Family drama about a widowed novelist & his newly adopted son. Science fiction writer, David Gordon (John Cusack) is feeling alone after the death of his wife two years previously. He is weighing up the possibility of adopting a six-year-old orphan boy, Dennis (Bobby Coleman), who believes he is from the planet Mars. David's sister, Liz (Joan Cusack), tries to talk him out of adopting the boy as he doesn't know the first thing about parenting & Dennis appears to be just too far out there. Reluctantly at first, David tries to communicate with Dennis by going along with the child's belief in his Martian heritage & starts to have so much fun being a parent that he stops writing & is about to miss his next book deadline. As the bond between new father & son strengthens, the administrators of the organisation that put them together see David's colluding with the boy's fantasies as a failure of parenting & they threaten to remove Dennis from his care... ...

Illuminates what it means to be a person who has Aspergers Syndrome by providing a window into a unique & particular world. This book holds insights that take us beyond the standard guidance on how to manage autistic spectrum disorder. It reminds us that many of the autistic mannerisms we might try to suppress actually help the child to think. ...

Offers insight into the technologies, mission architectures, medical requirements, & training needed to send humans to Mars. This book focuses on mission objectives & benefits, & the risks that are compounded when linked to an overall planet exploration program involving several expeditions & setting up a permanent presence on the surface. ...