DATE: Wednesday, October 8, 1997            TAG: 9710090780

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E6   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Book review 

SOURCE: BY RICH GOTSHALL, INDIANAPOLIS STAR AND NEWS 

                                            LENGTH:   46 lines

SO WHY ARE WE FASCINATED WITH NEIGHBORING MARS?

WOULD THE War of the Worlds have been half as scary if Earth were being invaded by Venusians or Jovians?

No, it had to be Martians.

Just the word - Martian - evokes a scary image. But that image also involves fascination and awe. We are almost mesmerized by the Red Planet.

This is the focus of a new book about the planet, ``Destination Mars: In Art, Myth and Science,'' by the late science-fiction novelist Martin Caidin, Jay Barbree of NBC and Susan Wright, author of three Star Trek novels among others.

The book traces earthlings' fascination with Mars from early history through today.

The authors write:

``Mars has teased the imagination ever since the first astronomers . . . began serious study of the night sky. Unlike the countless other lights in the sky, Mars doesn't flicker. And instead of a white light, it glows red.''

Each chapter explores a different period, covering both the science and the science fiction. The authors trace the ebb and flow of theories about the planet and explore how changing technology influences scientific opinion.

No new scientific ground is broken. This clearly is a book for interested lay people, not trained scientists. The text is clear and brightly written, and there are many illustrations. These combine to make the book fun to read, almost a coffee-table book.

They conclude: ``Only one thing is certain when it comes to Mars: no matter how we reach our neighboring planet, we will always dream of a future and an Earth-like Mars. We will always look for Martians, even if we have to become Martians ourselves.'' ILLUSTRATION: Graphic

BOOK REVIEW

``Destination Mars: In Art, Myth and Science''

Authors: Martin Caidin, Jay Barbree, Susan Wright

Publisher: Penguin Studio.

228 pages.

Price: $29.95

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