There isn’t anything inherently wrong with The Martian, but, look, that was a lot of fucking math.
When I was a kid still in the “oh god what will I do as a career when I’m a grownup?!” phase, I had the brilliant idea that maybe I’d be a mathematician. The Martian has just reminded me why that was a shitty idea. I love sci-fi and I’m super fascinated with space, but yeah, this one didn’t particularly spark anything in me. It didn’t leave me hungering for the next page. It was just another audiobook that I listened to to get me to the next level in Candy Crush.
But, some good points:
– Very strong narration: if you listen to the audio, good choice! Kind of. The good news is, the narrator is fantastic. The bad news is, the audio makes it hard to skim pass the more boring parts like the math. You’ll have no choice but to suffer through it if it’s not working for you.
– Excellent research: kudos to the author for all the research he did. I can’t image how long it must have taken. The fact that he included all that math indicates how meticulous and diligent he is. I have nothing but respect for that. Even if it was boring to the tenth power.
– Fascinating concept: if I were stuck on Mars, I’d probably lose my mind. So it did fascinate me to see what Mark would do in each situation. My fascination ended at multiplying and dividing potatoes.
– Interesting characters: my favorite parts were of the characters at NASA and Mark’s crew. Basically anyone that wasn’t Mark. No wait, that’s not fair. I think Mark did start to grow on me near the very end, but I can’t say I was truly invested in if he lived or died. I would have been okay with either ending.
The bad:
OMG MATH WHY SO MUCH MATH MATH MATH
I disliked that as soon as the book opened, Mark was counting potatoes. I understand why, and I get that the dude has to eat to survive Mars, but if you multiply that times my interest level, you’ll get zero fucks. The problem I had was boredom. There just wasn’t a lot happening outside of counting potatoes, multiplying water, something, something chemistry and science.
It got to the point where I starting coming up with my own mathematical equations. For instance, why doesn’t my rage times my boredom equal Mark’s death? If only I could kill off characters with my mind. If only.
So I got to the end of the book and it was a decent ending, I suppose. Again, it didn’t spark any heightened suspense in my heart, I wasn’t on the edge of my seat. I thought for sure this was going to be my kind of book and almost purchased the hardcover for myself. But then I remembered I don’t actually like survival stories, which I guess explains quite a lot about why I didn’t love it.
This book would have been significantly better with aliens.
Anonymous
So bummed you got mathed out of the Martain. I LOVED it!!! And I HATE math LOL! But I really like potatoes–that must be it. *grin*
Kimberly Sabatini
Opps that was me above–I accidentally was anonymous.
Ilex
I decided to skip this book and just go see the movie, which convinced me that the book probably isn’t for me. The movie was enjoyable, but nothing I’d really rave about.
Great review, Steph.
Hustenbonbon
Haha this made me laugh so hard. Your review is spot on!! There was so much MATH MATH MATH!! I mean we get it dude! 😀 But the book was incredibly funny and that made up for all the math, I think. LOVED your review, can’t wait to read more about your thoughts. 🙂
Erin Burns
I had just about the exact opposite reaction. I think it was just so different from what I’d been reading before I picked it up, that it just blew me away. A change is as good as a rest I suppose.
Ri @ Hiver et Cafe
I haven’t read the book but I did watch the movie and I had a feeling that I would enjoy the movie much more than the book when I heard that there was a LOT more math in the book. The movie was definitely enjoyable, since it doesn’t mention the math at all.
Carina Olsen
lol 😀 Gorgeous review Steph. <3 Thank you for sharing your thoughts about this book 🙂 I have only watched the movie. But I enjoyed it. But yess. So boring. And this book. Oh. Now I'm glad I didn't buy it, lol. I love everything about space. Buuut. This just sounds so so so boring o.O And I also can't stand math, lol 😀 You are awesome. <3
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