The Moon is not for Sale by Wallace Provost

The race to the moon has been a topic of interest for many years. Is it habitable and if so how do we address the concerns with the actual colonizing of such a place?

In The Moon is not for Sale by Wallace Provost, we are taken into the future where not only has the moon begun to fill up with inhabitants, it becomes a place of natural resources necessary to keep Earth afloat, but also a dream for some of finding a different home. What begins with Helium spreads out into gold and other precious metals.

Beginning with an accident that throws together two young people, we are taken on a journey into the very beginning of an interesting colonization, and the family that has made it happen.  Annie is only there with a group a students, but the accident strands her on Clint’s family farm until another shuttle can get her back to Earth. Living on the surface of the moon is impossible, and the farm is underground in a tunnel that keeps the family free of all the damages that occur on the surface. With gravity being so different from Earth, there is only a short time span that one can spend on the moon before they must leave, or stay to become a resident. Those that stay are known as Luneys.

Annie has no intention of staying regardless of her developing feelings for Clint. She is on her way to becoming an attorney, and she is bound and determined to follow it through. It is with sadness and internal pain that she finds the hiatus over and she is on her way back to Earth to continue with her own plans.

Little does she know that as she pursues her own destiny, it will swing in a fashion unintended from the beginning? This change will bring her back to the moon and the man she now understands that she loves. Will she be able to follow her dreams and reap the rewards from both ends?

Provost has written a gem of science, littered it with fiction, and twisted the two together to make a story of hardship and love. Alternating between storytelling and scientific fact, as well as a bit of fiction, you are on a journey into the unknown. Somewhat like the pull of the gold rush, the availability of finding a home on the moon, or just becoming a miner, makes the moon a place of interest. When it is declared that  homesteading and mining are allowed but that the moon is not for sale, there are those that will do whatever it takes to change that law.

If you enjoy science fiction, and stories of adventure you will find this work to be interesting. For me the back and forth between fiction and science was a bit difficult, and some things I found to be tedious, but often science seems that way.

Provost has an interesting voice, new to the writing world. The Moon is Not for Sale is an interesting take on politics and greed, which often leads to disaster. But he has found a way through, keeping the moon pristine for generations to come.

Rating 3/5

This book was received from the author. All opinions are my own based off my reading and understanding of the material.