Endearingly hilarious.

John Scalzi does it again. Once again, he takes a wacky concept (the literal moon turning into cheese!) and manages to twist it into something ridiculously beautiful and heartfelt.

At first, I didn’t know if I’d vibe with an entire book where each chapter is written from the POV of a new character, but this book manages to do it perfectly. It was fun seeing all the storylines intertwine and come together to form a unique narrative.

Featuring a cheese shop version of Romeo & Juliet, a billionaire and his dream of going to the moon (what could possibly go wrong?), loads and loads of cheese puns and many more humans having the most human reaction to such a strange circumstance as the moon turning to cheese.

I’ve really enjoyed the other two John Scalzi books I’ve read (The Kaiju Preservation Society & Starter Villian) so I knew what I was getting with “When the Moon Hits Your Eye.” It was the most ridiculous and fun sci-fi romp. The moon suddenly turns to cheese and the book is written in the form of snippets of how the world deals with it, from governments, NASA and regular people. It was a fresh take on a sort of apocalypse situation but some portions were a little slow and hard to get interested in. But most were hilarious and entertaining. The ending was a bit abrupt but sadly felt like a realistic take on how the world would react. Overall, I enjoyed it and it was a fun, weird read!

Thank you to NetGalley for letting me read this advance copy and review it!

The premise for this one almost kept me from reading it (the moon turns to cheese? Really?), but I'm glad I went ahead and read it. It's more like satire/fable than science fiction (though there is some science!) and yet it's very heartwarming. Scalzi shows us what people are doing wrong here, but also what we're doing right. His best book so far, in my opinion.

this is a wonderful book, probably the best John Scalzi book since Redshirts as far as deep concepts go. It’s entertaining and delightful.

My first Scalzi and I can see why he's popular. However, he isn't for me. I think it might be the writing style.

I admit I didn't complete the novel in time but what I've read so far was fantastic. More to come later after I finish. That being said I always have delightful conversations about Scalzi's titles with the collection & development team and I know our library will have copies on order. I always have a great time reading Scalzi.

Strange story. Moon is turning to cheese. Not only the moon but also all moon rocks that are on earth. Interesting read. Lots of different characters who show up in each day. Book follows each day in the lunar cycle. Not my favorite by author but still an interesting read.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an advanced copy.

This is my second Scalzi and his books make me laugh quite a bit. In this book, the moon has turned to cheese. Yes, that moon.

Each chapter is a different day after the moon has made its mysterious switch. This is almost like a collection of short stories where we get to see how each person is reacting.

The story of the two brothers and the group chat in Day 19 were some of my favs. The book is cleverly written and I look forward to more people reading it, so we can chat more about it!

This book is so good. I truly enjoyed reading an advanced readers copy. Thanks TOR and Netgalley. Yeah it has a kind of silly premise, and utilizes seemingly unrelated characters in telling a story, but raises so many questions. Stick with it - look for the connective tissue and know you will be rewarded at the end. John Scalzi does a wonderful job of wrapping it up (or maybe I should say folding the cheese) at the end of the book. Raises a lot of questions to just go hmmm... A perfect companion (even though really un-related) to Starter Villain.

I've read all of John Scalzi's books -- loved most, found a few just "good" -- but I'm afraid this one was too stupid to be redeemed. I ended up skimming a lot. It's humorous in places, has some semi-interesting characters, but was really just a set of character sketches of people and their reactions when they find out the moon has suddenly turned into an expanding blob of ... cheese. Very disappointing.

One fine day, when NASA is in preparing for early tests of the new moon lander for the Diana missions to return to the Moon, the NASA director gets word of an emergency with the lunar samples brought back from the Apollo missions.

Have they been stolen? No. Have they been destroyed? Not exactly.

They've turned to cheese.

The Moon itself, right now at quarter phase, is also looking mighty strange, with a much higher albedo than the gray, rocky world should have. Almost as if...it's also now made of cheese.

