This novel is a dense, cerebral exploration of set against the backdrop of the Cold War in the 1960s.
An unnamed narrator reflects on his childhood spent in an Alpine hotel under the care of two "aunts"— Serghiana , a Soviet "red princess," and Ady , a cynical Viennese former singer.
Six non-astronauts lived in a geodesic dome on the slopes of Mauna Loa in Hawaii for one year to simulate a mission to Mars .
The film examines the psychological effects of isolation and how humans maintain their mental health when sealed off from the world.