How about a topical post?

Did you know that humans put another rover on Mars? One specifically designed to look for evidence that life exists or existed on Mars?  Or that it was also intended to pave the way for a potential visit by humans to the Red Planet?

There has been a lot written about that planet.  Here's just a tiny selection of Mars and  space related stuff.

Fiction:

Kim Stanley Robinson' s Mars Trilogy (Red Mars, Blue Mars and Green Mars) is an interconnected series of short stories about the settlement and development of a Martian colony.  It's a major cornerstone in science fiction and winner of numerous awards, though I will admit I was a bit bored by it.

Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein is even more legendary.  Valentine Michael Smith, an orphaned child of the first human visitors to Mars, is adopted by Martians and raised in their culture.  When he returns to Earth as a young adult, he struggles to adapt to Earth and human culture.  This isn't a young adult novel, as Heinlein doesn't shy away from controversy regarding human sexuality and other mature topics.  Still, it a major piece in Heinlein greater body of work.

Edited to add: Also set on Mars is Black Hole Sun, which we've previously reviewed.

Non-Fiction:

Packing for Mars by Mary Roach looks at all the preparations that are required even before we consider sending a human to Mars.  Like Roach's previous works, this isn't a hard-science examination; while it does have all the science in there somewhere, it's just as much about the people as the tech.  And to get a sense of the tone?  She watches a live video feed of herself pooping in a training exercise on how to use space toilets.

Solar System: A Visual Exploration of All the Planets, Moons and Other Heavenly Bodies That Orbit our Sun by Marcus Chown.  Like the previously recommended The Elements, Solar System is a beautiful book with fantastic photos and descriptions of the subject matter.  While it obviously covers more than Mars, it certain is a big motivator to look at the universe around us.

Video Game:

I can't resist.  While the game isn't a masterpiece, it is interesting: Red Faction: Guerilla is the story of a near-future mining colony on Mars that is in the midst of a miner's revolt.  You play as a recently joined revolutionary set out to demolish the infrastructure of the ruling corporate ownership.  Big draw? You can destroy pretty much everything with a sledgehammer.  Everything.

Black Hole Sun, Won't You Come, And Wash Away the Rain? Black Hole Sun... (can't get the song out of my mind the whole time I'm reading this book) 
Durango's family used to have it all. His father was key to the colonization of Mars, but then the government was overthrown, his father captured and thrown into prison, and in preventing his teenage son from killing himself like all his followers, Durango is relegated to a dalit, a mercenary for hire. Despised and ridiculed by every group and class on the planet, Durango takes on odd jobs with Vienne, his second-in-command, whom he's not supposed to have any feelings for, as the Tenets prescribed, and Durango and Vienne are both sticklers for rules. This conflict of interest isn't lost on Mimi, the artificial intelligence implanted in Durango's brain, and she takes every opportunity to tease Durango about it. Who says an AI doesn't know what sarcasm is?  When Mimi isn't making fun of Durango though, she is his most useful ally. Having Mimi is life-saving on so many occasions, however, when Durango agreed to help a group of miners defend against the Draeu, a ruthless cannibalistic race, he has no idea what he has signed himself up for, and will definitely need more than an AI to stay alive.

This book reads like a video game. I can see it being the plot of a great first person action/shooter game. Sometimes I'm baffled by the choices in booklists for gamers, because many only have the slight setting resemblance, and none of the thrills and chills. This book definitely belongs to a list for that audience though. Right from the opening scene, where the Draeu hunts down the miners and demands their children as sacrifices, you know you're in it for a wild ride. The action doesn't let up at all, and every time you think you can take a breather, something else happens and plunges you and our hero right back into it. The Draeu are some scary creatures, and the mysteries surrounding them and the miners are well crafted. I love the final epic showdown and it's a fine ending to a fine book.
I visited Gill's website and was thrilled to find out that there's going to be a next book, coming in March next year.  (Another nice thing about this book is that there's no cliffhanger ending).  However, ::sigh::, look at the covers!  The designer doing the new covers is the one who did the Mortal Instruments books. Why?  Well, I know why, 'cause that's how most teen books look like now, but more good-looking teen models?  We don't need that.  Disappointing.
» Read Gill's interview in School Library Journal.