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The Martian
Is this book cover cool or what? Kudos to Eric White, its creator. I was lured to this sci-fi novel because of all the good words going on about it on blogs and book sites. It’s been quite the success story. First the author Andy Weir self-published “The Martian” on his website for free in 2012, then he put it on Kindle for 99 cents, and later it was picked up by Crown publisher for six figures and put out again in February of this year. The movie rights for it have already been optioned, and Matt Damon is being rumored for the main role. Wow! Not bad for a first-time author.
Truth be told, I’m not normally a science fiction or space reader, but the synopsis caught my eye. It’s about an astronaut (Mark Watney) whose crew is on a mission on Mars when a violent dust storm hits. Watney’s suit is pierced and he’s flung unconscious out of the crew’s reach. Thinking he’s dead, the others lift off, ending their mission and stranding Watney behind with no way to signal Earth that he’s alive.
Holy smokes, it’s a bleak situation, but Watney’s no quitter. He puts his mind to work on how to survive and reconnect with NASA. And here I thought Robert Redford’s character in the recent movie “All Is Lost” was resourceful, but in that regard Watney leaves him in the dust (so to speak). Watney’s quite the engineer-astronaut-botanist phenomenon. He’s a math-physics nerd but a smart-ass too. He’s got gumption, which apparently doesn’t hurt if you’re left on a totally inhospitable red planet.
“The Martian” drew me in at the start. I absorbed the dire situation as if it were the missing Malaysian airliner whose puzzle needed to be solved. Where in the heck is it? And what would happen to Watney? Being a reader of epic Arctic and Everest survival tales, I pored over this one like a bat out of hell.
Some of the novel takes place on Earth within NASA as they grope with what to do, the other half takes place on Mars as the resourceful Watney tries to overcome his circumstances. It makes for an interesting back and forth.
“The Martian” though is loaded with technical details, which in my opinion gets excessive at times. It’s almost as if the author were adding all the equations and physics suppositions to show how smart he is. On the one hand, it’s great having a lot of scientific details in the novel to make it seem real, but the constant equation set-ups clogged it up at times. In places, it sort of felt like reading a textbook instead of an action thriller. My mind fuzzed over some of the scientific and math thought processes, and the middle of the book sagged for me, as Watney carried out a lot of tests for his proposed rescue plans. No wonder I gave this book to my husband to read first; he’s an engineer he probably liked all these endless details.
But luckily “The Martian” picks up towards the end. And how it all plays out is worth sticking around for. I imagine the movie of it could be quite riveting. Despite the excessive details, I’m still amazed about the author’s knowledge of space and that he made “The Martian” into such a believable tale. It might not be for everybody, but if you’re a nerdy fan of the final frontier and such, you’ll inevitably like this one, too. Continue reading
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May Preview
Yea May is here. It’s usually a great month. It’s when the leaves and buds burst forth and spring abounds in the North Country. I’m glad to leave April behind in the rearview mirror. (Goodbye taxes.) It wasn’t all bad … Continue reading
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November Preview
We got hit with snow this past week and today the temps are hovering around 8F/-13C (yikes) — see my little pine tree out in the front yard. It stands next to a very tall parent tree, but I’ve always … Continue reading
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The Oscars, Americanah, and Wave
Thanks to those who commented last week about Harper Lee’s legacy and books; there was quite a good discussion with various excellent points raised. Now today is the Academy Awards, which has its share of controversy this year (or once … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Movies
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My 2015 in Review
Looking back on 2015, I had quite a good reading year. While my stats below don’t seem that impressive, I was happy with the quality of books and the array of literary gems I found. I’ve never been a speedy … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Movies, Music
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The Dog Stars and Movie Briefs
This week I’ve been reading a nonfiction book about the doomed Donner Party — you know, the group of emigrants lead by George Donner and James Reed who set out from Missouri for California in covered wagons in 1846. It’s by the same author — Daniel James Brown — who wrote “The Boys in the Boat” and I’m enjoying it quite a lot. I’ll report back more once I get through its snows of the Sierra Nevadas and it comes to an end.
Meanwhile I finished listening to the audiobook of Peter Heller’s 2012 novel “The Dog Stars.” Of course it’s another apocalyptic novel — where is my mind this year — ready for end of the world?! Like Emily St. John Mandel’s novel “Station Eleven,” “The Dog Stars” is set quite a few years after a flu or virus has wiped out most of humanity. It’s two primary characters are a fortyish pilot and fisherman named Hig and an older, gun nut named Bangley who have settled at a country airstrip in Colorado, trying to fend off occasional attacks from violent survivors. Their families didn’t survive the pandemic, but Hig still relies on his very dear dog companion Jasper, a Blue Healer mix.
