality of the stories varies, some of the experiments are successes, others failures. The best are truely excellent and sometimes shocking. The worst are miserable creatures, not fit for the light of day. I don't like sports stories generally. Baseball stories are the worst of a dire genre. So a "baseball on Mars" story is just awful...the "poems" lack all merit. How many writers have been successful novelists and poets? Scott and Hardy. Can you name another? KSR's verses here don't really seem to demonstrate a grasp of what a poem is, let alone act as exemplars of the form.

But the best stories are great and usually heavily informed by both character and landscape (which will be no surprise to KSR fans). KSR's ability to write about landscape is in fact comparable to Thomas Hardy's. They both make you see it as if you've been there, which makes sense with Hardy's Wessex and KSR's California because they respectively lived in those places. But KSR can make you see the Dry Valleys of Antarctica just as well - OK, he's been there for a few days. But Mars? He makes me see Mars just as well. This is the basis of my theory that KSR is an alien in disguise: he can describe Mars just as well as he can describe the Californian coastline - because he's been there, too!

So that feat never ceases to amaze me and KSR has another talent that is rare - he can write excellently about mountaineering - which is just as well as one of the stories, the longest in fact, is about climbing the solar system's largest mountain, Olympus Mons. The story is thematically like the Mars Trilogy in miniature at least in respect of the whole Red-Green debate. I'm a Red. In fact my Redness is so saturated it is almost black. So I sympathise with that story's main protagonist. (Don't read that story whilst depressed, however - you may not survive to finish it.)

So I rate this volume at three stars - but that is like the mean of the temperature across a year in New York: not much different from that of, say London, but the extremes are much greater. In fact all fans of the Mars Trilogy should read this book remember its triumphs and forget its failures. Kudos to KSR for taking all the risks he did in this book, the ones that pay off are jackpot winners.

[Jemppu · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful addition to the Mars trilogy.

This was such a delicious and unexpectedly varied catering. From scientifically detailed study notes, existential philosophizing and atmospheric poeticism - familiar from the main trilogy - to borderline satiric friskiness. Intimate glimpses to the members of the established cast and their past experiences, as well as introductions to new persons, looks into curious mundane aspects of Martian living, and moments from the origins of the terraforming mission. Plus, some intriguingly interpretation free encounters.

All just as fascinating as the original story, and painfully amiable or laugh out loud hilarious besides; indeed, there were passages in this that got me laughing, fondly regarding the cast, or got my brain teased more than I remember even the comparably evenly toned original trilogy would've done.

Without an overarching story to plot out, it seems the book is able to fully concentrate on the most rewarding moments, which all together definitely make this a collection of hits.

I went into this to ease myself out of the universe, but the book managed to get me bonding with the characters ever more; wanting to go back to the original three, to see the cast again in the light of these added tidbits to their personalities and relationships, as well as wanting to learn more about some of the introduced new characters (Edvard Perrin and George Berkovic! Or how did the two Claybornes' encounter perhaps affect them later on?).

Fully engrossing 5/5. And one to make me that much more curious for KSR's extended library, too.

______
Reading updates.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

The friend who lent me The Martians warned me that most of the stories aren't continuations of the Mars trilogy, indeed several are alternate universes in which the first hundred's expedition never happened. I'm glad I knew this when beginning the book, otherwise it would have been confusing. The selection of, mostly brief, stories branching away from the trilogy are interesting although, inevitably, some proved more memorable than others. The longest, which confusingly has the same title as the second book of the trilogy, is the stand-out in my view. This closely follows an expedition to climb Olympus Mons. I have no personal interest in rock-climbing, but was nonetheless riveted by the account of ascending the tallest mountain in the solar system. It's so tall that the summit reaches above the breathable atmosphere of terraformed Mars, into space.

