[Sorry for the late entry! This is Day 15 of #Booktober! Stay tuned for more recommendations!]
What It Is: A thrilling novel about an astronaut stranded and left for dead on a space exploration outpost on Mars, who has to survive for months until a rescue could even be attempted. Think Robinson Crusoe, but in space and with more swearing.
Why You Should Read It: I’ll admit, science isn’t my strong point–I’m a former English major, after all. So I’m sure there have been blog posts and articles written about how this book messes up this or that scientific fact. But following Mark Watney as he MacGuyvers his way around a temporary space station on the Red Planet and explains/narrates his survival strategies was a fascinating walkthrough of applied science in a life or death situation. It sets up one tense scenario after another. Then when [minor spoiler] suddenly the scene shifts to Ground Control and the people on Earth realize Watney’s still alive and begin mounting and effort to rescue him, the book kicks it into overdrive. I really, really enjoyed this one. If you don’t mind the profanity, it’s a wild ride.
The4thDave Blog 