The Day the Martians Came

by Frederik Pohl

Book Overview

Henry Steegman is hardly "Mr. Personality" aboard the Mars-bound Algonquin 9. Yet it is he who bungles upon the spectacular Macy's-like city beneath the Red Planet's crust. For better or worse, the name Steegman will be immortalized by a discovery that will transform millions of lives.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312021836
• ISBN13: 9780312021832
• Release Date: October 1988
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A Different Kind of Sci-Fi

I can understand why some won't like this novel, but I for one loved it. I found it very realistic. This is exactly how people would react to Martians, I suspect. Pohl really captured the essence of humanity with this one. The book is a literary piece, not the pulp sci-fi the title might imply.

A great expansion to a great story

The impetus of this book is Pohl's short contribution to _Dangerous Visions_, stripped of Ellison's hyperbolic title. That story serves as the punchline of the book, so if you're familiar with it the volume won't pack as much of a kick; but it's a great punchline regardless (though it probably read better in the late sixties).Ths book is not an expansion of a story in the same way that _Ender's Game_ or _World Out of Time_ are; it is more like Pohl's own _Years of the City_ , a series of linked short stories. Each story investigates the impact the discovery of life on Mars has on the everyday life of humans. Now, these are no ordinary Martians--they're much more pathetic, and the impact they have is consequently nothing like the impact of, say, Valentine Michael Smith. Which is, of course, what makes it that much more interesting. The initial story is a little slow, but the rest are all winners; and if you haven't read that punchline story yet, you're missing out.