My other favourites were the constitution of Mars and reflections thereon. I couldn't help mentally comparing it with the (never implemented) French revolutionary constitution of 1793, which also sought to limit wealth accumulation and private ownership. I also found the reflections on terraforming in the long-term rather fascinating. Insofar as some stories are sequels to the trilogy, they depict Mars in an ice age. The generational differences in responses to this are thought-provoking. An alternative universe story in which none of the trilogy happened includes some excellent reflections on recruitment for space travel:

In short, they had to be sane to be selected, but crazy to want to go.

Many other double binds accompanied that basic one. Applicants had to be extroverted enough to socialise, but introverted enough to have studied a discipline to the point of mastering it. They had to be old enough to have learned these primary, secondary, and sometimes tertiary professions, and yet be young enough to withstand the rigours of the trip out and their work there. They had to do well in groups, but want to leave everyone they knew behind forever. They were being asked to tell the truth, but clearly had to lie to increase their chances of getting what they wanted. They had to be both ordinary and extraordinary.

Yes, the double binds were endless. Nevertheless this nearly final group had come from an initial pool of many thousands of applicants. Double binds? So what! Nothing new to fear there. Everyone on Earth was strung up in a vast network of double binds. Going to Mars might actually reduce their number, decrease their strain! Perhaps that was part of the appeal of going!

Perhaps that was why these men of the first Antarctic explorations had volunteered to come South.

Not many sci-fi writers analyse these issues as acutely and thoroughly as Kim Stanley Robinson. As ever, his writing is vivid and full of detail. Overall I think The Martians is a good collection of fragments but nothing like as satisfying as the trilogy itself, which stands perfectly well without it.

[Ira (SF Words of Wonder) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish there were more stories about our heroes from the trilogy. A collection of all kinds of writing; stories, poems, articles, essays, even the Mars Constitution. Maya And Desmond was my favorite in this collection.

[Jon Sayer · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was a slog... KSR doesn't write plots, as anyone who got through the Mars Trilogy knows. He does characters. He does description. He does ideas. And that's all this book is, too. Sure, there're some fascinating things to read, like the ascent of Olympus Mons and the constitution of Mars. But too much of this book is just descriptions of completely fictional hiking paths, or are about minor characters from the trilogy that are quickly forgotten.

One can compare this book to the Years of Rice and Salt in that it a series of short stories taking place over hundreds of years. Some of the stories are good, some suck.

[Bob Jamieson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worth it for the climb up Olympus Mons alone. Possibly the best climbing story I've ever read.

Also a bit worried that Phyllis's goons might have destroyed the planet.

[Luca Cresta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peccato che questo raccolta di racconti non sia uscita in coda alla trilogia marziana di KSR, in quanto i vari racconti si incastrano nelle varie fasi della storia marziana tratteggiata dall'autore americano. Considero senza dubbio KSR uno dei migliori autori contemporanei, non solo di SF, e prendo ogni suo libro a scatola chiusa, perché so che sarà ben scritto, appassionante ed interessante. Questa raccolta di racconti non fa eccezione. I vari personaggi, già incontrati nella trilogia marziana, vengono qui approfonditi con storie molto più centrate sul singolo. Il migliore in assoluto per me è stato "Verde di Marte", la narrazione della scalata del Monte Olympus, il più alto monte/vulcano del sistema solare, un racconto FS di montagna così appassionante e così vicino alle cronache alpinistiche da confondersi con altri saggi specialistici. Insomma con KSR sei su Marte assieme ai suoi personaggi. La grande SF è questa.

[Claudia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of relatively short stories related to the first one hundred colonists (prior and after colonization) and also about the next generations on R/G/B Mars.

The main series I found to be amazing, however, I perceived this volume as a big spoiler on characters’ most inner thoughts and conduct and that’s the reason for my skimming through them. The mystery around some of the characters’ behavior in the trilogy was far more interesting.
But they are high quality stories and worthy to be read. Most likely I will return to read them properly at some point in the future, when my feelings on the mother-story will fade away :)

[Harry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sicko mode for the extended universe - oh yeh, some lovely short stories or pieces about characters you know - but then the real stuff - a draft constitution for Mars with commentary - fake journal abstracts about Martian science - poetry - KSR let loose

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not what I expected

While I basically liked the book, if for no other reason than that I liked those that came before it, then I guess that is something. I think I was expecting something different than what I got here. I thought there would be more stories maybe about the first hundred and before, though there were a few of those. This was totally on brand for him though and we got some interesting background on the planet and where it might be even further into the future. We get to meet a few descendants who are nothing like their ancestors in some ways and completely like them in others. Not bad but took me while to get through.

[Jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first reading of this book pushed me to reread the Martian Trilogy, so now I had to close the loop. It represents the best of the extended Mars saga but needs the context of the trilogy. Most of the book is shorts (up to novella length) set at various points from the era of Red Mars until well after Blue, with a few poems and a two stories from an alternate-history version of the series. These stories are written in more of an immediate-narrative form than the trilogy's summary style. Where politics is discussed it is a function of the characters, rather than using the characters as mere embodiments of the politics. These improvements, coupled with the trilogy's sense of place, make for some compelling reading. A few poems, and "stories" regarding the writing of the trilogy, strike me as self-indulgent but do not detract from the whole. A more than worthy successor to the trilogy.

[Adam McPhee · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best of Robinson's short story collections, or at least tied with the book actually titled Best of Kim Stanley Robinson. No, I think I like this better. Outtakes from the Mars trilogy, essentially.

[Tomislav · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mix of short pieces, each related somehow to KSR's Mars Trilogy.

[Vladimir · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best to read after Robinson's Mars trilogy, as it contains certain references and spoilers.

[Laura Gaelx]

Echaba tanto de menos Marte que estaba pensando en releer la trilogía. Pero, la verdad, con la de libros que quedan por leer... Así que fue toda una sorpresa encontrar esta publicación que presentan como anexo o complemento. Aunque más justo sería llamarlo descartes, notas personales del autor. ¡Si incluye una lista de la música que escuchaba para escribir sobre cada personaje! Muy bonito, pero no es lo que estaba buscando. En cualquier caso, los pocos relatos que tienen algo de coherencia y cierre me han dado mucha ternura. Acabaré releyendo la trilogía marciana.

[Thomas Coogan]

A fun little compendium of side stories that wouldn't fit in the trilogy's plot. Like the first guy to throw a nasty curveball on Mars.

[Hank Edson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Candy for KSR junkies like myself, but ... what I treasure in KSR ultimately is the consistent vision of mission accomplished in every book. In Red Moon, the baby escapes. In Aurora, the crew is safe. In this book, KSR flirts with undoing the accomplishment, and the optimism is purely one of perspective, not of accomplishment. I think this is the result of the work being a pastiche, rather than a novel. As I said, candy, not a meal. There are wonderfully delicious gambits here, but the binding of the whole is not just looser than a novel, but undone, in the sense that the trilogy vision is somewhat unwound. This non-novel, different sort of binding is somewhat compensated for (and this may be it’s true goal) by the meta-self-commentary of a world creator about creating a world in which people are creating a world. Alternative narratives, soundtracks inspiring character creation, poetry that veers from character’s into author’s confessional, and the story of finishing the story, among many other things. In saying this, I love it! I love seeing an author make a space for himself in the work itself to enjoy and process his relationship to the work itself as part of what the work considers. I love it because KSR so clearly loves it. It is his love letters to his own created world. He needed a separate work to express what creating the world meant to him. In the end the grief Eileen feels, is it not just the author facing up to the inevitable end of the creative enterprise as intense as the Mars trilogy, facing up to the end of a particular romance he has been having with his imagination, the after-sex letdown, if you will, following world creation? A worthy additional dimension to the KSR universe.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed Robinson's Mars trilogy - it stands alongside some of the best epic SF IMHO - so when I heard there was a book of short stories dealing with the same universe, I got my hands on it as soon as I could, hoping it would answer some lingering questions left unanswered at the conclusion of 'Blue Mars'. So did it? Well, maybe for a couple questions - though I didn't necessarily like the answers that seemed to be presented. And I can't help but wonder whether Robinson's attitude or viewpoint had changed noticeably since his completion of the trilogy and the writing of a few of these stories.

