Scan barcode
A review by sarahetc
Packing for Mars by Mary Roach
4.0
Fun and practical. While not generally the two words most people are looking for in a book about space and how people live and work there, Roach's book is both. It starts with the practical-- real questions that real people want real answers to. Important questions like, "How do you poop in space?" Well? How do you? And from there uses her signature brand of warm, friendly writing and humorous asides to lead the reader through an overview of how a human does live and work in space.
I spent most of the book smiling and nodding and really enjoying myself. I contrast this with This New Ocean by William Burroughs, the text we taught History of the Space Age from a Purdue University. The Burroughs monograph is, of course, extremely detailed and rich with triumphs and conflicts. But for everyone who doesn't want comprehensive forever and just wants to enjoy the highlights, Roach's book is perfect. She gets all the facts of space science straight while featuring the real humans behind it, both astronauts and engineers. And others!
A wonderful read and highly recommended!
I spent most of the book smiling and nodding and really enjoying myself. I contrast this with This New Ocean by William Burroughs, the text we taught History of the Space Age from a Purdue University. The Burroughs monograph is, of course, extremely detailed and rich with triumphs and conflicts. But for everyone who doesn't want comprehensive forever and just wants to enjoy the highlights, Roach's book is perfect. She gets all the facts of space science straight while featuring the real humans behind it, both astronauts and engineers. And others!
A wonderful read and highly recommended!