Book Review: The Martian by Andy Weir - A Sci-Fi Thriller That Will Keep You on the Edge of Your Seat

The Martian by Andy Weir is a science fiction novel that I really enjoyed. I watched the movie a few years ago and loved it, so I've been wanting to read the book for a long time. I finally got around to it and I'm glad I did. And now, I present my comprehensive book review.

Book Review: The Martian by Andy Weir

First of all, The Martian is a science fiction and space novel. But for me most of all it is a novel about being stranded and about survival. When I was still a kid I read the book Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe and since then very much interested in novels about being stranded and survival.

From another view, the protagonist of “The Martian” Mark Watney is like Robinson Crusoe. For being stranded and trying to survive. That’s only one common thing they have. But with many differences. Watney is on Mars and this planet is not life-friendly.

The novel is mostly written as a log entry. Mark Watney starts to write from Sol 6. Because he was stranded on Mars in Sol 6 (the sixth day of their Mars mission) when his crew had to leave Mars thinking that he is dead and lost in the storm.

Mars missions

So first thing when Watney wakes up on Mars alone and realizes that the storm didn’t kill him, he assesses the situation and starts his log entries. First, he starts to explain how he got there. Even though there is a big chance nobody will ever come to the same location on Mars and find his log entries.

“I guess I should explain how Mars missions work, for any layman who may be reading this. We got to Earth orbit the normal way, through an ordinary ship to Hermes. All the Ares missions use Hermes to get to and from Mars. It’s really big and cost a lot so NASA built only one. 

Once we got to Hermes, four additional unmanned missions brought us fuel and supplies while we prepared for our trip. Once everything was a go, we set out for Mars. But not very fast. Gone are the days of heavy chemical fuel burns and trans-Mars injection orbits. 

Hermes is powered by ion engines. They throw argon out the back of the ship really fast to get a tiny amount of acceleration. The thing is, it doesn’t take much reactant mass, so a little argon (and a nuclear reactor to power things) let us accelerate constantly the whole way there. You’d be amazed at how fast you can get going with a tiny acceleration over a long time.”

Ares 3 mission was supposed to last for 30 days. But in Sol 6, a strong storm hit them and they aborted the mission. While all the crew was going to the rocket an antenna hits astronaut Mark Watney, a botanist, and engineer. His crew could not find him in the storm and thought he is long dead. They leave Mars without him. Watney is alone on Mars he must survive by himself.

“So that’s the situation. I’m stranded on Mars. I have no way to communicate with Hermes or Earth. Everyone thinks I’m dead. I’m in a Hab designed to last thirty-one days. 

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 kind of explode. If none of those things happen, I’ll eventually run out of food and starve to death. 

So yeah. I’m fucked.”

Mark Watney is a botanist and an engineer 

Mark Watney is a botanist and an engineer. So his knowledge of botany and engineering will help him a lot on Mars. How can botany help him on a planet where nothing grows? He will figure it out and grow some potatoes.

But there is one more thing about Watney why he was chosen for this mission. He can get along with people easily and has a very good sense of humor. He is doing his duties very carefully and seriously. But even in very critical conditions, he knows how to cheer up and make some jokes.

In many parts of the novel, Watney got me laughing. That’s one thing that made me like this book very much. Aside from me liking science fiction.

Here are some quotes that made me smile while I was reading:

“I started the day with some nothin’ tea. Nothin’ tea is easy to make. First, get some hot water, then add nothin’. I experimented with potato skin tea a few weeks ago. The less said about that the better.” 

“I thought a laptop would be fine outside. It’s just electronics, right? It’ll keep warm enough to operate in the short term, and it doesn’t need air for anything.
It died instantly. The screen went black before I was out of the airlock. Turns out the “L” in “LCD” stands for “Liquid.” I guess it either froze or boiled off. Maybe I’ll post a consumer review. “Brought product to surface of Mars. It stopped working. 0/10.” 

“… the University of Chicago. They say once you grow crops somewhere, you have officially “colonized” it. So technically, I colonized Mars.
In your face, Neil Armstrong!”

Mart Watney is stranded on Mars but everyone on Earth thinks he is dead. But soon NASA will find out that he is alive and try to rescue him. Along with the rest of the world.

Reading a Book After Watching Its Movie

I watched the movie adaptation of Andy Weir's novel The Martian long before I read the book. Some people think it's a waste of time to read a book after you've seen the movie since you already know the story. But I disagree. I believe that books always tell a better story than movies, even if the movie is really good. This is because books can provide more detail and context, which can help to flesh out the characters and make the story more immersive

For example, in The Martian, the movie does a great job of depicting the challenges that Mark Watney faces while stranded on Mars. However, the book goes into much more detail about how Watney solves these problems. We learn about his engineering skills, his ingenuity, and his determination. This makes the story even more suspenseful and exciting

Of course, there are some downsides to reading a book after you've seen the movie. For example, you'll already know how the story ends. However, I believe that the benefits of reading the book outweigh the drawbacks. If you're a fan of The Martian, I highly recommend reading the book. You won't be disappointed.

Please let me know what you think about this in the comments.

Andy Weir
The Martian
Crown Publishers
New York
2011
400 pages
Science Fiction/Stranded/Survival/Novel/Space