Once Upon a Time I Lived on Mars: Space, Exploration, and Life on Earth by Kate Greene

 

Once Upon a Time I Lived on Mars: Space, Exploration, and Life on Earth by Kate Greene
My Rating: ★★★

I received a copy from St. Martin's Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

In this collection of essays, we follow Kate Greene through a period of her life, which takes some interesting turns. One of the most interesting events in her life is when she becomes a member of a life on Mars simulation to study the eating habits of the faux astronauts. Outside of this simulation, she also reflects on her life, which includes her parents, brother, friendships, marriage and eventual divorce.

I’ve always been fascinated with space, so when I got the opportunity to read this book, I took it. I find the studies on space travel very interesting, and Greene was a member of a simulation that involved pretending to live on Mars while living in an artificial environment built in Hawaii. I never knew how many space studies that take place outside of space until later life, but it makes sense. Even something as simple as food can become a big deal due to the limitations of what and how one can eat while in space.

While the subject matter was interesting, it took me a while to read because the book itself felt disjointed. It is a collection of essays reflecting on various parts of Greene’s life, but because it is a collection of essays from one person, the book bounces around quite a bit. I discovered that I would’ve liked it better if it was in chronological order, but that’s just my preference. The way it bounces around would’ve worked if this was a collection of essays from different people instead of one author.

All in all, I did enjoy the book as well as Greene’s perspective on anything from space to general life experiences. If space related experiments to general life reflections is something you’re interested in, I would highly recommend this. Just be aware that Greene does bounce around subject matter since this is a collection of essays.