Growing up in the 1950s and 1960s I had a strong awareness of science fiction, but also the way the major powers were striving to get to the Moon and then beyond. There were not many science fiction stories for children in the early days, but there was a huge amount for adults. As a young library assistant, I devoured both crime and sci-fi stories and many of them were published in a yellow library edition by Gollancz, of which it has been said: “its main postwar strengths were detective fiction and sf: from the early 1960s to the late 1980s it was the premier UK publisher of sf books in hardcover, both native and US”
https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/gollancz
In the 1970s we started seeing more books written specifically for the young reader and a particularly popular series was the “Tripod” series by John Christopher. However the growth in Sci-Fi was really expanded by TV series such as Dr Who, Blake’s Seven and Star Trek, but this was then overwhelmed by the franchise that is “Star Wars”. With a renewal in the desire to return to space, we have seen another surge in books with a space setting and they are now reaching out to their new younger audiences.
Eva, the thirteen year old heroine of this story, has a lot to put up with; her mother died when she was young, she is a type 1 diabetic and she has the dubious distinction of being the first human to be born on Mars. As she faces discrimination by some of the other children, she relies on the support of her father and her AI companion to help her cope. So, when her father and his team go missing she decides she has to go and find them. Linked to this we have the ‘ghosts’ that Eva starts to see, one of who looks remarkably like her late mother, the question is, are they hallucinations or are the real? If they are real, then who are they and why are they trying to make contact with Eva?
This is an fast paced story with a strong female character who has to overcome so many difficulties. The issues around her type 1 diabetes are profound because, after an accident, the colony does not have supplies of insulin and Eva has to depend on outdated technology to keep her alive. We gradually see that as the story continues, that the organization running the colony are only in it for the profit they can make and the infrastructure is facing collapse.
The book reminds me of the series “The Martian Chronicles” by Ray Bradbury, which I watched on TV many years ago. There is the same question of identity and belonging, something that Eva really struggles with. We all assume that there is no advanced life form on Mars, so it is ‘safe’ to build colonies for the human race, but has that always been the case? Whilst this is a great adventure story for young people, it also asks a range of questions about the way some groups feel that they have the right to expand wherever they like; in the same way that countries and large corporations have done throughout history.
This exciting and thought provoking read will make a great addition to the Science Fiction Genre for middle grade children. It will also provide inspiration for the many young people who enjoy STEM subjects.
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Author Bio
Stuart is an award-winning author and secondary school teacher. He has a Masters Degree in
Creative Writing and founded, and now runs, WriteMentor. In 2020 and 2022 he was placed on the SCWBI Undiscovered Voices longlist and named as an Honorary Mention for his novels ‘Ghosts of Mars’ and ‘Astra FireStar and the Ripples of Time’. In 2023, he won the WriteBlend award for his middle grade debut, Ghosts of Mars.
Stuart was included in The Bookseller’s 2021 list of Rising Stars in the publishing industry.
With a Type 1 Diabetic main character, Ghosts of Mars explores how life beyond Earth, and the fame and scrutiny that come with it, affects the young people involved, who didn’t sign up for life on Mars. Ten percent of author profits go to Diabetes UK.
Book Details
Length: 280 pages
Genre: Fantasy, Science Fiction
Age Category: Middle Grade
Date Published: 12 September 2022
https://amzn.eu/d/id7TkjA (UK)
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/63274577-ghosts-of-mars
The StoryGraph Link: https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/2b3c86c8-ef1b-4708-ad90-d982d93d3ed1