The Martian
By Andy Weir (Crown, ISBN: 978-0-8041-3902-1)
Deserved praise
Review by Lawrence I. Charters, December 30, 2015
When I first heard about this book, I liked the plot idea, but have grown wary of books by unknown writers, especially of self-published works. In this case, the concerns were groundless. This is an absolutely superb science fiction story that is first a food story and in near second place good fiction about science.
While the novel takes place on Mars, on Earth, and in outer space between the two planets, it really is about Mars, and the extreme difficulties involved in living on the planet. It is also about problem solving, as the protagonist, Mark Watney, faces a series of disasters, starting with a catastrophic dust storm that leaves him alone on the surface of Mars in 2035.
Watney is a botanist and engineer. Left alone on the planet (his crewmates on a NASA expedition to Mars thought he was killed), with no working communications, limited electrical power, almost no water, and almost no food, Watney goes through a grieving process and then, step by step, starts working on the oxygen, water, power, food, and other problems. He eventually manages to salvage enough equipment (including rescued components from earlier expeditions to Mars) to eek out a bare subsistence life, and eventually, attract the attention of mission project managers back on Earth.
I was desperate to finish the book before seeing the film The Martian. Films often do odd things to a plot, and I prefer to read a novel, and develop my own ideas on how things look and feel, before seeing a film and viewing what directors, set designers and actors have decided. In the case of The Martian, both the movie and the novel are very closely aligned. In many cases, the dialogue is identical, and most events are close as well. The novel has a great deal more detail, and the movie adds a subplot not included in the novel.
If you saw the movie, read the book. If you’ve read the book, you’ve probably already seen the movie. And if not, get on with that. Highly recommended.