PACKING FOR MARS The Curious Science of Life in the Void

Bestselling author Mary Roach writes anecdotal humor; she’s sort of a female alternative to Bill Bryson (only younger). Here she offers her quirky view of the tribulations experienced by astronauts—specifically, details not often reported by the general media. For example, how do astronauts deal with body odor, feces, urine, and sex? Narrator Sandra Burr enhances the subjects with her obvious enthusiasm, at one point even proffering her version of gagging and vomiting—with gusto. She speaks with a Middle American accent and often sounds as if she is smiling, which she probably is. Beyond that, however, there is little opportunity for histrionics, this being, ultimately, a book of well-researched, though quirky, facts. D.R.W. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2010]