First of all, some people have trouble with the science jargon used very heavily in this novel. That's understandable, since it's not everyday language. This is a story about people who work for NASA and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and they have to use a language the rest of us normal folk don't use. It's like a different language, but if you're a bit familiar with it, you can understand. I do have some familiarity with it, or it's just that I'm used to weird sciencey languages due to having watched a lot of Star Trek: The Next Generation when I was a teenager. At any rate, I wasn't daunted by any of it, but be warned. This might pose a problem for you if you're not familiar with it.
Other than that, this book is simply so riveting, I can't imagine anyone not liking it. It's about a botanist-turned-astronaut named Mark Watney stranded on Mars and how he manages to survive and get rescued. That's not really a spoiler since it's obvious he's going to get rescued or they wouldn't bother with the story. What makes it worth reading is HOW it happens and that produces nail-biting inducing anxiety at best. All I wanted was for Mark to catch a break for once because it was one problem after another after another! You get to the point where you want the protagonist to have it easy because you are so sick of his troubles, just like he is.
After reading the book, I also watched the movie and while the movie is really great, the book soars over its head in every way. They really gutted the movie of what made the book such a page-turner. Mark had significantly fewer problems on Mars in the movie than he did in the book. I even felt like he struggled a bit, but was ultimately not in any real danger other than running out of food. In the book, he faced that, too, but then so many other unexpected obstacles, too, that would be spoilery if I mentioned them.
Like you would imagine, it is hard to live on Mars when you were not planning on staying there for very long. I love how the book kept me on the edge of my seat and even made me laugh quite a bit. Mark has a sense of humor and uses it to steel his nerves while everything is falling (literally) apart around him. Some reviewers found this off-putting, but everyone has their unique way of handling stress, and the type to get picked for any space missions are the type who do things unlike most people, and are somehow capable of staying calm. Most people would panic and get themselves killed.
There were other humorous characters, as well, so expect to laugh at a few other people, too, not just Mark. Overall, this book gets highest marks from me. The only thing that felt left out was a true epilogue for Mark after he returns to Earth. We never get that in the novel, but it's in the movie. That was one thing worth seeing in the movie, after all, and it was done well. Although, I would have preferred to see him reunite even for a few seconds with his parents, but it's good as is.
All I know is I wish I could get lucky like Andy Weir and unintentionally write a major best seller not realizing I'm doing it, and even letting people read the book for free because I don't realize what a cash-cow I have on my hands, until I'm forced to make people pay for it on Amazon because Amazon won't let you price anything for free. Ever notice these things only happen to the authors who aren't even looking for success? -_-
