Stranded! One of the most frightening words in any language
since the days of sea-fairing; but how would it feel to be
stranded alone on Mars? This is the position Mark Watney
finds himself in when as a crew member of The Ares 3
mission to Mars the commander of the mission, mistakenly
thinking Mark dead in the aftermath of unexpected problems,
orders an abort of the mission and a return to Earth.
From
here on it is a wonderfully written tale of one man's
struggle to survive, against all odds, until help from
Earth can arrive. The answers to the various problems he
faces, (how do I make my food last, how do I communicate
with Earth etc.) and the stoicism and ingenuity with which
he addresses them, are brilliantly ingenious and very
reminiscent of some of the real problems faced by the
Apollo 13 crew, and the solutions they and NASA, between
them, found.
The tale is told from Mark's logs as he rests
from his attempts to survive and from NASA's logs as they
try to help. A first rate book, especially recommended for
techno-nerds but also thoroughly enjoyable by anyone who
just enjoys an excellent read.
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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