by Lauren
This book has been floating around for a while, but with the upcoming feature film (staring Matt Damon), several recommendations from friends and getting a copy for my birthday (thanks, Maria!), I finally sat down and gave The Martian a read - and it is literally one of the most compelling books I have read in years. The Martian was originally self-published by first time author Andy Weir in 2011 and it was so popular, Crown Publishing purchased the rights and re-released it in 2014. |
In an interview in back of the book, Weir explains that he had a hobby of trying to figure out how manned missions to Mars might work. He is a space, science and math geek of superlative talent, and as he was planning his mission scenarios for fun, he started thinking about all the things that could go wrong - and calculating solutions to problems.
With the life-and-death stakes of human survival on Mars, Weir realized that there could be a good story in there. So he sat down and invented Mark Watney, and then loving stranded him on Mars and tortured him at every turn with misfortune. Part Robinson Crusoe, part MacGyver, Ares 3 mission engineer/botinast Mark Watney is from the very first line (“I'm pretty much fucked.”) both relateable and ingenious.
With the life-and-death stakes of human survival on Mars, Weir realized that there could be a good story in there. So he sat down and invented Mark Watney, and then loving stranded him on Mars and tortured him at every turn with misfortune. Part Robinson Crusoe, part MacGyver, Ares 3 mission engineer/botinast Mark Watney is from the very first line (“I'm pretty much fucked.”) both relateable and ingenious.
Plot summary from the back of the book...
Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars.
Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there.
After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive—and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive.
Chances are, though, he won't have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old "human error" are much more likely to kill him first.
But Mark isn't ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills—and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit—he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?
The book goes back-and-forth between the first person narrative of Mark's daily mission logs and a third person narrative at NASA and the Hermes team as they try and plan his rescue. There is also one passage that is written in omniscient narrator voice that I found odd enough to bookmark for discussion in my book club, but it does serve to raise the tension - and the rest of the book is so good I'll forgive that one bit of weirdness.
Pure science fiction is not my usual fare when reading, but this book grabbed me from the beginning and never let go. The science in it is so realistic, yet accessibly presented, that even a lay-person will be able to follow the action (and the math) and keep you guessing at every turn - to the very last page - if Watney will make it home alive.
Does this book have a happy ending or a sad one? You'll just have to read it for yourself.
You won't be disappointed!
Does this book have a happy ending or a sad one? You'll just have to read it for yourself.
You won't be disappointed!