EVERYONE Has Read This but Me - The Catch-Up Book Club discussion
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The Martian
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The Martian - *SPOILERS*
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I LOVED this book! Very funny and quite intense!
Just starting this one.But just on the first chapter I have to say, there is unlucky and there is this poor guy.
I'm only about 30 pages in, but so far I am enjoying the writing style.And the fact that he can still be rather sarcastic in the face of potentially horrible death.
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I liked this book. The author did a good job of writing the science so that it was both accessible and interesting. I was a little worried about the writing at the beginning. It read like a teenager's blog about a science project on Mars, but the author found his groove and then it was fine. The humor and sarcasm kept the character real.
Kaseadillla wrote: "Agreed, I loved the main character. Was totally needing out with all the NASA talk, but the writing style made it awesome for me."The first thing I ever said I wanted to be when I grew up was an Astronaut so I'm loving all of it. But I would definitely have had way more of an "OMG I'M GOING TO DIE!!!!!!" freakout than Mark Watney did that's for sure!
Marilyn wrote: "I liked this book. The author did a good job of writing the science so that it was both accessible and interesting. I was a little worried about the writing at the beginning. It read like a teenage..."
I'm enjoying that too.
Some books feel like "And then science happened" and you have no clue what they did. I don't like books like that; I want to understand why it happened/worked.
He starts off all "I MUST SCIENCE!" then he explains how he does it. So far I can follow all of it but I'm sure sooner or later I'll run in to something I don't.
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Majorly fascinating.
Did all of the science get in the way of character development? We know next to nothing about any of these people. I have an opinion on this, but I am wondering what others think.
Not for me, no. In fact, I was oblivious of a barrier to enjoying the book until later when I read other reviews. There were a number of complaints from other people the science made the book incomprehensible. I was shocked, frankly.
It tells you a lot about how people tend to avoid scientific concepts...
I personally found the scientific aspects of this book to be fascinating. You learn a lot while also being entertained.
I'm about 60% done now.I repeat my earlier statement that there is bad luck, then there is Mark Watney.
Kaseadillla wrote: "Not to ruin it for you Sarah, but wait until you get to the part about the extra food they try to send... and the explanation for why it failed.
Majorly fascinating."
I read that part and actually yelled at my iPad.
Seriously, how did that possibility occur to NO ONE????
Considering the number of smart people involved, they made some dumb choices.
Marilyn wrote: "Did all of the science get in the way of character development? We know next to nothing about any of these people. I have an opinion on this, but I am wondering what others think."
I think in many ways, how Mark especially handle the science tells shows a lot about his character and lets us see how the whole thing impacted him.
aPriL does feral sometimes wrote: "Not for me, no. In fact, I was oblivious of a barrier to enjoying the book until later when I read other reviews. There were a number of complaints from other people the science made the book incom..."
Haaze wrote: "It tells you a lot about how people tend to avoid scientific concepts..."
As a total nerd from a young age, I find that concept mind boggling.
Abby wrote: "I personally found the scientific aspects of this book to be fascinating. You learn a lot while also being entertained."
I agree.
Finished this last night.Absolutely loved it.
The only thing I didn't like was the "he's been rescued, the end" ending.
I know I'm a few days late in finishing this book, but thought I'd comment anyway. I had actually started this book last year and then stopped. But then I saw the movie and it came up in this group, so I picked it back up. This isn't usually the case for me, but in this instance, seeing the movie helped me finish this book. Suddenly I had Matt Damon's snarky voice in my head and the whole thing worked, whereas before, I was feeling like the ones who felt it was a little immature at times. And the science part was definitely cool, but at the end, I was skimming all the calculations, lol. I love space and the Macgyver aspect, but I guess I'm not a total geek. I didn't, however, feel it got in the way of the characters. I definitely felt for him and the crew and even some of the NASA crew. But I do agree that when there was a lot of action going on, I didn't want all of the calculations. Overall, though, it was good.
Sarah wrote: "I'm about 60% done now.I repeat my earlier statement that there is bad luck, then there is Mark Watney.
Kaseadillla wrote: "Not to ruin it for you Sarah, but wait until you get to the part about ..."
But NASA has made some dumb choices before and under pressure things get complicated. I don't know what the Pathfinder is actually equipped with but when he pulls out the battery and it says non-rechargeable I mean that seemed dumb to me.
But the flip side of that is that the people designing this stuff from what I can gather from the book anyway can only design for what they know and what they can predict. His case was such an anomaly. It's a good thing he was so well trained and resourceful.
The science was nice though it gave me at least I break from the tension on the story. I was almost crying at the end. I normally don't read books like this. But I'm glad I have it around. Right now I am pretty stressed out so it was a nice outlet for that stress. Now to read something else what can be an outlet.
Luella wrote: "Sarah wrote: "I'm about 60% done now.I repeat my earlier statement that there is bad luck, then there is Mark Watney.
Kaseadillla wrote: "Not to ruin it for you Sarah, but wait until you get to t..."
In their defense, Pathfinder was never meant to be long term or reusable. So there was no need to make the battery rechargeable. None of the probes, rovers and landers that have been sent are mean to be reusable, though more recent ones have solar panels to recharge their batteries.
Read this for catch-up challenge since, after reading Project Hail Mary earlier this year, it has been high on my TBR. I really enjoyed the writing style of this novel and Mark's character is just great. It's easy to root for him, and even though I figured early on that he would probably be rescued, it was still interesting and suspenseful to read it. The story, the science and the comedy were all fantastic. My only complaint is that it did end a bit abruptly for me. Once you are invested in a character like Mark, it's nice to know more than that they merely lived. Hard to believe, but I haven't seen this movie yet. It's one I am planning to watch, so hopefully, I am not disappointed.
