Book review: The Martian by Andy Weir

Mike had mentioned this book when we met in February to discuss Kraken, and then sent me his review of it to post here:

Currently high on my "Like" list is "The Martian" by Andy Weir. It's the story of astronaut Mark Watney, member of the third manned expedition to Mars, a man so far down on the command list that everyone else would have to die before he would be in charge, and who is left for dead when a massive dust storm forces the crew to evacuate. Called part MacGyver, part The Castaway, this book is not going to be everyone's cup of tea, the author can spend pages taking you thru the math of how many calories you can get from a potato, but it's pure gold for techno-geeks like me. You would think that Watney would be doomed from the start, but author Weir builds a plausible, gripping, and at times humorous story as Watney and then scientists on Earth struggle to keep him alive long enough to be rescued. Some reviewers have complained about the book's logbook style, but for me it worked quite well as Watney solves problems both obvious and unexpected, and yes, even learns how many calories you can get from potatoes. By far the most enjoyable book I've read since The Rook, and given a very enthusiastic thumbs up by astronaut Chris Hadfield.

Thanks, Mike!    You may find this book in our library under call# SF-F WEI