The Martian

Much like the US sent a series of manned vehicles to the moon from 1969 to 1972, in this book, NASA was in the process of doing the same to Mars. The first two missions had gone well. The third mission consisted of six astronauts, but they had not been prepared for such a massive sand storm. When the MAV (Mars Ascent Vehicle) was in danger of being permanently damaged and it looked like Mark Watney, who was in the midst of a Mars walk, was dead, Commander Lewis chose to take off. It was a good decision, but Mark wasn’t dead after all.

This is a fascinating story of ingenuity and survival in the most hostile of atmospheres, and of the rescue attempt by NASA to bring Mark back home. Essentially, this is the story of Apollo 13 under even more adverse circumstances. The characters were well-presented and believable. Watney is the most compelling of characters. Some of the technical details bogged the story down a little, but it was necessary information as well. After reading this book, you’ll know more about the geography of Mars than you’ve known before.

This was a fast read – got through it in the course of a day and a half. Surprisingly, this was recommended by my daughter, and it’s not a typical of the books she usually reads. This one gets my strong recommendation.