Book: Kelly and Zach Weinersmith's "A City On Mars

My last book of the year was a non-fiction analysis of the feasibility of building settlements in space, the Moon, and Mars.  The authors are skeptical of the venture at best.

The Weinersmith's "A City on Mars: Can we settle space, should we settle space, and have we really thought this through?" takes on all the arguments, justifications, and  'science' of establishing colonies on the surfaces of the Moon and Mars and in space and argues why most of them are either incorrect or hopelessly naive.  In a way the book is a buzzkill.

I can't say I totally agree with the author's conclusions but they do give compelling arguments.  I think they aren't saying it will never be possible but they are questioning the timeline many space settlement enthusiasts, especially President-elect Elmo, are peddling to the masses.

They also cover space law in detail.  My cynical self read this and thought "Like these yahoos will obey space laws.  They barely obey terrestrial laws."  I found this space law discussion interesting but not very convincing.

I gave this book four stars out of five on Goodreads.  I liked it ... it bummed me out a bit ... but sometimes we have to be hit over the head with the reality stick.