The stories for me were a little uneven. Having said that, the stories I enjoyed, I really enjoyed. And maybe part of my lack of enjoyment with some of the others is my indifference to mountain climbing (there's a lot of mountain climbing in these stories, litteral and detailed designed to serve as metaphor no doubt).

Robinson also works in some stories and poems that show a peek behind the curtain while he's working on the Mars trilogy - these are fun to read and as evokative in miniature as the Mars books themselves.

All in all, if you enjoyed the Mars trilogy, you'll probably like at least some portion of "The Martians" if not in fact the whole - just be prepared to encounter something of a different Mars than the one that the curtain closes on in 'Blue Mars'.

[Gonzalo · Rating 4 out of 5]

To say Stanley Robinson's Mars trilogy is a monumental work is hardly an exaggeration. It is big both in size and in scope, a very positive but not too idealistic vision of what could be, at least from a social point of view. Lack of scientific literacy forbids me from saying how plausible it is in that regard.

The fact publishers include “The Martians” among his other books, and not as part of the trilogy worried me. Was it going to be a collection of leftovers, suitable only for hardcore fans? I did not feel that way (and I am not sure I am a hardcore fan yet). Yes, it is a collection of vignettes you will probably not enjoy fully if you have not read the trilogy, but it is a great collection. There are alternative stories, poems and a few hints at Stanley Robinson’s writing process. It was also interesting to see hidden relationships between some of the main characters. Hidden in as much as they seem to fit perfectly inside the trilogy, and yet we did not see it there. Still, among the best for me are the “Martian Romance” stories, particularly the “Green Mars” story: 100 pages on climbing Olympus Mons was not something I was expecting (or expecting to enjoy).

If you are looking for something to read after Green Mars, look no further.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A companion volume to the Mars Trilogy that's more essential to the cycle than I'd expected: rather than just stray episodes and obvious cutting-room floor stuff, this contained some truly stunning appendices – such as the Martian constitution and several commentaries on it – as well as a bunch of stories that explored alternate timelines, reflecting on what might have happened if, for instance, the First Hundred never made it to the red planet.

[Samuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Robinson re-visits the world he created in his Mars trilogy, with a collection of vignettes about the people who are linked to the Red planet. Some stories are even from alternate histories of Mars, "what-if" stories. Yet the focus is not so much Mars as it is the Martians, the people who dream, work, play and love on Mars.

[Calum · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing companion to the trilogy. Short stories investigate further many of the core issues of land and world, collectivism and global government, memory and mutual understanding, at various points in the past and future of the trilogy's timeline, and some in alternate timelines.

[Clay Zdobylak · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fucking treasure. KRS seems to know what i need to dive into to lift spirits and make the future an exciting place to create. His books are indulgences that leave me a better and more wide-eyed person than before.

[Jack Atherton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a great post-addition to the Mars trilogy. It’s been a while since I read it, but I seem to remember it had one of my favorite articulations of the sublime in any sci-fi I’ve read so far. (If not that, then it was a related concept; sorry for the lack of specificity.)

[Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I waltzed into The Martians expecting a mediocre "bonus features" DVD of the original trilogy, but I was pleasantly surprised by the quality and depth of these Kim Stanley Robinson addenda.

[Antonio Ippolito]