A lot of the time, Hig spends flying an old Cessna around, monitoring the area for intruders and visiting a hamlet of sick families a distance away who have the tainted blood. Then one day, he hears a distant response on his plane’s intercom and realizes good things might still be out there. He leaves their place behind, and sets out to investigate. What happens and whether he will return kept me glued to the audio all week while raking leaves, doing chores, and walking my dog.
I liked the characters of Hig and Bangley — a crotchety, but winning combo. And Jasper of course. Hig’s love for his dog in the story earned major points with me, being a dog lover. I was also impressed by the author’s vivid descriptions of life under such dire conditions. His writing was at times poetic and touching. Though I wasn’t sure about parts of a romance in the book, it seemed a bit goofy or just perhaps out of place, but I was willing to let it ride.
To compare, “The Dog Stars” is perhaps a tad scarier and more survival focused perhaps than “Station Eleven,” but not as scary or as dark as Cormac McCarthy’s “The Road.” The novel is a bit hopeful, which is nice when you’re facing extinction. I liked “Station Eleven” best, but also enjoyed “The Dog Stars” as it’s both suspenseful and well written. It has heart. Actor Mark Deakins read the novel for the audio, and is quite excellent.
As for brief impressions of three fall movies I’ve seen:
“The Intern” — I had to suspend my disbelief in a couple places in this Nancy Meyers’ movie, but I still ended up enjoying it. I credit actors Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway for their performances and the cool shots of New York. I also had low expectations going in and so was pleasantly surprised it exceeded that. I found it a nice feel-good story but not over-the-top saccharine.
“The Martian” — Oh yeah I had been looking forward to Matt Damon as Mark Watney, and I was definitely entertained by this 3-D action space film adapted from Andy Weir’s bestselling book. I liked it but I guess I liked the book a tad better. The film had some great imagery, but for whatever reason it did not stay with me for long like substantial films usually do.
“Steve Jobs” — Whoa, does this film have a lot of dialogue in it or what. It’s filled to the brink, courtesy of Aaron Sorkin, and slightly reminiscent of “The West Wing.” It’s innovative and cuts to some of Steve Jobs’s inner character. I liked it but it also wore me out in parts — with the around and around cerebral dialogue. But Michael Fassbender seemed amazing as Jobs, and Kate Winslet and Seth Rogen were quite excellent too.
That’s it for now. How about you — have you read “The Dog Stars” or seen any of these movies, and if so, what did you think? Continue reading
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October Preview
October is here now and there’s a crispness in the mornings. It’s pretty outside though with all the leaves bright yellow and orange. It’s a fabulous time for a few last bike rides in the country. See my photo from earlier this week. It’s also a good month for a plethora of new releases.
In fiction, such popular authors as Geraldine Brooks, Jane Smiley, Adriana Trigiani, Kate Morton, and Robert Galbraith (a.k.a. J.K. Rowling) have new books coming out. Any of these I’m sure will be quite good. I like the character of Galbraith’s detective Cormoran Strike and his assistant Robin Ellacott. What happens to them in this third book in the series will be worth finding out.
But for my book picks this month, I’m going to pick Anthony Marra’s collection of nine interconnected stories, all set in Russia, called “The Tsar of Love and Techno.” I’m curious to check it out because Marra’s debut novel “A Constellation of Vital Phenomena” received so many accolades when it came out in 2013 that I figure he’s a writer to flock to whenever he puts out something new. And judging by this book, he seems to continue to draw inspiration from the time he lived and studied in Eastern Europe.
I’m also interested to get a copy of Stacy Schiff’s new nonfiction book “The Witches: Salem, 1692.” Schiff last wrote about Cleopatra, and I still have that book on my shelf awaiting me. But now “The Witches” looks equally enticing. In her books, Schiff brings history vividly to life in accessible prose. And this time her research has delved into the infamous Salem witch trials — a chilling chapter in American history. Schiff’s book “The Witches” has been highly praised by historians David McCullough, Joseph J. Ellis, and Robert K. Massie among others.
Lastly in books, I’ll pick David Mitchell’s spooky new novel “Slade House” because it seems a perfect read for right around Halloween time. Apparently “Slade House” is an offshoot of Mitchell’s novel “The Bone Clocks,” but I think it might also be comprehensible as a stand-alone novel, or at least I hope so. I haven’t read Mitchell’s acclaimed novels “Cloud Atlas” or “The Bone Clocks,” but this upcoming one is his “shortest and lightest to date” says Publishers Weekly, so I’ll use it to check out the author’s much-talked about style and literary magic.
