The Martian

We are introduced to the plight of astronaut Mark Watney, who was part of the Ares 3 mission to explore Mars. I’m pretty much screwed … If the oxygenator breaks down, I’ll suffocate. If the water reclaimer breaks down, I’ll die of thirst. If the Hab breaches, I’ll just explode. If none of those things happen, I’ll eventually run out of food and starve to death. So yeah. I’m screwed. (1-7) Set in the near future, Mark Watney is stranded on Mars as a result of a mission gone wrong, and everyone thinks he’s dead. His situation is worsened by the fact that there is no way for him to communicate with anybody else. While others may have given up, Watney is determined not to die on Mars.

In this scientific thriller, Mark Watney is determined to get closer to his goal of getting home, one problem at a time. From explosions to crashes, Mars seems desperate to keep him hostage. But Mark has a powerful weapon at his disposal. Science.

This is definitely the type of science fiction that would go in the hard category. This book documents Watney’s scientific endeavors with extreme precision and accuracy. With subjects ranging from chemistry to physics explored deeply within this book, it might be challenging for the average reader to understand all the science involved. But this also goes to prove the amount of research the author has done to make this book as accurate as possible.

Although the premise and execution of the story was on point, I found the dialogue between characters to be quite artificial. This did not detract much from the book, however, given that the book centers on Watney’s escapades on the surface of Mars (his conversations with Mars were pretty much one-sided).

This is an excellent book for those who enjoy both fiction and science and are looking for a nice balance between the two.