Three books by KimStanleyRobinson, ISBN 0553572393
Red Mars, Green Mars & Blue Mars are together a masterpiece describing how humans came to live on Mars over the next 150 years or so. He makes it sound like it has already happened.
The books are good, to be sure, but I wouldn't consider any of them a masterpiece. I thought the characters were a little flat. -- AndyPierce
Changed my life. It's as much about people and society as it is about Mars, which is why many hardcore fans of the genre ("hard" ScienceFiction) will come out disappointed. The characters are so vivid it's almost as if they're out there today, preparing for launch. -- POBOX2026 _AT_ GMAIL _DOT_ COM