I came across The Martian by Andy Weir while looking around
online. It looked interesting and so I placed it on hold. If it didn’t catch me
I could always send it back. That did not happen; The Martian had me from the
first sentence and read it in little more than one sitting.
Six days after landing on Mars a massive dust storm forces
an early evacuation from the surface. Astronaut Mark Watney is slammed into by
an antenna and is knocked out. His crew
mates believing him dead blast off and start the trek home to Earth. Marc
Watney is alone on Mars. Thankfully, there are some resources to help him
survive for a little while.
I remember a time as a young teenager camping with friends,
laying and looking up at the night sky. It was the first time I truly appreciated
how miniscule we are, just teeny tiny flecks hanging onto the surface of a ball
of dirt and gas hurtling through space. It unsettled me for a little bit and
then I relaxed. The story brought that feeling back for me in trying to put
myself into the characters situation. I was surprised that the story didn’t
veer into the existential.
The story is full of adventure and science. Lots of
science. Author Andy Weir did a great
job of bringing across realistic hard science into a easy to understand and fun
style. When a problem would present its
self, I looked forward to seeing how Watney was going to solve it.
It is a book worth checking out.
Oh, and the movie will be out soon. Directed by Ridley Scott and starring Matt
Damon
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