Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars.
Now, he’s sure he’ll be the first person to die there.
After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive—and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive.
Chances are, though, he won’t have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old “human error” are much more likely to kill him first.
But Mark isn’t ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills—and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit—he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?
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Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars.
Now, he’s sure he’ll be the first person to die there.
After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive—and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive.
Chances are, though, he won’t have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old “human error” are much more likely to kill him first.
But Mark isn’t ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills—and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit—he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?
This is a wonderful adventure filled with risk and humor (sarcasm). The hero is inventive, creative and humble. Yes, the story is a bit geeky.... but it left me wanting more.
I had heard quite a lot about the movie and honestly, it didn't seem interesting to me. However, as soon as I had heard that it was based on a book, I started to look into it and thought that I would give it a shot.
I must say that when I usually read a book, I don't read more than 50–100 pages at a given time. This book however managed to get my attention which meant I was able to finish it within just a day. The main reason for this is, in my opinion, the main protagonist's personality which I thought really spoke to me. His style of writing is often-times very amusing which had me laugh a good couple of times whilst reading, yet he also manages to convey a tone of urgency and seriousness within all the humour. I also liked the detailed descriptions of the …
I had heard quite a lot about the movie and honestly, it didn't seem interesting to me. However, as soon as I had heard that it was based on a book, I started to look into it and thought that I would give it a shot.
I must say that when I usually read a book, I don't read more than 50–100 pages at a given time. This book however managed to get my attention which meant I was able to finish it within just a day. The main reason for this is, in my opinion, the main protagonist's personality which I thought really spoke to me. His style of writing is often-times very amusing which had me laugh a good couple of times whilst reading, yet he also manages to convey a tone of urgency and seriousness within all the humour. I also liked the detailed descriptions of the technology used on Mars and how he managed to fix it if it happened to break — which it turns out is more than just a handful of times!
However, despite all of this, I must say that the book also had its weak spots — mainly the parts that play on Earth. For those who haven't read the book, the book plays part on both Mars — focussing on the main protagonist — and on Earth — focussing on them trying to communicate with the main protagonist and rescuing him. While reading the parts that play on Earth I would frequently find myself getting rather bored and hoping that we would soon be talking about what is happening back on Mars again. My main problem with the Earth parts is the fact that I found all the characters, except for the main protagonist, rather dull and boring. This is probably the reason I didn't manage to finish this book in one session, as the parts that play on Earth increase in length and number near the middle of the book.
All in all however, I would say that this has been the best SciFi book I've read so far and I would definitely recommend fans of SciFi to read it!
What a book. Action packed, and full of characterization. Granted, I didn't understand all of the Science aspects, but I did want to know what happened. I knew Mark wasn't going to die, else other readers wouldn't have reviewed the book as highly as they did.
When an intense storm hits the US astronauts recently arrived on Mars, the conditions compel them to leave shortly after. As they make their way to their departure vessel, Mark Watney is separated, his space suit ruptured, and all communication is lost. After a brief, desperate search in the face of the Martian storm, he is presumed dead and the remainder of the crew leaves, barely making it. Watney is not dead, and finds himself now alone on Mars, with no method of communication, that having left with his crewmates.
This story is the exciting and fascinating story of how the resourceful botanist finds himself stranded, and his desperate struggle to survive on Mars, not knowing if leaving will ever be an option. I enjoyed his personality, resourcefulness, and his optimism in conditions where many people would lie down and give up. There were also fascinating scientific references, detailing how …
When an intense storm hits the US astronauts recently arrived on Mars, the conditions compel them to leave shortly after. As they make their way to their departure vessel, Mark Watney is separated, his space suit ruptured, and all communication is lost. After a brief, desperate search in the face of the Martian storm, he is presumed dead and the remainder of the crew leaves, barely making it. Watney is not dead, and finds himself now alone on Mars, with no method of communication, that having left with his crewmates.
This story is the exciting and fascinating story of how the resourceful botanist finds himself stranded, and his desperate struggle to survive on Mars, not knowing if leaving will ever be an option. I enjoyed his personality, resourcefulness, and his optimism in conditions where many people would lie down and give up. There were also fascinating scientific references, detailing how different life would be on another planet. This was definitely a faster read, and by the end I couldn't put it down.
Among other good things, this book uses numbers to create suspense more effectively than any other I can recall. It takes methodical problem solving, something I love, and lends it drama.
I didn't cry or anything... I mean, not much. This book was amazing. I can't imagine reading through all that science, but man the audiobook was fantastic! Would recommend to any and everyone. This story goes beyond science fiction.
This book deserves all its praise. I had heard a lot about it, all good, from people I trust in their taste of books. So I bought it and read it.
