Jamie Waterman, a Native American geologist, is chosen for the first manned exploration of the planet Mars. He states at touchdown on mars a navajo phrase instead of a PC statement which sets him apart from the rest of the astronauts. He becomes the main focus from whose point of view we see the rest of the action. A mysterious wasting illness hits all the 25 astronauts and it is a race against time to figure out whether the red planet will ever be able to support human life and if anyone of those present will make it back to earth.

The science is well incorporated into the story along with politics of an international expedetion. Bova gives us the nuts and bolts of the landscape of mars and explores some ideas of how it got that way. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend others to read it. I haven't gotten around to the sequel yet so can't comment of it yet. But this is one of his best books!

Released on Sunday, April 04, 2004 at Food Court at the Green, Uptown Charlotte in Charlotte, North Carolina USA.

I released it at noon today at the coffeehouse. This is an excellent book and I hope that the next reader loves it as much as I did.

I was buying an ice cream cone in Charlotte when I happened to mention ask the woman behind the counter where there might be a store that I could get a couple of paper back books to read on vacation. She showed me a shelf with the "free books" and I chose this one as I like science fiction. Great idea. Great fun.

CAUGHT IN CHARLOTTE NORTH CAROLINA USA