They did it because every human being has a basic instinct to help each other out. It might not seem that way sometimes, but it’s true
Rating: 4/5
Trigger Warnings: explicit language
Spoiler Alert! If you haven’t read the book, this review will contain spoilers so it’s up to you if you continue…
I’m going to premise this with the fact that I’m not really a sci-fi fan when it comes to books. Films are a different story, but The Martian is the first sci-fi book I can remember reading maybe ever. That being said, I loved it. Honestly, the only reason I don’t feel I can give The Martian five out of five is because of the heavily scientific terminology used. And it is heavy. I had to reread passages every so often because I could not understand what Mark or NASA was doing, and I definitely intend to watch the film to aid my understanding of bits and pieces (though I’m sure the film isn’t an honest recreation of the book), but it is still a thoroughly enjoyable read.
The first thing I have to mention is the narration. Mark Watney is a brilliant character. He has an incredible sense of humour, which I truly believe contributed to his continuing determination to live through his ordeal. His Log Entries were my favourite type of narration within the book, but the alternating points of view and occasional third person observations of Mark’s disasters - for example, when Airlock 1 blew off the side of the Hab, or when the Rover overturned when Mark had finally reached Schiaparelli Basin, were fantastic. Those accounts took us outside of Mark’s head and gave us a real time account of things happening to him, rather than his, admittedly humourous, recount of what the event. It added genuine suspense to the occasion; instead of jumping from things going well to Mark explaining what went wrong, we got to see things as they went wrong, letting us believe that maybe things weren’t going to work out for Mark. It was these moments that made me unable to put the book down.
Log Entries as the main form of narration held another advantage: when Mark was isolated, so is the reader. Though we might know more than him, when his connection with NASA is lost, for the most part so is ours. This adds to the suspense, and the feeling of loneliness. Speaking of loneliness, I was so emotionally invested in Mark’s journey (smooth segue there). Being alone, every Log is Mark’s full personality, and Weir is an excellent author, getting across the emotional turmoil of being left behind on Mars without outright talking about emotions. It was in the way Mark spoke about something, and the number of jokes in his Logs that you could tell how he felt. I actively worried for him throughout the book, right up until he was back inside of Hermes with his crewmates.
The only thing I didn’t like (other than the occasional heavy-handed science) was the time skips. Mark is on Mars for 549 Sols, so I definitely understand why there are occasional jumps. We don’t need to hear every single detail. The jump that sticks out, however, is a jump of 120 Sols. That one felt a little too much to be honest, but Mark caught us up in a couple of paragraphs, so again, I understand fully why Weir made the decision to skip so much time from his narration.
I would fully recommend The Martian to sci-fi fans, and even to those who simply want to dip their toe. If for nothing else, then for the excellent and unexpected humour. Truly brilliant.
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