First published in 1951 by Sidgwick and Jackson, Arthur C. Clarke’s The Sands of Mars, his second novel following Prelude to Space, has thus far been republished about seventy times.
The image below shows Anchor Books’ edition of June, 1959 – chronologically the ninth edition of the book – featuring a lovely cover by Robert Schulz. In much the style of 50s era paperbacks published by Anchor Books and Pocket Books, the “action” is mostly confined to the right portion of the page, leaving a margin on the left for the publisher’s logo, the book’s serial number, and (can’t forget that!) the price.
Interestingly, the illustration isn’t really too “Marsy”, unless you consider the planet (if it is a planet) in the background to be Mars. Well, with its mottled reddish appearance (has kind of a Richard Powers look to it), it might be Mars… if so, perhaps the “action” is taking place on Demos or Phobos? Those spacesuits are, well, interesting, for the design appears to be a hybrid between a deep-sea diving suit, and, the flexible, multi-ringed joints envisaged in space suit concepts from the late 1950s and early 1960s. Well, in any event, the scene is obviously not intended to be taken too literally, for Schulz simply incorporated symbols, technology, and scenery relating to space exploration in a very pleasing, eye-catching way.
Things to Refer To…
Arthur C. Clarke, at…
Robert E. Schulz, at…
The Sands of Mars, at…