Greg Bear On Mars

 

 

I've always been drawn to stories about Mars. I've long admired Greg Bear from afar. I picked up this book eons ago, as a used hardcover for $2 or $3, in the final years that the Crown Books retail chain had a store in my neighborhood. Yet only now, upon his death, did I actually pick up Moving Mars and read it.

Or at least I tried. There's a narrative flow to Greg Bear's writings that just doesn't draw me in. There's nothing strange or unique in that. Some writers you enjoy. Others--while greatly admired and enjoyed by others--you just can't get into. You don't know why, but they just don't work for you.

Moving Mars begins with Casseia, a young student at university. Powerful politicians are attempting to transform the government of Mars. She opposes their efforts to forge a strong, central government. So she joins a protest. It almost costs her her life, and proves largely ineffective. Still, those attempting the coup are deposed, and the government resumes being a confederacy.

She falls in love with one of her fellow protesters. Or at least, she thinks she does--mostly because he insists that he loves her, and she ought to at least try. But it doesn't last, and she ends up traveling to Earth. There she's part of a diplomatic team attempting to forge a better relationship with Earth. But Mars lacks a central government, so who will Earth partner with?

There's a lot going on in Moving Mars, much more than I can readily describe. On Earth, she encounters custom-created viruses that can give people enhanced abilities. Later on Mars, she marries an archeologist investigating the early life forms that thrived before the planet lost its atmosphere. She also takes up the cause of establishing a strong central government, and doing away with the confederacy. Later yet, Greg Bear finally earns his title, when a group of scientists discover a way of actually Moving Mars. That was the most exciting part of the book for me.

Oh, and did I mention she gets hunted by bizarre killing machines: a weird fusion of Aliens and Terminators?

I started the novel in December. After several breaks, I finally finished it in March. I wish I responded better to Greg Bear's prose. Still, I'm glad I stuck it out to the end, because Moving Mars was worth it.

Thanks Greg, for a thoroughly awesome read.

Dragon Dave