It's also quickly determined to be larger, at least in diameter. Large enough that even with the lower density of cheese, it's still the same mass. So, no immediate disruptive effects on Earth, as tides and other effects remain unchanged. Although, the upcoming annular eclipse of the Sun will now be a total eclipse of the Sun.

Over the next month, we follow a variety of small groups, reacting to and coping with the sudden and inexplicable change in their own ways.

NASA has to decide what to do about the test flight of the new Mars lander. Should the unmanned flight go all the way to the Moon and return, as planned, or only to low earth orbit, instead?

The billionaire whose company designed and built the new Moon lander decides to exploit the confusion to fulfill his own lifetime dream. (Jody Bannon is not Musk; we know he's not Musk because he hates Musk and Bezos both.)

A science writer whose first book has, well, flopped, is looking for a chance to recover from that, writes a book about the sudden change in the Moon and its possible scientific impact.

A minister at a small Evangelical church in the Midwest has to guide his flock through what this means for their faith--and reaches into unsuspected depths in himself.

Two rival cheese shops in Madison, Wisconsin, find themselves confronting, together, a mob that tips from shouting their confusion, fear, and anger at the Moon, to turning it on a more accessible form of cheese.

A variety of small stories, some funny, some charming, play out over the next month.

It's a good little book, not up there with Scalzi's best, but an enjoyable read nevertheless.

Saw this on NetGalley and thought it sounded fun, so I’m coming back from a multi-year review hiatus to say a few things about this book!

“Moon” (as Scalzi abbreviated the book in his afterword) is what you would get if Don’t Look Up didn’t take itself so seriously. The premise of the moon turning to cheese is absolutely goofy but made for some interesting questions about what motivates us when we know “the end” has a specific date and time. This isn’t a unique theme, and none of the insights about it were particularly unique either, but the weird setting made for some comical situations that were well done.

Each chapter depicted a day in the lunar cycle from a different character’s point of view, but generally revolved around the same few stories. There were a couple one-offs that were super enjoyable and managed to build a convincing vignette in just a few pages, while some of the chapters were a bit too on the nose. Despite the few parts I didn’t love, I can acknowledge that Scalzi knows how to write.

Overall, it was fast and light and entertaining. A nice break from other things I’ve been reading. and 3 stars is a good rating for me!!

When The Moon Hits Your Eye by Joh Scalzi is fun and light reading. Maybe a little too light, but it's still a very engaging way to spend a couple of evenings. Yes, the moon turning to literal cheese is silly, but a lot of the chapters had a lot of depth and humor. The number of characters didn't really work for me (each chapter was practically a new cast dealing with the news0, and I really wish the novel had just focused on 3-4 of the mini-stories, making a more cohesive novel.

In the end notes of this book, he says that he thinks of this one, Starter Villain, and The Kaiju Preservation Society as their own sub-set of semi-related novels (not so much in topic but in the way ordinary characters deal with extraordinary things), and of the three this is probably my least favorite. But...

That said, it's a very fun and entertaining read! Scalzi's comic timing and dialogue is, as usual, absolute perfection.

Thanks so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!!

After reading and loving Starter Villain earlier this year, I have been excited to pick up more of John Scalzi's work. When the Moon Hits Your Eye was not quite as successful for me, but I did still have a really good time reading it. The premise (the moon suddenly turning into literal cheese) is of course ridiculous and hilarious, and led to some quite funny romp-esque moments, but overall the story was more reflective and serious than I expected. The cheese moon does usher in a very real possibility of the end of the world, which led to some serious moments and real contemplation from our wild cast of characters. As the book cycles through different characters and anecdotes, some perspectives dragged on a bit for me, but just when I thought I was losing interest, Scalzi always snapped me right back with a hilarious or endearing moment. If the premise appeals to you as a funny yet contemplative quick read, it's worth picking up.

