51 pages • 1 hour read
A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
The Prologue is a transcript of a report sent by Mars settlement’s Commander Sai Dexter to the US Terrestrial Command. It states that one of the cameras surveilling the settlement has been destroyed. Sai Dexter suspects it was done deliberately and asks for advice on how to proceed.
Note: Several communication transcripts are inserted between chapters throughout the book. They are mentioned at the end of each corresponding chapter summary.
Eleven-year-old Bell is trying to sleep in one of the children’s rooms of the US Mars settlement, but his bunkmate Albie’s snoring is keeping him awake. Bell eventually gives up on sleep and walks through the settlement to reach the communications and observations room (“COR”) above ground, where he falls asleep with his cat Leo.
The story is told in the first person by Bell, the youngest child of the first generation of settlers. Bell has never known Earth and is fascinated by what the adults have told him about it, though he is confused by some of their stories about their birth planet.
Bell wakes up in the COR. He is about to go feed Leo breakfast when he spots a large glowing object through the window. The unidentified object crashes on the surface of Mars, causing a brief quake. Some of the other settlers rush into the room in a panic.
Bell insists that what he saw was an alien ship, but the others dismiss him and think it must have been a meteorite. When Phinneus, the oldest settler, suggests they contact the nearby French settlement to check whether they were hit by the crashing object, Sai, the Commander, refuses. Several countries have established settlements on Mars, but they have strict instructions never to contact or interfere with each other. The settlers abide by the rules, and they all leave for breakfast.
Bell excitedly tells his friend Trey about what he saw. Trey is a little older than Bell and recently switched rooms with Albie without explaining why, so their relationship is strained. During breakfast, Bell sits with the other kids—Vera, Flossy, and Trey—and notices that the camera that usually monitors the surface in their settlement is broken.
After breakfast, Sai assigns the settlers daily chores. Trey protests against his assignment; he is upset that Sai chose Albie to be his apprentice that year, but Bell is happy to be sent to the algae farm. There, he enthusiastically sets out to assist Phinneus with his daily tasks, and the two are shown to have an affectionate relationship.
After Chapter 3, a Secure Communication transcript sent by Sai to Earth details the events of that morning, asking for advice on how to handle the unidentified crashed object.
While Bell and Albie are in their room, Bell realizes that he does not know what to give Meems for her birthday in the coming months because he does not have a special talent. When the lights flicker, Albie tells Bell to go get duct tape from Sai’s workshop to fix the control panel. On his way back, Bell has a conversation with Meems and learns about one of her childhood memories, a birthday when she had carrot cake. Inspired by their talk, Bell decides to make her a carrot cake for her upcoming birthday and asks Phinneus to help him grow carrots.
Later, Vera and Trey convince Bell to show them where the alleged alien ship crashed. Bell is reluctant at first because the rules strictly forbid any contact with the other settlements, and he remembers that a member of their colony, Lissa, died a few years earlier near the French settlement. However, he eventually agrees because Trey is treating him like a close friend again.
After Chapter 4, a Secure Communication transcript sent by Sai to Earth warns that a third of their batteries are not working and asks for advice on how to proceed.
The first four chapters introduce the main characters, setting, themes, and tone of The Lion of Mars. Bell is depicted as a young, enthusiastic, and naive narrator, which creates an innocent point of view. Here, the reader sees Bell’s characteristic short lines, sentence fragments, and childlike tone:
The trip to Mars was the hardest thing they’d ever experienced. That’s what the grown-ups said. The small, cramped ship. The constant fear of something going wrong. The knowledge that they could never return to Earth. But honestly, it sounded like a cakewalk compared to sharing a bedroom with Albie. Because he snored (3).
The first sentence in Chapter 1, which describes the settlers’ trip from Earth to Mars, serves two purposes. Narratively, it creates anticipation and emphasizes the characters’ isolation. Additionally, it helps readers transition from their own familiar environment into the fictional setting. Bell’s trivial, light-hearted comment about Albie’s snoring contrasts with his previous statement and introduces humor.
The story begins in the middle of a regular night in the Mars habitat, displaying Bell’s familiarity with his surroundings and the close-knit group of settlers. This creates a sense of comfort that highlights the small-scale, social dimension prevalent in the rest of the story. Bell’s sense of safety at home contrasts with his apprehension of the unknown, setting up one of the novel’s key themes, The Driving Power of Fear, and foreshadowing his future emotional struggles and character growth.
Literary devices such as red herrings, or misleading clues, are hinted at, as well as the novel’s exploration of prejudice. Plot points and ominous warnings, such as the list of Settlement Rules, set up the conflict between the different countries’ settlements.
The broken camera that Sai mentions in the Prologue, for example, creates suspense and seems to foreshadow a possible conflict:
The surface digi-cam at the northwest quadrant of the settlement has been destroyed. The pole supporting it was knocked over as well. It is my conclusion that this was done deliberately by a hostile actor (1).
However, the camera is a red herring: It turns out to be an innocuous detail in Chapter 23, defusing the characters’ assumptions about their neighbor’s supposed hostility. Other key narrative elements are also introduced to create anticipation, including: the mystery surrounding Lissa’s death, the failing batteries that demonstrate The Dangers of Isolation, and Bell and Trey’s now complicated relationship.
Finally, the unfamiliar setting is depicted through Bell’s matter-of-fact narration. In the first few chapters, there are several instances when the young narrator compares his routine on Mars to stories he has heard about life on Earth. His innocent point of view adds humor as well as plausibility to this fictional setting. Bell’s night stroll, for instance, helps convey a detailed description of the habitat while maintaining a sense of routine and intimacy.
Plus, gain access to 8,800+ more expert-written Study Guides.
Including features:
By Jennifer L. Holm