What an amazing trip to and on Mars. What a lot of cleverness. As a friend said, this is MacGyver external_link on an interplanetary scale. A fabulous read, for certain. I loved the log entries and the fuss on Earth. I can recommend this book to anyone who loves SciFi and hasn't read it yet.
The only thing I wonder about are all those potatoes.
Solid and fun read. Definitely a quick page-turner. Also definitely skin-deep, but if you're into fun descriptions of problem solving, you'll have fun with this.
The verdict is in: the book is a better movie than the movie.
The movie looks great, but the problem with movies is that it stars famous people and not the best-fit actors, and then there's that part at the end. They changed the ending. WTF.
Absolutely delighted with this book. An easy, compelling read chock full of science, excitement and did I mention science? A thrilling adventure that makes you want to support travel to the stars.
Finishing this book was a struggle. I had watched the movie first, as I had heard from multiple people that they would recommend that. Unfortunately this made the book a difficult read because there were no surprises anymore. Although the book made me appreciate the movie even more, so that's a plus. I think my recommendation is to only watch the movie and don't bother with the book. Unless, of course, you're really into the detailed science-wankery, then the book is for you. Me, I enjoyed it for a while but it got old and started to smell. Watching Whatney "science the shit out of this", by the way, a great line the movie added, fitting his character, was a gimmick and not something that could carry an entire book. Another problem I had with the book was that Whatney didn't feel like a human being. He was more like …
Finishing this book was a struggle. I had watched the movie first, as I had heard from multiple people that they would recommend that. Unfortunately this made the book a difficult read because there were no surprises anymore. Although the book made me appreciate the movie even more, so that's a plus. I think my recommendation is to only watch the movie and don't bother with the book. Unless, of course, you're really into the detailed science-wankery, then the book is for you. Me, I enjoyed it for a while but it got old and started to smell. Watching Whatney "science the shit out of this", by the way, a great line the movie added, fitting his character, was a gimmick and not something that could carry an entire book. Another problem I had with the book was that Whatney didn't feel like a human being. He was more like a plot device so the author could throw around a lot of science. I guess that's another reason why I liked the movie better. Seeing him helped to convince me that he's human.
Dunque, di cosa parla "L'uomo di Marte"? Beh, a dispetto del titolo e dei temi trattati, il tema centrale di questo romanzo è il potere dell'ottimismo e della forza di volontà. Non è un tema molto originale a pensarci bene, anzi direi che si tratta di un tema estremamente abusato. Innumerevoli personaggi che riscoprono il valore dell'ottimismo e la forza di volontà dopo un periodo difficile causato dalla perdita di una persona cara, dell'amore, del lavoro o di un animale domestico; bleah, tutta roba terribilmente umana. L'uomo di Marte prende questo stesso tema e lo porta ad un livello molto superiore, interplanetario direi. La trama in breve: Mark Watney è stato uno dei primi astronauti a mettere piede su Marte. Ma il suo momento di gloria è durato troppo poco. Un'improvvisa tempesta lo ha quasi ucciso e i suoi compagni di spedizione, credendolo morto, sono fuggiti e hanno fatto ritorno …
Dunque, di cosa parla "L'uomo di Marte"? Beh, a dispetto del titolo e dei temi trattati, il tema centrale di questo romanzo è il potere dell'ottimismo e della forza di volontà. Non è un tema molto originale a pensarci bene, anzi direi che si tratta di un tema estremamente abusato. Innumerevoli personaggi che riscoprono il valore dell'ottimismo e la forza di volontà dopo un periodo difficile causato dalla perdita di una persona cara, dell'amore, del lavoro o di un animale domestico; bleah, tutta roba terribilmente umana. L'uomo di Marte prende questo stesso tema e lo porta ad un livello molto superiore, interplanetario direi. La trama in breve: Mark Watney è stato uno dei primi astronauti a mettere piede su Marte. Ma il suo momento di gloria è durato troppo poco. Un'improvvisa tempesta lo ha quasi ucciso e i suoi compagni di spedizione, credendolo morto, sono fuggiti e hanno fatto ritorno sulla terra. Il nostro protagonista si trova quindi solo, senza la possibilità di comunicare con la terra e in un pianeta che cerca in ogni modo di ucciderlo. Tutto ciò che succederà in seguito è avvincente e scientificamente plausibile: coltivare patate su Marte vi sembra impossibile? Beh, non lo è se riuscite a procurarvi abbastanza acqua e dei batteri con cui rivitalizzare il terreno, per l'acqua basta scindere l'idrazina in... beh vi siete fatti un'idea. Fra poco uscirà pure il film, purtroppo diretto da un ex genio che avrebbe dovuto smettere di fare film molto tempo fa, il materiale di partenza è ottimo comunque.