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Do remember that this is the SPOILER thread, in case you would prefer to finish reading before proceeding here.
Not much of a sci-fi reader, but this was the perfect blend of humor, heart, and science that was explained simply and well for the layman to understand. I skimmed over some of the science explanations, not that it bogged down the story too much, I just didn't really care, but the passages on Earth with various space agencies' employees were fun to read, as there were different personalities scrambling to bring the Martian back home, the back and forth made it more interesting for me.
This is not a critique on the writing, just personal preference, but...
full review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I've read this book before, but definitely plan to read it again with the group -- I find it very enjoyable. I just need to finish another book first, and will probably start within the next week.
Turns out I couldn't resist, and I've started reading this one. This post will have spoilers through chapter 3.Botanist plus engineer fix-it person -- Mark probably has the only combination of skills that could make surviving this possible. I also think his goofy sense of humour helps keep him sane in a situation that would crack a lot of people (almost no space, absolutely no company, constant threat of death). Here are a couple of good silly quotes from the first three chapters:
Remember those old math questions you had in algebra class? Where water is entering a container at a certain rate and leaving at a different rate and you need to figure out when it’ll be empty? Well, that concept is critical to the “Mark Watney doesn’t die” project I’m working on.
For tonight, I have to get back to Three's Company. I stopped last night in the middle of the episode where Mr. Roper saw something and took it out of context.
(That second quote will only be funny to people who've watched Three's Company; if you haven't: this basically describes every episode.)
I've read a bunch more, and I'm about two-thirds through the book. It's just as enjoyable as I remember. One of the terrific things about this book is that the story line on Earth is actually just as entertaining as the story line on Mars. So I'm happy no matter who is being followed. I also find that the epistolary structure really works. I enjoy the fun feeling that a lot of the book has, and how engaging so many of the characters are. And I'm impressed that the author can make solving these technical problems interesting and also succinct. Here are a couple of good quotes from the part I read today:To them [NASA], equipment failure is terrifying. To me, it's "Tuesday."
I tested the brackets by hitting them with rocks. This kind of sophistication is what we interplanetary scientists are known for.
Mod
Like Rosalyn, I skimmed a lot of the densely detailed technical stuff. I’m sure they’re interesting if you’re into those aspects of the science, but the book also works quite well without them. That’s good writing, I think.
I finished the book today. It was such an enjoyable read! Like Spoko, I've seen the film (and read the book) several times, and I enjoy both the book and the film. But I do find the book more satisfying and a lot funnier, and I find Watney and quite a few other characters more engaging in the book. My only real complaint is that the ending is too sudden; it needed an epilogue. Other than that, I'm one happy reader. :)
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I listened to the audiobook (narrated by Wil Wheaton), and it does have a postscript—Watney & Lewis meeting up after some time back on Earth. Have you read or heard that?
I’m also curious what you think about the coda on the movie version—with him sitting on the bench, noticing the new sprout & then going into the classroom to teach, and then the launch of the Ares V mission. I have to say, I like that one a lot better than the Audible postscript.
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You know, I was just thinking how much I like part of that—the moment where the group are jogging by and they slow to a walk as they pass him, as a sign of respect. That actually brings to mind one of the most interesting aspects of this story—Weir’s emphasis on the military aspect of space travel. These kinds of stories typically treat it primarily from a scientific perspective, or possibly as a fantasy. But the military elements add some real interest in this telling. The critical question of mutiny, for example, doesn’t really have any scientific significance. But it adds some real tension to the narrative. Interesting choice, now that I think about it.
No, I didn't realize there was an epilogue to the book. I'm thinking that must have been added in a later edition, and my copy was published earlier. My copy ends the day he is rescued, and they still have to get back to Earth. Oh actually, I've just checked Wikipedia, and they say this: "Audible released a new audiobook edition, narrated by Wil Wheaton in January 2020, featuring several additional short tie-in stories written by Weir." So I guess that epilogue you heard was one of the tie-in stories they added.Yes, I like the ending of the film. The part with the little sprout coming up by his bench is a lovely touch. And I liked seeing what had happened to all the characters a few years later.
Read this one a while back (AFTER seeing the film). As usual, the book is better overall, but not as much as it usually is. I attribute that to 1) how lovingly the movie was adapted, & 2) a bit of a crush on Matt Damon. I'll admit that in the "movie in my mind" when I was reading this, I was seeing Damon.
Decided to re-visit this book (this time via the audiobook version narrated by R.C. Bray so as to participate in this discussion.
I was immediately reminded of this guy's dogged determination to survive by a relentless one-step-at-a-time approach.
Of course, that has me philosophizing about how much better off we'd all be if we could all take this approach in our daily lives.
But we have a certain comfortable reliance on others being there to help that this guy (and many great pioneers of our past) didn't have.
It set me to wondering as to whether the net effect is positive or negative.
EVERYONE Has Read This but Me - The Catch-Up...
Books mentioned in this topic
The Martian (other topics)Authors mentioned in this topic
R.C. Bray (other topics)Andy Weir (other topics)
This discussion will be FULL OF SPOILERS. If you haven't read the book and want to keep the ending a surprise, hop on over to the spoiler-free discussion HERE .
Happy reading!
Kasey