Avete presenti quei sontuosi libri illustrati sul ”Making of..” di un film, dove finalmente potete vedere bene come è fatto un caccia Ala-X, o i disegni tecnici del veicolo-arca dei Jawa, ma anche ricche scenografie, schizzi preparatori, e magari qualche esempio di personaggio, costume o scena poi espunto dal montaggio finale, e che magari vi piace di più di quello che invece è stato scelto?
Questa antologia ne è l’equivalente rispetto alla Trilogia Marziana di Robinson, ma è anche molto di più: vediamo in dettaglio.
KSR è, a mio parere, il Jules Verne di questi ultimi decenni: fa poesia divulgando la scienza. Ci sono diversi altri ottimi scrittori di fantascienza hard, ma, a differenza di Egan o Stephenson, Robinson si interessa a sviluppi realizzabili nell’immediato futuro; e a differenza di Weir, KSR ha un futuro da proporre all’intera umanità.. A occhio e croce direi che amerà molto KSR chi ama leggere il National Geographic Magazine: KSR si infervora nel parlare di strati di roccia allo stesso modo che nel descrivere le complessità dei suoi personaggi, raggiungendo spesso risultati notevoli, dal punto di vista letterario e scientifico al tempo stesso, come questo:
“Lo stagno Don Giovanni: che nome, per questa desolazione extraterrestre! Lo stagno era così salato che non sarebbe congelato finchè l’aria non si fosse raffreddata a -54 °C; allora il ghiaccio che rivestiva quello stagno salino poco profondo, essendo stato distillato dal congelamento, sarebbe stato ghiaccio di acqua dolce, e perciò non si sarebbe sciolto di nuovo finchè la temperatura non fosse salita sopra zero, normalmente nell’estate successiva quando la luce solare intrappolata avrebbe creato un effetto serra nell’acqua e l’avrebbe sciolto da sotto. Mentre Tatiana spiegava il processo, questo fluttuava nella mente di Michel come una specie di analogia alla loro situazione presente, penzolante proprio ai margini della sua comprensione senza mai diventare chiaro” (da “Michel in Antartide”).
O anche:
“Negli anni che seguirono [Maya] raramente pensò più a Frank. Era stato messo a riposo, oppure perduto nel tumulto di quei tempi. Gli anni scorrevano via come acqua verso valle. Maya immaginava che le vite terrestri fossero come i fiumi terrestri, veloci e incontrollabili ai loro inizi nelle montagne, forti e pieni attraverso le praterie, lenti e tortuosi vicino al mare; mentre su Marte le loro vite somigliavano ai percorsi pieni di ostacoli improvvisi dei torrenti che solo ora stavano creando: precipitavano da scarpate, sparivano in buche nel terreno, venivano pompati verso elevazioni inattese a grandi distanze“ (da “Maya e Desmond”).
In questa raccolta troviamo materiali diversi: linee narrative che non hanno trovato posto nella già voluminosa trilogia, episodi di una linea alternativa, appunti, bozzetti e materiali vari; tutto complessivamente di alto livello, per cui anche chi non avesse letto la Trilogia potrà godere di molti racconti che sono del tutto autonomi e che giustificano da soli l’acquisto. Va da sé che chi invece la Trilogia l’ha letta vedrà chiariti molti retroscena e arricchiti di nuove sfumature i personaggi che già conosce.
Vediamo più in dettaglio i materiali contenuti.
La linea alternativa riguarda uno sviluppo parallelo della vicenda, in cui la colonizzazione NON avviene (vuoi perché lo stress sugli astronauti viene considerato intollerabile, vuoi perchè le prime sonde di esplorazione trovano vita su Marte): vediamo quindi gli stessi personaggi della linea principale impegnati in situazioni completamente diverse. In particolare, lo psicologo Michel, figura un po’ incolore, qui protagonista del bellissimo Michel in Antartide che descrive le dure selezioni. Di questo gruppo fa parte anche Michel in Provenza.
La principale linea narrativa autonoma è quella dei racconti che seguono la vita di Roger Clayborne ed Eileen Monday.
ll primo, Il Canyon dei Fossili, avrebbe meritato il premio Nebula. Saltiamo a quattro generazioni dopo il primo sbarco: ormai i discendenti dei coloni iniziali abitano in canyon coperti da plexiglas con le comodità di una città terrestre. Per turismo vanno a fare veri, esotici trekking nei canyon rimasti selvaggi, mentre continua a infuriare il dibattito tra Verdi e Rossi: se terraformare completamente Marte oppure no. Una donna abbiente e facile alle avventure sentimentali con conseguenti delusioni trova antipaticissima la guida del suo trekking, un uomo laconico e sarcastico (combinazione per lei insopportabile). Contemporaneamente rivede la sua vita, dedicata al sogno di un Marte abitabile, simile alla Terra, forse troppo influenzato da secoli di illusioni che l’umanità ha proiettato su Marte (Burroughs, Bradbury..): e che improvvisamente le sembrano ridicole. La clamorosa scoperta di quello che sembra il tanto agognato primo giacimento di fossili marziani autoctoni sarà il punto di svolta per la sua vita, e anche per altri membri del gruppo.. Psicologia molto fine in mezzo a vagonate di ipotesi scientifiche.