The premise of this book is absurd- one day the moon and all of Earth’s old moon rocks turn to… cheese. Through a series of characters we find out how humans start to deal with their immanent cheesy death. Cheese puns abound. I laughed out loud. Great book- thanks Netgalley for the ARC. My opinions are my own.

Have you ever wondered what would happen if the moon turned to cheese? If so, definitely give this book a read because it's a hoot. I mean, maybe don't trust the science-y bits because Scalzi admits in the afterword that his science is “extremely loosey-goosey,” but overall it's an entertaining look at how Americans from all over the country might react to such an unexpected phenomenon.

When the Moon Hits Your Eye is basically made up of a series of interconnected short stories and the point of view changes with every chapter. The characters come from all walks of life, from a billionaire CEO of an aerospace company to high school social outcasts. There are cheese shop owners and NASA astronauts and government leaders. There's a washed out rock star and a non-fiction author who suddenly finds himself thrust into the spotlight. While some of their stories are more exciting than others, they're all written with Scalzi's trademark humor and wit and I can honestly say that there wasn't a single one that I didn't enjoy.

And, yeah. I really don't know what else to say about this book. It's funny. It's heartwarming. It's unique. It's about the moon turning to cheese. If you've enjoyed Scalzi's previous novels, there's a good chance that you'll enjoy this one too.

My overall rating: 4.2 stars, rounded down.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Tor Books for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review. Its expected publication date is March 25, 2025.

I received this title as an ARC via NetGalley.

Strongly recommended. [4 stars].

This is another delightful standalone novel from John Scalzi.

Initially, this book does exactly what it says on the tin: the moon turns to cheese. The rest of the novel is about humanity's numerous responses to dealing with the fact that the moon turned to cheese. Structurally, this is a kaleidescope novel--there isn't one protagonist, there are several dozen characters who are all having different responses to the experience, from the highest levels of government to the outcasts table in the junior-high cafeteria. Human frailty in all its messy glory is on display.

The human reactions are spot-on in their glorious variations, especially when the laws of physics begin to take their toll on an enormous mass made of cheese existing in space, and the end of the world is predicted. In the context of certain death by (hot) cheese, Scalzi sketches dozens of fallible, understandable, and engaging characters across the novel, piecing together a modern-day world that feels nuanced and real-esque. The science is (as the author admits in the acknowledgements) made up in some places, and the science is not the point.

Scalzi takes an incredibly silly concept, and creates a world that feels sincere and honest and real with it. Fans of his work will still find the snappy dialogue, tight pacing, humorous (and often profane) moments, and heart they are expecting and hoping for. The occasional moments of philosphical clarity about what it truly means to be human are a decided bonus.

You'll never look at the moon the same way again.

This was a wonderful, funny book. Scalzi set himself a huge task not only setting each chapter in a different day but also from different character point of views. It was really fun and interesting to see a huge event like the moon turning to cheese reflected in so many people's perspectives. It also perfectly shows Scalzi's blend of funny and poignant, with a great read on modern events showing up in how the plot is resolved. A great read for Scalzi fans, though maybe not the best entry point to his canon

John Scalzi has this space thing going for him! What a fun and ironic romp through the what if's of our thinking. The nod to certain people in our media was well appreciated. I really enjoy Scalzi's take on the weird and unusual things that could happen if the moon really did turn to cheese (although the popular saying does have to come from somewhere?). If you are in a not so serious mood and need something fun and enjoyable and have loved his other books, pick it up. It's good for a few days of utter enjoyment.

Thank you to NetGalley, Tor Publishing Group, and especially John Scalzi for this eARC of When the Moon Hits Your Eye.
At first glance, this has been done before. An examination of a sudden, earth shaking, unexplained event and it's possible impact on humanity. What's novel, and what Scalzi excels so well at here, is digging deeply into the ramifications across so many different sectors, factions, cultures, and social circles within the US. A delight to read and quite thought provoking. If you've enjoyed any of Scalzi's work in the past, you'll like this one!