A Rough Road Leads to the Stars**

My Review of Loved Mars, Hated the Food by Willie Handler

**AD ASTRA PER ASTERA-Inscription on the plaque in memory of the crew of Apollo I (Gus Grisham, Ed White, Roger B. Chaffee)

A little-known factoid: before MS reared its ugly head, I had ambitions of being an astronaut. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t meant to be. But to say I was obsessed with space travel and flight as a child would be a mild understatement. When I read the premise for Willie Handler’s Loved Mars, Hated the Food: NASA sends Dix Jenner, a self-proclaimed stoner-chef from Jersey to the Mars Colony; I immediately added it to my TBR list. It took me a while to work my way to it, but it was well worth the wait.

Even before the Russians launched Sputnik into the October skies in 1957 humans have been inspired by the stars.

“For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of stars makes me dream,”

Vincent Van Gogh

We tend to place almost god-like status on Astronauts, making them into super-human characters rather than relatable people. I remember attending a Women in Science event in Seattle during college. During the event, we got to meet several female astronauts and shake their hands. Afterward, one of my classmates joked that once you become an astronaut, you have to wash your hands a lot since everyone wants to shake your hand and tell you how amazing you are. I couldn’t help but think she was more right than she knew.

Conversely, the story Dix’s survival after the Mar’s Colony Futurum is destroyed by an explosion brings humanity back into the space program.

Dix is rescued by Bleeker and Seepa, a Martian couple who wish to study him. Taken below the surface into the Martian city of Elysium, his new companions request that he keep his identity as a human secret during his stay. Kind of tough, since he looks nothing like a Martian. Bleeker, a Martian doctor, makes up a story that Dix is his cousin and suffers from a rare medical condition.

World Building

Willie does a great job of building a believable advanced society that still has problems and social issues that parallel our own. Using humor and subtlety, Willie raises questions about social class and discrimination that are prevalent in the chaos we see unfolding today.

Characters

We see the story unfold in first person from the perspective of Dix. The reader is immediately immersed in his angst and fear when he realizes the colony is gone. The Martians communicate via telepathy, so this helps us to build upon Dix’s character as he struggles to reign in his sarcastic thoughts so his companions cannot read them. We also get a peek at Seep and Bleeker’s personalities, who both bicker and love as a realistic couple.

Dix occupies his time growing human food, pot and coffee and trying to get his Martian hosts to eat it. Hilarious results ensue, especially once he sees the effect that coffee has on the Martians. He tries to introduce basketball as an alternative to the violent Martian sport of “Sling” which is played by the lower classes of Martians (the Arbiters).

The romantic relationship between Dix and Plinka, Seepa and Bleeker’s neighbor, is both humorous and touching. The “interspecies-erotica” scenes are well written and enjoyable.

Themes and Dilemmas

As an engineer, and an avid reader and follower of science, I enjoyed Willie’s touching on some very real moral dilemmas in the world of science and technology:

If an alien crashed on earth and needed help, how would we treat them?

Is it ethical to spend billions exploring space when there are people suffering on Earth?

Is it morally acceptable to give your enemies coffee knowing they will crash head first into a wall to get them off your back? (this was a hilarious and very creative part of Willie’s story—hope this doesn’t count as a spoiler)

I really enjoyed this tale of a slacker-stoner who travels all the way to Mars to discover true acceptance. And I am definitely going to try Willie’s mashed potato recipe, even if the Martian’s weren’t too impressed with it.

Thanks for reading. I have several books in the queue and I am working furiously on The Devil’s Valley, sequel to the Dark Land. Sign up for my newsletter for sneak peeks and snippets.