MENUMENU
  • HOME
  • CAMPING
    • MAP
    • LIST
  • TRAVEL
    • MAP
    • LIST
  • LIFE
    • DEEP SCHMIDT
    • DAD SCHMIDT
    • FUNNY SCHMIDT
  • LEISURE
    • MUSIC SCHMIDT
    • BOOK SCHMIDT
    • YUMMY SCHMIDT
    • SPORTS SCHMIDT
  • MONEY
    • MONEY SCHMIDT
    • HOUSE SCHMIDT
  • WRITING
    • WRITING SCHMIDT
    • BLOG SCHMIDT
  • SARCOIDOSIS
    • SARCOIDOSIS SCHMIDT
    • SARCOIDOSIS LINKS
  • ABOUT
    • ABOUT ME
    • CONTACT ME
  • FREELANCE WRITING PORTFOLIO

A Crock of Schmidt

Single-handedly solving nothing

The Martian by Andy Weir – Review

October 3, 2015 by acrockofschmidt 4 Comments

The Martian Cover

Opening sentences can often make or break a book, especially one by an unknown author.  A great first line will suck the reader in immediately and keep the pages turning right through to the end.  A poor one, on the other hand, can have the reader close the book before the first page is finished.  “I’m pretty much fucked,” the line that kickstarts Andy Weir’s debut novel The Martian, falls into the great category.

On October 2nd, the much anticipated movie version of this book hits the big screen.  Starring Matt Damon and directed by Ridley Scott, The Martian movie certainly has the right star power and provenance to do right by The Martian book.  I’m quite excited about this movie which I realize is a dangerous thing to say with respect to movie adaptations of beloved books, but The Martian is very film-friendly so if Scott can keep his artistic ego in check and not screw with the story too much it should be a good one.  My fingers are crossed, though regardless of the success or failure of the movie, you really need to read this book.

The Martian by Andy Weir, aside from being a terrific novel, is also a great rags-to-riches tale of a rejected writer who finds superstardom through self-publishing.   Having been unsuccessful selling previous books to agents, Weir chose to publish The Martian as a serial online for free.  Fans encouraged the creation of a Kindle version which quickly became an Amazon best-seller finally attracting interest among publishers.  Such success stories are the carrot dangling before the snouts of thousands of inspired, amateur writers the world over.  What makes this book particularly special compared to similar literary legends like Fifty Shades of Grey is that The Martian is actually a quality book worthy of the feat.

Without giving too much away, The Martian is the story of astronaut Mark Watney who is abandoned on Mars having been presumed dead after a severe dust storm and must attempt to stay alive for two years until a rescue ship can save him.  It is a story of survival, man against nature, made all the more poignant as we inch ever closer to manned missions to the red planet.  This imminent reality gives the book a tantalizing taste of non-fiction potential that makes this science fiction tale far more accessible to readers than more exotic, futuristic fare.  Coupled with the technically accurate science that propels this well-paced adventure, the book manages to thrill the reader without the insult to intelligence commonplace is a lot of adventure science fiction.  This was a welcome surprise for me as was the novelty of having a geologist in command of a space ship, something that gave this former geologist’s ego a welcome stroke.

The book does, regrettably, have a couple shortcomings that don’t necessarily ruin the story but do manage to negate some of the realism the hard science so deftly added.  The primary of these, in my opinion, is the utter lack of any psychological failings for the Watney character.  I realize he’s an astronaut, presumably an incredibly intelligent and mentally stable human chosen for the long, arduous Mars missions after exhaustive testing, but you’d have to think being stranded on Mars would trouble even the most rock-solid hero just a little bit.  Even a John Wayne-MacGyver-Captain Kirk hybrid would have at least one moment of weakness would he not?  This is a seriously traumatic situation and yet Mark remains jovial and sane, even cracking jokes, the entire time he’s stranded on Mars.  The lack of any doubt or breakdown, even if temporary, struck me as a serious failing of an otherwise entertaining book.  Adding some “will he go mad?” drama to all the “will this jury-rigged contraption work?” drama would have enhanced an already riveting read.

