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A review by heathercottledillon
Artemis by Andy Weir
4.0
I don't think this is quite as good as "The Martian," but I still loved it! It's got the same fantastic blend of snarky humor, action, and science fiction. As with "The Martian," I was impressed by how much scientific detail is included without it slowing down the story too much. Some sci-fi readers might enjoy less actual science and others more, but Weir's writing is the perfect blend for me. I like that he kept the story in space but explored a (wo)man vs. man conflict rather than man vs. nature. There are several entertaining twists that I didn't expect. The conclusion is a bit over-the-top, in terms of drama, but I didn't mind at all because it fits the tone of the book and is just a lot of fun.
I sometimes get annoyed when a white guy writes from the perspective of a non-white person, especially a woman. I don't think it's necessarily wrong for people to explore the perspectives of other races, ethnicities, genders, etc., but it's hard to do well without appropriating the other people's experiences or using stereotypes. However, it didn't bother me in this case, at least in principle, because the setting is so different and therefore Jazz's experiences aren't expected to be similar to the experiences Middle Eastern women have on Earth. On the other hand, I don't think Weir gets the female voice quite right, which is my main complaint about the book. Some of Jazz's comments felt off, particularly her multiple observations about her own appearance and jokes about her sexuality. I like that she doesn't apologize for doing what she wants to do, but some of her internal dialogue about it isn't realistic. Still, she is strong, complex, and interesting. Male sci-fi authors don't often put females in the lead, and I like that Weir gave it a shot and at least made her a fun badass.
Though I enjoyed "The Martian" even more, I thought "Artemis" was a blast and was thrilled to discover that Andy Weir is more than a one-hit wonder.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy of this book!
I sometimes get annoyed when a white guy writes from the perspective of a non-white person, especially a woman. I don't think it's necessarily wrong for people to explore the perspectives of other races, ethnicities, genders, etc., but it's hard to do well without appropriating the other people's experiences or using stereotypes. However, it didn't bother me in this case, at least in principle, because the setting is so different and therefore Jazz's experiences aren't expected to be similar to the experiences Middle Eastern women have on Earth. On the other hand, I don't think Weir gets the female voice quite right, which is my main complaint about the book. Some of Jazz's comments felt off, particularly her multiple observations about her own appearance and jokes about her sexuality. I like that she doesn't apologize for doing what she wants to do, but some of her internal dialogue about it isn't realistic. Still, she is strong, complex, and interesting. Male sci-fi authors don't often put females in the lead, and I like that Weir gave it a shot and at least made her a fun badass.
Though I enjoyed "The Martian" even more, I thought "Artemis" was a blast and was thrilled to discover that Andy Weir is more than a one-hit wonder.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy of this book!