In Verde di Marte ritroviamo Roger Clayborne ed Eileen Monday, protagonisti del precedente, ma duecento anni dopo! (questi protagonisti, grazie alle tecniche di allngamento della vita, sono quasi immortali). Casualmente entrambi si trovano a partecipare alla scalata della parete più difficile del vulcano Olimpo, il monte più alto del Sistema Solare. Sì, avevano avuto una relazione dopo l’escursione al canyon dei fossili: ma non era durata, e dopo tanto tempo lei nemmeno lo ricordava e ne chiede incuriosita a lui, che invece appartiene a qull’1% di popolazione “condannato a ricordare” tutto. Non è solo questo a rattristarlo: dopo secoli spesi come guida nel Marte più selvaggio, ha passato decenni in politica cercando di opporsi ai Verdi (i “terraformatori” a oltranza), si è appena dimesso, sconfitto, dal suo incarico, ma a ogni passo dell’escursione vedere i canyon non solo popolati da piante e animali che ormai possono respirare liberamente l’atmosfera, ma addirittura ingegnerizzati apposta, gli fa rivivere un continuo fallimento. Un vero e proprio romanzo breve (neanche troppo breve: quasi 100 pagine) dove tecniche alpinistiche estreme si alternano a dibattiti sui modelli geologici (come si è formato un unicum nel Sistema Solare quale Olimpo?) e la schermaglia tra Eileen e Roger è a colpi di citazioni di Sartre, con cui lei vuole sbloccare il pensiero di lui, schiavo delle delusioni: una diversa interpretazione del passato, il contrasto tra “Terra” e “mondo”.. In un’immaginaria rassegna di “fantascienza alpinistica”, questo romanzo svetterebbe a fianco della “Montagna dell’Infinito” di Zelazny e dell’ “Albero” di R.F.Young; soprattutto, un esempio di quando un’ottima opera di genere diventa letteratura tout court.
Segue Quello che conta. Bellissimo racconto, di tono e struttura hemingwayano: due uomini vengono messi a sedere per caso allo stsso tavolo di un ristorante sull’orlo di un cratere, la sera di un festival folkloristico. Chiacchierando si accorgono di essere cugini, entrambi Clayborne: e ne nasce un dialogo intimo anche se tra sconosciuti, fatto di mezze frasi ma piene di significato, degno del miglior minimalismo USA.
Infine, Una storia d’amore marziana. Dopo altri cento anni, Roger ed Eileen sono tornati a essere una coppia fissa; si ritrovano in un locale affollato per una crociera sui ghiacci con alcuni vecchi amici, per lo più compagni della scalata all’Olimpo come Arthur. I ghiacci sono quelli di un mare che cento anni prima brulicava di vita, e soprattutto di delfini. Strada facendo raccolgono una coppia, due giovanissimi amici di Roger. Tutti scambano opinioni sul “crollo” del clima marziano, gli anni senza primavera ed estate, le estinzioni di massa che sta causando: ma i giovani esprimono comunque il loro amore per Marte, la loro fiducia nel futuro. È la conclusione morale della trilogia.
Un’altra linea narrativa è quella di Coyote combina guai e Coyote ricorda: il leggendario clandestino del volo dei Primi Cento esisteva davvero! Scoperto da Maya durante il volo, tra i due nasce un’affettuosa amicizia che durerà per secoli, lungo le varie rivoluzioni che segneranno i rapporti tra Marte e Terra. In mezzo a tanti personaggi che sembrano superuomini dotatissimi, il caraibico Desmond (il suo vero nome) porta una ventata di umanità irregolare, spontanea e un po’ balorda.
Altri racconti riguardano singoli episodi, come Salvare la diga del Noctis, epico racconto su come i custodi di una grande diga, che per le piogge impreviste rischiava di crollare allagando un’intera valle abitata, salvano la situazione con una trovata da veri ingegneri: il meglio del “realismo socialista” di KSR. Oppure, Momenti di Sax esplora la vita e i pensieri di uno dei più bizzarri personaggi della Trilogia.
Ci sono alcuni brillanti racconti sportivi: uno indaga su come sarà il baseball marziano, e mi devo complimentare con il traduttore per aver reso comprensibile uno sport così lontano dalla nostra mentalità, e oltre tutto raccontato nel gergo dei tifosi! In un altro viene inventato un nuovo tipo di surf sui neonati mari marziani.
Troviamo anche una serie di “documenti tecnici”: La Costituzione di Marte e Appunti di lavoro e commenti sulla Costituzione.. ovvero la Costituzione marziana del 2128 e commenti di una giurista qualche decennio più tardi. KSR immagina un unico governo marziano senza Stati nazionali ma con autonomie per città e insediamenti; forze di sicurezza senza armi letali; un Governo collegiale e senza Primo Ministro, sul modello svizzero; una Corte Costituzionale e una Corte Ambientale in grado di porre veti inappellabili alle decisioni del Parlamento (la Corte Ambientale è una vera chicca); un sistema di voto basato sul “ballottaggio australiano” che porti a ridurre la faziosità e la polarizzazione (KSR è socialista, non anarchico come la LeGuin: anche se la vita quotidiana nelle rispettive utopie può assomigliarsi). Gli Estratti scelti della rivista di studi areologici simulano brillantemente riviste di “areologia”, sul tema: esistevano batteri nativi di Marte, se li separiamo dal successivo inquinamento terrestre? Se sì, potrebbero addirittura esser stati loro a dare origine alla vita sulla Terra?
C’è poi una sezione di poesie. La fantascienza, ancor più del fantasy, è un genere che associamo alla narrativa e all’illustrazione, ma non certo alla poesia: un po’ per questo motivo, un po’ perché Robinson non è in effetti nato poeta, questa parte della raccolta è stata mal tollerata da molti lettori. È giusto però dire che: innanzitutto, nel mondo anglosassone la poesia è presente anche nella fantascienza (Asimov’s SF Magazine ne ospita diverse in ogni numero); poi, che anche se alcune di quelle qui raccolte sono solo vaghi abbozzi oppure fin troppo sperimentali, ce ne sono almeno tre davvero significative: Il lamento dei Rossi, Il caso di areofagia (non aerofagia!) dove racconta di un trekking sulla Terra in cui incontrò un meteorite forse da Marte, e Due Anni, una serie di riflessioni legate al figlio.
Chiude la raccolta Viola di Marte, un breve racconto umoristico in cui KSR descrive la giornata quando, dopo aver salutato la moglie che andva al lavoro, ha cambiato i pannolini al figlio e con il medesimo in spalla è andato a spedire i 3 pacchi dell’ultimo libro.
PS: L’omone innamorato, raccontino erotico-umoristico sull’Omone, ovvero Big Man, mito marziano.. poteva tranquillamente restare fuori dalla raccolta.

