The Martian, by Andy Weir

Andy Weir's new novel, The Martian, is one of the best science fiction novels I have read in a long time.  Pick up any sci-fi novel today, and there is a great chance that it will involve some combination of the following: space aliens, alien technology or technology far advanced beyond what is feasible today, some sort of space travel enabling convenient travel between planets either through faster-than-light velocities or some portal or black hole or something, and a speculative future utopia or dystopia.  I don't have a problem with any of these staples of sci-fi.  But one of the reasons The Martian is so refreshing is that it includes none of these elements!

The novel opens with Mark Watney recovering from an accident on the surface of Mars.  The rest of his crew, thinking he had been killed, left him there and headed back to Earth.  He then had to figure out a way to survive until the next Mars mission, some years in the future, would come back for him.  Watney ingeniously uses the resources available to him to grow potatoes, create water, and survive.  His communications were knocked out in the storm that prompted the rest of the crew to abandon the mission, but observers on Earth saw evidence on satellite photos that he had survived and were able to begin working with him.

The realism of The Martian is striking.  The folks at NASA or elsewhere who are making plans to send crews to Mars should read Weir's novel and take notes.  Just about everything that could go wrong did go wrong for Watney, yet his careful preparations and wise use of available materials enabled him to survive.  There are plenty of great sci-fi novels with speculative science and imaginative descriptions of alien worlds and races, along with romance and adventure.  The Martian is a reminder that sci-fi is sometimes a story that is right around the corner.  This fiction could be fact.  This story could become real life, with our children playing the leading role.

Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!