Review of Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void by Mary Roach
I want to preface this review by saying that the first book by Mary Roach I read was “Stiff” and I loved it. Mary Roach has a sardonic sense of humor that makes her books some of the more interesting non-fiction books out there, especially when it comes to detailing scientific topics. Roach does not claim to be an expert, in fact she even says she’s just an amateur that’s done a lot of research. Coming to the book with that attitude I expected to enjoy this book just as much as I enjoyed “Stiff”, but unfortunately this book and I just didn’t quite connect.
As the title suggests in this endeavor Mary Roach attempts to explain what would be necessary for a manned trip to Mars including: the cost, the research, the training, and the technology. She also adds some space travel history to give her research contexts, and as usual her footnotes include details and anecdotes to keep the facts moving along without getting dull. All of this sounds
like the recipe for a perfect (or at least interesting) non-fiction read. Unfortunately there was a lot less talk about space than I expected. It was interesting to hear about how astronauts deal with every day tasks, like going to the bathroom or vomiting in their helmet. But by about chapter 8 it seemed like Roach had run out of topics to talk about and the detailed, informative, humorous information she gave throughout her novel “Stiff” turned into just a lot of the same in “Mars.”
It seemed as though every chapter had to talk about another issue astronauts have with going to the bathroom, masturbating, or controlling their sexual urges in space. Not to mention the chapter that analyzed the inaccuracy of a soft-core porn supposedly set in zero gravity (it wasn’t) and then detailing the difficulties of having sex both underwater and in space. Coming from the author of “Bonk” I was prepared for a few chapters on the sex life of astronauts in space, but the
chapters included aren’t funny, entertaining, interesting, or informative. They’re just crude. There were a lot more interesting aspects of space travel and the possibility of a mission to or colony on Mars that I would have loved for Roach to explore more fully, but I walked away from this book disappointed and with very little actual information on traveling to Mars.
I’m still interested to read some of Roach’s other books, and I have to give her credit for the research she does (drinking your own urine, purified or not, takes some courage) but I expected more.
