The Left-Handed Librarian

The Martian by Andy Weir has been trapped on my To Be Read list for years, but much like its main character Mark Watney, it finally achieved a miraculous escape as my final read of 2025.

This book was far more enjoyable than I expected it to be, even with its stellar reviews and 2015 blockbuster film (which I only watched for the first time after reading, though that did nothing to prevent my picturing Matt Damon’s face the entire time). I love a good science fiction novel, however my fascination with space stops just before the complex formulas and calculations become involved. I’ve come across minor spoilers more than once – as was bound to happen with a story nearly twenty years old – and let’s just say that even the simple problem of growing potatoes on another planet made me apprehensive about the academic content of The Martian.

Long story short, I had nothing to fear. Weir does an excellent job of translating complex science into accessible storytelling, utilizing his main character’s wit and the perspectives of earthbound characters to keep the plot from stagnating. Watney is a brilliant character – an astronaut, a botanist, an engineer – and yet he is not infallible. For as dire as the situation is, Watney creates many of his own problems throughout the course of the novel by making simple mistakes, establishing him as a relatable narrator from page one. While most readers will never need to chemically produce water, we can see ourselves in the excitement of finding a solution to a problem, only to have it blow up in our faces due to enthusiasm overtaking caution.

The Martian is a story that emphasizes the best of humanity. From its imagining of an interplanetary future to the resulting global effort to save the life of one astronaut millions of miles away, Weir’s novel is as gripping as it is uplifting. I look forward to reading his other novels (hopefully before the movies are released this time).

For those who, like me, enjoy the aesthetics of the books on your shelf, the Deluxe Edition of The Martian will be released May 26, 2026. As always, more information about the book and this new edition can be found on the publisher’s website.

Happy Reading!

Kayla