The Martian by Andy Weir | Review *10/10 Stars*
12:30 AM
The Martian
by Andy Weir
Published: February 11, 2014
Publisher: Crown
Source: Own a copy
My Rating: 10/10 Stars
Summary
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 & forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded & completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive—& 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—& 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 verdict
This. Book. Blew. Me. Away.
I was expecting The Martian to be a good read. That gorgeous drawing cover and an even better blurb. But seriously, I had not expected this! When I was with Watney, stranded on the red planet, I was actually so engrossed that I missed my Metro Train station and had to go back. Thrice. On the other hand, when I was not sitting or standing somewhere with my nose in this book, I kept day dreaming about it. I love reading. But that had not happened to me in a while.
Watney. He is one character I am in love with. The brains! The sense of humor! The will power! I love him. But he gives me a really bad case of inferiority complex. I feel like a stupid baby potato in comparison. Maybe one of the many boring potatoes this botanist-astronaut-martian grows on Mars.
Actually, I liked all the characters in the book. They're so well crafted and so real, with their distinct voices and personalities. I'm specifically impressed by the attention to detail Andy Weir has given to every single thing in the book. This got me so hooked, I got like six more science fiction titles right after I was done with The Martian.
In short, this book made me miss my sleep, my train stations (thrice, people!), gave me near-heart-attack moments in between, made me guffaw at inappropriate times (in front of random strangers) and also made me feel like a potato throughout. Go read it. You'll thank me later.
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