As for movies in October, there looks to be some great offerings. Of course as a reader of Andy Weir’s bestselling 2014 debut novel “The Martian,” I can’t wait to see the film adaptation with Matt Damon as Mark Watney. In fact, the previews look so good, I plan to see it this opening weekend. How could a team of astronauts leave Matt Damon (er, I mean Mark Watney) behind on Mars?! Oh my, No! With Ridley Scott directing, I figure “The Martian” is going to be a sure winner and it’s my pick for the month.
But there are at least two other strong film contenders. Holy smokes, the fact that Michael Fassbender is starring as Steve Jobs in the movie, with Danny Boyle directing, and Aaron Sorkin adapting the screenplay, has me now more interested in Steve Jobs than I ever was before. Fassbender is such a great actor to watch. I’ve seen him in “Prometheus” and “12 Years a Slave” both of which he was scary in but terrific. So it looks like the film “Steve Jobs” will undoubtedly be entertaining, and hopefully a bit more.
Lastly in October movies, I can’t pass up Steven Spielberg’s Cold War thriller “Bridge of Spies” from the adapted screenplay by the Coen brothers and Matt Charman, and starring Tom Hanks. My husband is a Cold War history buff and now has turned me into an enthusiast for such stories. We’ve seen and liked most of the films based on John le Carre’s novels. But alas, “Bridge of Spies” is based on the 1960 U-2 incident and has Tom Hanks playing a lawyer who is recruited by the CIA to help rescue an American pilot detained in the Soviet Union. Whether it’s a strong and balanced film, we will have to see.
Honorable mentions for other films this month go to: “The Walk” (too scary for my acrophobia); “Truth” (a must-see with Cate Blanchett in it); and “Room” (based on Emma Donoghue’s bestselling book but likely too rough for my claustrophobia).
If it’s new music you’re looking for in October, there’s new ones by female powerhouses Janet Jackson, Carrie Underwood, and Vanessa Carlton among others. But wait, Janet Jackson?! I don’t think she’s had a new album out since like 2008. I was going to pick Blue Rodeo’s “Live at Massey Hall,” but for old time sakes, I’ll go with Janet’s new “Unbreakable” album as my pick of the month. For all those ’80s fans, who out there remembers her lyrics: “Nasty boys don’t mean a thing. Oh you nasty boys”?
That’s it for new releases. So how about you — which books, movies, or albums out this month are you most looking forward to?
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All the Light We Cannot See
Wow the trailer to “The Martian” came out this week and Matt Damon is Mark Watney! For those who read Andy Weir’s 2014 bestselling book, you know what I’m talking about … The red planet. The astronaut left behind. The rescue plans he comes up with. With Ridley Scott directing, the movie adaptation, coming out at Thanksgiving time, is going to rock! I reviewed the novel “The Martian” in April 2014 and was sure it’d make a heck of a movie. I just didn’t realize how quickly it would be made. Check out the preview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ue4PCI0NamI
and let me know what you think.
Also this past week, congrats to Scottish author Ali Smith for winning the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction for her 2014 novel “How to Be Both,” which the New York Times describes as “an innovatively structured novel about a young girl in modern-day England and a painter in Renaissance Italy.” I’ve heard mixed things about the book, which apparently is poetic and challenging and not for everyone. Author Sarah Waters was the odds-on favorite to win the prize for her bestselling novel “The Paying Guests,” but alas didn’t win it, which surprised me.
Also congrats to Jack Livings for winning the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize for Debut Fiction for “The Dog,” a collection of short stories set in China. New York Times writer Michiko Kakutani says the collection opens a “prismatic window on China, showing us how part of the country is rushing to embrace the 21st century, even as its history continues to exert a magnetic hold over people’s thinking and expectations.” Hmm. I haven’t heard if many bloggers have read this collection yet, but it sounds like one to behold.
Meanwhile though it seems I’ve been away from the blog for a while, it’s just that summer has become busy and I was up to my eyelids in Anthony Doerr’s 2014 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel set during World War II “All the Light We Cannot See.” Need I say more? It’s a long war. Awful. I was on the sixth floor of the house in Saint-Malo, France, hiding with blind 14-year-old girl Marie-Laure and hoping she was going to make it. She was at her reclusive uncle’s house so close to the sea, where she liked to visit a nearby grotto that had barnacles and snails on its walls, which I could see blind Marie running her hands over. I was also imagining 16-year-old orphan, German soldier Werner in the Opel truck driving across the Occupied countryside tracking the resistance through his radio receiver. But the toll the results take on him, sets him off on a different course. I knew these two protagonists’ paths would cross towards the end, but heck what would happen to them then?