[Nicolas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cet épais recueil rassemble des textes très divers autour de l'univers développé dans Mars la rouge, Mars la verte, Mars la bleue. On y trouve des nouvelles, des poèmes, des fragments sur le travail de l'auteur, des notes assez techniques, bref, des idées.
Et pour le lecteur ayant apprécié l'oeuvre initiale (comme moi), c'est vraiment très chouette. Parce que Robinson se détache ici du coeur de son récit (la terraformation de Mars et ses impacts politiques et scientifiques) pour s'approcher plus d'une visite de Mars sur le long terme. Ca met formidablement en valeur sa plume, pour faire des ces écrits quelque chose de très chouette.
On y retrouve par ailleurs des personnages et des thèmes déjà évoqués (la mémoire qui se délite au cours des 200 ans de vie des martiens, l'opposition entre les verts et les rouges, l'écologie, la politique).
Et en fait, je pense qu'il faut rapprocher ce livre du Silmarillon, pas seulement parce que j'ai relu ce dernier il y a peu. Dans les deux cas, on retrouve un auteur qui revient visiter son oeuvre maîtresse pour y ajouter des détails, en peaufiner le contenu, en quelque sorte. Dans les deux cas, ce sont des oeuvres particulières, puisqu'elles n'existent qu'en lien avec une oeuvre plus grande. La différence étant que là où Tolkien fait oeuvre de théologie dans une approche tout sauf facile Robinson, au contraire, essaye d'alléger le propos de son oeuvre initiale à travers une vision plus touristique de Mars : il y aura de l'escalade, du bateau sur glace, des réflexions sur le sens de la vie, mais rien d'aussi lourd que ce qu'il y avait dans sa trilogie initiale.
Pour le dire autrement, c'est une très bonne oeuvre pour ceux qui ont déja apprécié les romans précédents. Pour les autres, ce sera sans doute difficilement lisible.

