The Martians: The True Story of an Alien Craze that Captured Turn-of-the-Century America [Hardcover]

There is Life on the Planet Mars  The world is gaga for Mars. Its richest man, Elon Musk, is actively scheming to colonize the red planet over the next decade . . . Under the long, dark shadow cast by this ambition, the science journalist David Baron has produced a short, twinkling book about the origins of Mars mania . . . You can consider Baron a sort of sun, shedding light . . . In Barons true tale, reputations rise and fall, and ego distorts like a smudged lens. Mr. Baron gives a briskly written account of planetary intrigue and obsession. . . . Baron seasons his narrative with striking details. . . . [H]is highly enjoyable book makes a strong case for the proposition that brainy Martians exist only in the imagination of Earthlings. [ Mars mania gripped the world a century ago, and this witty new book explains why. . . . David Barons deeply researched and witty book . . . approaches his subject with clarity, style and narrative drive. [A] convivial and rigorously researched history of the first Martian craze. . . . The latest page-turner from David Baron . . . Well-researched and elegantly written, Barons account illuminates the origins of Americas continuing fascination with Mars. Mars, our barren neighbor, has served as an empty canvas for our expansionist imaginations since long before Elon Musk arrived on the scene. Baron chronicles the lasting influence of the Mars mania that gripped America during the early 1900s, how it captured the imaginations of Nikola Tesla and Alexander Graham Bell, generated speculative news headlines, fueled astronomical ambitions and left an indelible imprint on our culture. Details the period in our historythe turn of the century from 1800s to 1900swhen so many people were absolutely certain that there was intelligent life on Mars. . . . Its a wonderful book. Its so eminently readable. David Baron spins a clever tale about a real craze. Its a lively story that will be entirely new to most modern readers. . . .