The Martian by Andy Weir: Review

“The Martian” by Andy Weir is a science fiction novel, about a guy named Mark Watney from the crew of the Ares 3, the third manned Mars Mission. I had already read this novel previously, but I thought for my first official book review I should pick a book I know and love. 

Basically, there’s a huge freak storm on Mars that NASA didn’t know about, and it meant that the crew would have to leave the planet. But while they are leaving in the spaceship, Watney gets hit by a flying piece of equipment, and is thrown far away from the rest of the crew. The crew desperately tries to find him, but deems him dead and leaves Mars without him.

But plot twist – Watney is alive and well – except for the fact that he’s on Mars all alone.

The biggest problem is that he only has enough food in the structure they stay in on Mars – the Hab – for about half a year, so he has to grow his own food. He manages to find a way to grow food on Mars by using the potatoes, and therefore becomes the first person to grow food. However, he does face issues, such as an explosion in the Hab, and having some pretty close calls with losing all of his essential supplies, such as water, food and air. And having only disco music to listen to and horrible 70’s TV shows to watch left by Commander Lewis. 

He eventually makes contact with NASA, and now that they find out he is alive, they work endlessly to bring him home, spending 24/7 trying to get money to send Watney supplies until his crew can make it back to rescue him. This really shows how humans have an instinct to come together to help other humans, and how even just one human life matters.

Obviously, eventually Watney is saved by his crew, and that is one thing about this book that I did expect. Although I didn’t expect how he would be saved, I did know going in he was going to be saved. But it was still a very enjoyable story to read. 

The science throughout the book was very well explained. Some science fiction books don’t explain the science behind the technology, but The Martian gives a good idea of what exactly Mark Watney did, including growing the plants, flying the shuttle, and so on. 

I liked how lighthearted the novel was, despite the whole Watney being stranded on Mars and all. He manages to keep a sense of humor throughout the whole novel, along with many repetitions of some not so nice words. However, they add to the humor so I don’t think it’s completely unnecessary. But rather than using fancy language, the story is told just like someone is talking to you. It’s more like someone is telling you the story face to face, which is something I really like in books. While I do like more complex reads, I like the simple and straightforward nature of the book. 

All in all, definitely recommend this book. There has also been a movie released of this novel, back in theatres last November and now out on DVD and Blu-Ray. Although the movie was well done, the book was better than the movie just like any other novel turned into a movie.