Get out of this world with December's book of the month

I’m constantly fascinated by a trick that society plays on itself over and over again: our ability to look at the outmoded beliefs of the past with a critical lens, without ever quite applying the same perspective to ourselves. How did we believe that? we chuckle, without realizing that many of the ideas we hold dear today will also be punctured by time. 

That’s why I’m pleased to announce that our last Curious Reading Club for 2025 is The Martians: The True Story of an Alien Craze That Captured Turn-of-the-Century America by David Baron. 

It’s a book that casts an eye on that exact paradox, while telling a riveting story which I knew nothing about.

The Martians is an extremely readable account of how a cadre of America’s most influential people convinced the world that the Red Planet harbored a race of intelligent beings. The book details how scientists, artists, and members of high society forcefully pushed the idea that America was on the verge of meeting this ancient, alien race.

Baron, a science journalist, centers on the life of Percival Lowell, a wealthy scion who pumped unfathomable amounts of money and energy into his unshakeable beliefs about Mars. Lowell built telescopes, funded research, pored over photographs, and argued endlessly for his viewpoint. But he wasn’t alone, his ideas had real support, and they fueled a craze lasted well into the 20th century: 

Released in August, The Martians has been named one of the New Yorker’s best books of the year, longlisted for the 2025 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Nonfiction, while Science called it a “vivid narrative” that “reads as part history, part social study, and part literary drama.” 

Copies are being sent out to paying Club members as we speak: I hope you find it as intriguing as I did.

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Finally, with the holidays coming up this is a great time to give Curious Reading Club membership as a gift. We have monthly, six month, and annual options available—and if you’re buying for another person, or want to hold the first delivery until Christmas, just enter a note into the special instructions field at checkout.

I hope December treats you well.

Onward

Bobbie