There’s also the eagerness of the Chinese to help out which, frankly, seemed a bit of a stretch.  Perhaps I’m too cynical but I just can’t see things unfolding as depicted in the book bearing in mind the current state of geopolitical relationships.  Considering that in Chris Hadfield’s non-fictional account of life on the International Space Station we learn that NASA astronauts are not supposed to enter the Russian portions of the ISS, let alone “drive” the Soyuz rockets, the idea that the Chinese would happily postpone their own projects to help a stranded American is a touch optimistic.  Hey, I hope I’m wrong if this ever unfolds in real life.

Otherwise, this is a terrific book and I enjoyed it a great deal.  I give it 4 out of 5 Baby Dill Pickles and highly recommend it to science fiction fans and non-sci fi fans alike.  It’s a good adventure story set in the not-to-distant future that is both enjoyable and believable.  The Martian by Andy Weir is a wonderful accomplishment for Andy Weir and well worth your time to read and I hope to hell the movie lives up to the hype.

a SHARE shows you CARE

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)

Filed Under: Book Schmidt Tagged With: adaptation, Andy Weir, Chris Hadfield, Mars, movie, Sci Fi

Find a campground review!

Comments

  1. Christine says

    October 3, 2015 at 08:17

    We went to see the movie last night. Keep in mind, I haven’t read the book, but the movie was amazing. I had to keep reminding myself that it was fiction and not a true story…

    Reply
    • acrockofschmidt says

      October 3, 2015 at 08:51

      Well aren’t you keeners!

      Reply
  2. FractionCalc says

    February 17, 2016 at 05:16

    I love this movie. It portrays the value of patience, calmness even in the face of danger, and the ability to use your unique survival skills. It even teaches the value and character to finish your mission against all odds. Matt Damon has perfectly done his role here. It inspires us to be stronger for the grand plan of making the planet Mars a habitable place. So a good movie.

    Reply
    • acrockofschmidt says

      February 17, 2016 at 08:51

      I agree with your assessment for the most part. I just felt the “patience, calmness even in the face of danger” was too easily achieved. No one currently living has any idea how they’d react to being abandoned on Mars, but I suspect that even the most stoic of us would have a little bit more mental difficulty with such a reality than Mr. Watney did. Still, enjoyable cinema. Thanks for reading and commenting.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Follow Us on FacebookFollow Us on TwitterFollow Us on InstagramFollow Us on YouTubeFollow Us on Pinterest

Discover Other Campgrounds

Lower Lake Campground – Peter Lougheed Provincial Park – review

Oddly enough, Lower Lake Campground feels like kind of a letdown. That’s an … [Read More...]

South Kouchibouguac Campground – Kouchibouguac National Park – review

As of this exact moment, we have camped in eight of Canada’s national … [Read More...]

Blue Traffic Sign indicating distance to Sibbald Lake

Sibbald Lake Campground – Sibbald Lake PRA – review

Ah, there they are ... mosquitoes. I knew we’d run into them sooner or … [Read More...]

Pembina River Provincial Park – review

Make no mistake, Pembina River Provincial Park is a delightful campground … [Read More...]

Wabamun Lake Provincial Park Sign

Wabamun Lake Provincial Park – review

After last weekend’s misadventure we were eager to get camping with our new … [Read More...]

wooden sign indicating provincial park in alberta

Kinbrook Island Provincial Park – review

Mosquitoes, heat, pit toilets, and crowds. The quadfecta of loathing when … [Read More...]

Dillberry Lake Provincial Park – review

Our visit to Dillberry Lake Provincial Park did not originate as a planned … [Read More...]

Posts By Category

Posts By Month

All posts on this blog are Copyright Protected © 2014 – 2022 All Rights Reserved – A Crock of Schmidt

To automatically recieve the newest post, sign up here!

Copyright © 2023 · Lifestyle Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in