I had to hurry to find out, but it took awhile to get there. Anthony Doerr’s book is quite an epic read (530 pages) that goes back and forth in time and alternates Marie-Laure’s story with that of Werner’s into short chapters. There’s also a storyline about a large valuable diamond — apparently cursed — that Marie finds from her father after he is arrested and a Nazi who is pursuing the gem.
I liked the book quite a bit (though maybe didn’t love, love, it) and found it vivid and visual of the historical time period. It’s excellently weaved together with some elegant prose. I felt for the characters and finished the book as if I had endured the war too — emaciated, sleepless, and a mess from death, bombs, and trying to avoid Nazi capture. I particularly liked the radio aspects of the story — how radio transmitters were used by both sides — and how Werner’s passion for radios and science and Marie’s passion for Jules Verne’s “Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea” eventually brings them together. It’s wonderfully imagined. I liked how it transported me to these young characters lives behind enemy lines. Although I think it could have been cut 80+ pages shorter and put into longer chapters. I’m still wondering too about the ending — was it enough? It feels quite fleeting and maybe not what you want but perhaps that’s exactly the way pivotal things in life go sometimes.
What about you have you read “All the Light We Cannot See,” and if so what did you think? Continue reading
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2014 & 2015
Books Read & Reviewed in 2014 Audrey Hepburn, An Elegant Spirit by Sean Hepburn Ferrer Defending Jacob by William Landay The Curve of Time by M. Wylie Blanchet Labor Day by Joyce Maynard On Such a Full Sea by Chang-Rae … Continue reading
February Preview
Happy February everyone and happy Super Bowl Sunday. I hope you enjoy the Big Game and the parties, and of course the amusing commercials.
February will be a busy month as the Olympic Winter Games take place Feb. 7-23 in Sochi, Russia. Go Team USA and Team Canada! So I will be watching quite a bit of those. Who knows how many books I will be able to get through, but this month is loaded with some great literary fiction coming out (see list at the right). I’ve picked six that I’d like to snatch up sometime; three of these are authors putting out their debuts.
“The Wives of Los Alamos” by TaraShea Nesbit is one that comes highly praised; it describes the lives of the women who accompanied their scientist husbands to the desert to work on a secret project that turned out to be the making of the atomic bomb. Author Paula McLain calls the novel a “fascinating and artful debut” and one of “consequence,” while Gail Godwin says she’s in “awe” of it.
Another debut that likely shouldn’t be missed is Molly Antopol’s short story collection “The UnAmericans.” Antopol is an honoree of the National Book Foundation’s “5 under 35” picks, and a “writer of seismic talents,” says Pulitzer Prize winner Adam Johnson. She’s quite the talk of the town so to speak so I need to check this out.
Andy Weir’s “The Martian” is another praised debut that I hope to read. It looks like a fast-paced thriller about an astronaut who’s left by his crew for dead on Mars. Will he be able to overcome the odds against him? Even astronaut Chris Hadfield says he couldn’t put the book down.
The next two February novels on my list are from Canadians. “Caught” by Lisa Moore, which came out in Canada in May 2013, is now releasing this month to acclaim in the U.S. It’s about a Billy-the-Kid-type character who busts out of prison to embark on one last great heist and win back the woman he loves.
The other novel “The Bear” by Claire Cameron is described as a harrowing suspense story that’s narrated by a five-year-old girl who must fend for herself and her little brother after a brutal bear attack. It sounds quite scary but also moving about the bonds between mothers and children.
Lastly in February novels, I can’t help but want to read “Wonderkid” by Wesley Stace, which looks quite fun. It’s being hailed as a rock-and-roll novel written with an insider’s knowledge of the music biz about a British band that takes America by storm until things start to go wrong. Colin Meloy of the Decemberists says it’s “at turns illuminating and heartbreaking — but always funny.” “Wonderkid” looks to be a sure winner.
For movies this month (see list at left), I’ll pick George Clooney’s “The Monuments Men” about an Allied WWII platoon trying to rescue stolen art from the Nazis. It’s based on a true story, and although the trailer makes it look a bit like a humorous affair of loopy characters, I still want to see it. The movie’s release was delayed from December as fixes were made to it, so hopefully the result will be good.
Lastly in albums this month (see list at bottom right), I’ll pick Beck’s latest “Morning Phase” because he has a good voice and usually has some interesting songs. And if you liked his 2002 album “Sea Change,” you might also enjoy this one, as I hear it has a similar style.
How about you — which new books, movies, or albums out this month are you most looking forward to? Continue reading
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