The Martian is a sci-fi novel by Andy Weir about a man stranded on Mars after a NASA mission goes astray. He’s an engineer and botanist, left behind with random equipment on a planet where stepping out of his enclosure means near-immediate death. Obviously, he’d like to avoid that future and instead hang on to life until he can be rescued by the next Mars mission (not for a few years). To reach this goal, he needs to figure out how to have a continuous supply of oxygen, water, food, heat, and shelter. So nearly all of his brainpower is dedicated to solving these issues - but he’s just one guy, stranded on a distant planet, with no communication and limited supplies. Issues are bound to occur...
I thought that the way the author built up the scenario felt pretty realistic and was intriguing (though a few elements seemed super unlikely). I thought it was really odd that once the narrator made contact with Earth, hundreds of millions of dollars were being spent immediately to save him. Realistically, it seems like the government wouldn’t spend that much effort on a single person when the money could be better utilized. Overall though, it was easy to get immersed and to imagine that this was actually happening. I was definitely invested in the problems and finished the book quickly. I would recommend it to any sci-fi fan or NASA scientist wannabe.