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Марсианин

Andy Weir,

Энди Вейер

Start date: May 19, 2015

Finish date: May 21, 2015

Discussion: Book Discussions

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Oct 24, 2013 Kat rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: udate, sci-fi

Mark Watney is on Mars. Alone. With no way of communicating with earth, limited food and water and no get-out-of-jail-free card. So how does this make a book that is fascinating, action-packed and with a main character that I came to hugely admire? Through the magnificent storytelling of Andy Weir is how.

After a disastrous attempt to leave Mars, Mark Watney finds himself injured, alone and without any contact with either his colleagues or the command station on earth. No communication, limited f Mark Watney is on Mars. Alone. With no way of communicating with earth, limited food and water and no get-out-of-jail-free card. So how does this make a book that is fascinating, action-packed and with a main character that I came to hugely admire? Through the magnificent storytelling of Andy Weir is how.

After a disastrous attempt to leave Mars, Mark Watney finds himself injured, alone and without any contact with either his colleagues or the command station on earth. No communication, limited food and water, and years away from another Mars landing, he could have easily just turned into a whiny, self-pitying drag of a character. Instead, he pulls himself together, takes stock of what he does have to work with, and sets about setting himself up to survive as long as possible. As a botanist/mechanical engineer, he’s got knowledge and skills, but not necessarily the right ones to get him off the planet. This however, is what I loved about him as a character – he used what he did have to try and solve his problems, rather than moaning about what he didn’t have. He’s also rather humorous, in that black, sarcastic kinda way that I’m a huge fan of.

At the same time, his never ending cheerfulness and optimism does get a little wearing at times. He does occasionally wallow in a bit of self pity, but it’s only to swear at himself and the situations a few times before picking up his tools and getting back on with the job of surviving.

Being a science fiction book set on Mars, with a focus on surviving using technology, there is a lot of science-y stuff and explanations. Normally, this would completely turn me off, but Weir does a good job in making it both understandable and relevant to the story – some of the explanations are rather long, but also quite fascinating.

In short, I actually shouldn’t have liked this book as much as I did, if I based it on the facts that 1) there’s pretty much one main character 2) there’s a LOT of technical stuff and 3) it’s set in space, and that’s not usually something that appeals to me. However, I really like and admired Mark as a character, got sucked in to the technical parts rather than skimming over them (or worse, giving up completely) and I was desperately to find out what would happen. Even if you aren’t a fan of science fiction, I can definitely recommend The Martian – it took me by surprise just how much I enjoyed it. ...more

6 likes · Like · see review

Aug 06, 2014 Jaclyn Harrison rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

Didn't like it as much as the 2nd time around.

I saw that this was a possible contender for a 2014 Goodreads Choice Award. Eh, I'm not really into sci-fi, but I never read new releases and I actually wanted to be able to vote in this year's choice awards. OMG. This book was excellent. I finished it in 3 days (no easy feat with a full-time job and an 11-month old). I could not put it down. I was so stressed in the end to see if Watney would survive that I was actually in tears. I've been recommend ...more

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May 31, 2015 Pennygale rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Who couldn't love a book about a cussing botanist/astronaut with McGuyver skills stuck on Mars? ...more

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Sep 16, 2014 Shelly Jenkins rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: funny, rereadable

This book is PERFECT! It’s a great mix of thriller and science fiction. I love this author - such an inventive premise. The hero, Mark Watney, is amazingly intelligent and resourceful. I was astounded at his battle to survive the planet Mars. All the science was believable and logical. I felt like I learned a few survival skills (that I hope I will never have to put into practice). I went online and was able to find schematics to a Mars HAB similar to what Mark lived in – I could follow the term ...more

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Sep 15, 2016 Rimjhim Singh rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Epic.
'Nuff said
...more

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Apr 18, 2015 Katie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: adult-fiction-fantasy-sci-fi

Loved it. Couldn't give it a 5 because the scientific jargon got a bit tedious at times. And the language was a bit rough, of course. But, yeah, overall---loved it. ...more

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