Artemis
Hard Sci-Fi master Andy Weir does it again!
It’s possible you’ve read The Martian or saw the 2015 adaptation starring Matt Damon. If you enjoyed that story, you’ll like this. Artemis is certainly the spiritual sequel in which clever engineering and science is used to survive the harsh environment of a lunar city. Weir is known for his stories to use hard science fiction, where real science and engineering principles are used as plot devices, solutions and settings. In other words, the polar opposite of the (also hilarious) “solutions” in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
The new ideas here is that Weir has also engineered espionage, mystery and economics into creating this story, which creates a world far more complex and interesting than NASA’s 3rd mission to Mars. The basic plot is Jasmine “Jazz” Bashara is a lowly porter living and working on the Artemis moon colony where she gets a chance at making it big, but gets caught up in a murder mystery along the way, and she must use her quick thinking, engineering, and blue collar type trade skills to avoid dying. I don’t want to spoil anything, so that’s basically all you’ll get out of me.
Some criticize the book for focusing on setting and explaining to the reader science instead of crafting a real story. To those people, I quote Terry Pratchett, “Susan hated Literature. She'd much prefer to read a good book.” Or in other words, shut up and let the man tell a funny story where I get to learn about space science and engineering at the same time.
Weir is also very self aware, with a little nod to the absurdity The Martian had with duct tape (it’s used only a shockingly one time in Artemis), and I had the paperback edition which included an article Weir wrote on laying the economic foundation for Artemis, which is something that anyone who cares about the burgeoning space tourism industry should read.
I did think the fictional shul on the moon that he briefly mentions in worldbuilding could have had a better name. Beth Chalutzim (House of Pioneers) felt a bit lame. I would have gone with Kehilas Ohr Levana (Congregation Light of the Moon) or something like that (too on the nose?). But I’m just being nitpicky.
Artemis made me laugh, made me think, and made me enjoy having time to read. I highly recommend checking it out and I can’t wait to read Weir’s next book, Project Hail Mary.