[Ben Truong · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Martians is an anthology of thirty short stories which was written by Kim Stanley Robinson. This anthology collects thirty short stories pertaining to different aspects and alternative realities of the Mars Trilogy.

For the most part, I really like most of these contributions. The Martians is an anthology collection of thirty short stories that takes place over the time span of the original trilogy of novels, as well as some stories that take place in an alternative version of the novels where the First Hundred's mission was one of exploration rather than colonization.

Like most anthologies there are weaker contributions and The Martians is not an exception. There were a couple of short stories that I didn't connect to as well as the others or was – comparatively speaking, not as written as well. Having said that, it is clear that Robinson is a talented writer – just maybe not a short story writer as the entire anthology gave a mediocre feeling.

All in all, The Martians is a somewhat well written anthology about moments between the lines of the Mars Trilogy. This uneven, but worthwhile collection will appeal to fans of the trilogy, just wished it was executed better.

[Kryptomite · Rating 2 out of 5]

*Lets out the longest sigh ever sighed*

I really wanted to like this. The Mars trilogy took me on a journey that I in no way expected, and in some ways it changed me forever. However, it left me with some questions - of people's destinies, of future events - and in my opinion they were rather important. I really wanted them to be answered. When I reached this book, I thought "ah, the author will definitely address them in here." But he didn't. In fact, there were a few that he brought up again on purpose, only to seemingly say, "No, I like that I left it open ended, but I'm going to bring it to your attention again because I want you to know that they should be left open ended, and you should be okay with that decision." And that made me feel uncomfortable.

Over all, this book feels like a combination of bits that were supposed to go in a fourth book, along with "B roll" that had been cut from the prior books. There were a few small, interesting sections, but overall I found myself disappointed, and it left me on a low note. If you loved the Mars trilogy, which I personally think is fantastic, I'd recommend you leave it there and refrain from touching this.

[Zéro Janvier · Rating 3 out of 5]

Après presque un mois de lecture de la trilogie martienne de Kim Stanley Robinson, il est possible que je sature. Toujours est-il que j'ai eu un peu de mal avec ce recueil d'une trentaine de nouvelles qui accompagnent la trilogie.

J'ai aimé retrouvé certains personnages, et j'ai eu plus de mal avec les nouvelles mettant en scène de nouveaux personnages. Il faut croire que je m'étais tellement attaché aux protagonistes de la trilogie que j'ai eu du mal à en imaginer d'autres dans le même décor.

J'ai survolé certaines nouvelles, j'en ai lues d'autres avec plaisir, et je garde de l'ensemble un ressenti mitigé. Il est sans doute temps pour moi de tourner la page martienne, même si j'ai encore quelques romans de Kim Stanley Robinson qui m'attendent.