This book is different from the other books that I have read on this topic in that it operates dispassionately. It is not polemic. It is not manifesto. The argumentation is slight and not forceful. The writing is dry, but the author will use tables and such for clarity and presentation.

It starts with the origins of life on Earth. This would seem to be a bit of a detour from living in space, but the book is focused on the Fermi Paradox - the idea that since space is as big and as long as it is, even if intelligent life elsewhere is super-rare, we ought to have seen some evidence by now of it. Taking up the 'Great Filter' solution - that life tends to get destroyed, either by natural or self-inflicted wound, the existence of the Great Filter becomes the primary argument for space exploitation: it is how we avoid it.

Superficially similar to arguments from other proponents that we have to become a multi-planetary species, it shares the same flaw as they do - that a disaster that dooms the earth would not also doom (in one way or another) any post-earth habitation, with an additional layer of recursive logic. If the Great Filter exists, then it would be incredibly odd to imagine that the Earth is the first place to realize it exists.

But the triple-flip is the book is rather bearish on said 'alternative home.' It lists off the challenges in extensive detail, and here it is downright useful in its general ambivalence. Treating it all as a big maybe creates the space for reasonable debate, without a specific side. It does lean towards the Singularity, but make it fashion argument, similar but distinct from The Giant Leap, where it accepts a future without humans but with human machines.

It feels basic. This may be an artifact of me reading several books on this topic, but particularly with its sort of first-principals approach in describing everything there is about earth, space, and civilization-destroying events, I feel like many readers will already be versed in most of what the book has to say. Of course, there is someone that is not the case for, which makes it ideal, and the general breadth of the elements and sub-elements is impressive.

So, particularly if you feel totally in the dark about space and what extra-planetary/solar living might or might not be, it is a useful read. But there is something of an audience problem here.

My thanks to the author, Rodrick J. Hill, for writing the book, and to the publisher, Prometheus Books, for making the ARC available to me.

This title covers a wide swath of information, all of it related to the possibility of humanity living off-world. Each chapter covers a different topic, whether it be the history of space travel to date, the suitability of various planets and moons to support a colony, the reasons why this should be seriously considered (the possibility of runaway global warming, or a massive meteor strike that could wipe us out like the dinosaurs), to the probable future of spaceship drives. This book might be compared to Mary Roach's _Packing for Mars_ (W.W. Norton & Company, 2011) in topic, but not in tone. This book is serious, and includes numerous tables, and more than one mathematical formula. There is much discussion of the very real difficulties in starting space colonies; biomedical, engineering challenges, and socioeconomic issues. This will not be a cheap endeavor, and getting the public on board with such an expensive project will not be easy.
Recommended for academic and larger public libraries. It would also be of interest to people who are fans of hard science fiction.

Thank you to Globe Pequot Press for allowing me to read this advanced reader copy! Space to Live is a great comprehensive read on different factors we must consider before we venture into space. This book reads a bit like an academic review but the diversity of topics covered ensure that it is not too difficult to read. As someone who has always been fascinated with space travel and human biology in space, this was a great addition to my library. This would also be a great supplemental reading for sci fi writers and lovers. Thanks again for the ARC!

Unfortunately, I was a bit disappointed by this. Space exploration is a really interesting topic, but I found this book very dry, almost like reading a textbook. There were also far too many tangents discussing side topics. For example, the first 3 chapters discuss evidence for life on other planets and threats to life on ours. This would be a fine 10 page introduction to the topic, but instead it drags on for 130 pages, which I found completely excessive.

The book is supposed to be about humans living in space, but the book spent much less time on this than I would have liked. Part 2 is focused on potential places humans could live and part 3 is how we might travel there, but I was hoping for a deeper discussion of what life would actually be like in these space colonies. The fundamental question of whether it is even possible remains unresolved, as the author gives possible methods and some flaws with them, but doesn't draw conclusions.