What did I just read??

This book was hilarious, surprisingly heartwarming, and a little bit existentially terrifying? I ate up this book. Gobbled it up. I loved the structure of following lots of different characters with vastly different perspectives on the issue at hand - it raised the stakes and made the humor even funnier. I love these Scalzi books about normal people in extraordinary circumstances!

Scalzi's writing style is just so compulsively readable - does he put drugs in his books? How did I possibly read this so quickly? It was just pure FUN and I loved it.

**Scalzi: So, I have an idea.
Publisher: go on.
Scalzi: it’s about the moon.
Publisher: okay…
Scalzi: and it turns into a giant ball of cheese.
Publisher: ……Write. The. Book.**

And so starts our journey once again into the kooky mind of John Scalzi.

When the Moon Hits Your Eye is an off-the-wall story about the moon suddenly turning into cheese, and turning the world upside down.

The story follows a series of people as they navigate what the change in the moon does to them. You have astronauts who are deeply disappointed at the chance to return to the moon snatched away from them; a billionaire who has to make a successful trip to the moon or go broke; two brothers who own rivaling cheese shops, and haven’t spoken in years; a nonfiction author who’s propelled into the spotlight after writing a pop fiction book that includes the moon; government officials trying to navigate truth telling and keeping their citizens calm; and more, and more, and more. Scalzi is able to incorporate numerous different storylines without them becoming muddled or confusing. They also are infused with his typical humor and wit-keeping the reader invested, and giving them a few laughs along the way. And while there is a bit of tension because of the volatile nature of a moon with unpredictable stability, John balances it out with heartfelt moments, and poking fun at the outrageous moments-and there’s plenty of them.

This book is quintessential Scalzi, was still quite enjoyable, and highlights why I love his writing.

While the premise was nice, the writing was... not what I expected. I wanted more from the characters because I felt that what was on the front cover and the front flap was not what we were given.

Hi!

This is my review of When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi.

Overall, this was a good book! I enjoyed the concept very much. I liked the format as well, getting to hear about multiple characters and their individual reactions to the events of the story. I do wish that, when there was some continuity, it was made more apparent for the reader. Sometimes, characters from the beginning of the book would pop up towards the end and it took some time for me to recognize them.

I felt like I needed more information about the specifics of the cheese moon. Some of the hints at explanations offered at the end felt like excuses for not having a true explanation. I know the author has stated that science was not supposed to be at the forefront of the story, but some of the explanations could have been developed over a longer period of time than just the very end.

Folks know I push John Scalzi's books pretty hard. His sardonic take on things resonates with my funny bone and sense of taste. But I do disagree with him on something that was brought up in "When the Moon Hits Your Eye" (out 25 March 2025), we need more films in that series "we don't talk about in polite society." I want a trilogy of schlock that ends in a visually bombastic way that beggars other productions and a message about the indomitable human spirit that floors people with its gravitas.

One day the moon turned to cheese. Or at least a substance that tests the same as cheese and no one wants to say officially is cheese. And people have to deal with it. While it doesn't impact your average person what the moon is made of it alters things for astronauts who have been training their whole lives to go to the moon. Scientists and students who have certain expectations about universal constants, like moons not turning to cheese. This is a story told in snippets of different people's stories, some we touch back on, others are one and done. I had a real good time with this.

Reasons to read:
-I appreciate bad things happening to rich people, and then the aside about how much it sucks that that is the single thing they will be remembered for
-The slack chapter
-"What kind of cheese is it?"
-Oh the last 2 chapters really make it land for my brain
-Putting things in perspective

Cons:
-Said cheese more in a week than I probably have in the last decade

One day, the moon turns to cheese. Yes, that’s what happens in this super silly, yet at times hysterical (and even thought provoking) sci-fi satire. The author uses much of the story to blast Elon Musk, and privileged billionaires in general, and a section dealing with a political sex scandal news conference had me laughing out loud.

Much of the novel jumps around to unconnected characters, which at times works, but often I wanted to learn what became of some, only we’re (mainly) given glimpses into how people are dealing not only with this bizarre phenomenon, but the end of life itself (a huge chunk of the moon breaks free and heads towards earth in what scientists claim will be The End of All Things).

While I did enjoy this quote a bit, it’s a bit frustrating Scalzi introduced so many well developed characters only to leave us guessing what became of them. But, I’ll let this slight flaw slide since one of my favorite artists (Gary Numan) is not only name checked, but used as an example in one couple’s situation.

For those not in the know, for over 20 years there has been a subgenre in the small presses known as “bizarro.” Not only does Scalzi’s MOON fit that subgenre, it does so with gusto: it’s kind of amazing a mainstream press released something this wonderfully weird.

When the Moon Hits Your Eye is a book of slice of life short stories after the moon turns to cheese. Yep that’s right, the moon has turned to cheese.

“You have to be fucking kidding me,” Heffernan said, to the room. “I have here representatives from both our science and intelligence community, and all of you are telling me the moon—the whole fucking moon—has been turned to goddamn cheese.”

I have read a lot of Scalzi books, and this one has his same signature humor (albeit toned down), so if you’re a fan - pick this up! If you’re not already a fan, I’d suggest Kaiju or The Collapsing Empire over this one. Ultimately there were so many points of view from billionaires, to the a presidential advisor to astronauts to retirees. It was a little too much for me. I never felt connected to any of the characters which is an important aspect of reading for me.

Thank you to @netgalley and @torbooks for providing the ARC for review. When the Moon Hits Your Eye will be available March 25!

Everything is going along hunky-dory when suddenly the moon turns into cheese. That's the basis of this silly yet surprisingly thought-provoking new novel by John Scalzi. Each chapter is a day in the lunar cycle, and follows a wide-ranging collection of people, from NASA astronauts whose moon missions are suddenly "on hiatus" to evangelical Christians who assume that the moon's sudden cheesiness is the result of the devil to feuding brothers who own rival Wisconsin cheese shops to a billionaire playboy who's determined to be the first person to eat moon cheese. It's frivolous fun, full of weird (and strangely believable?) science and lots of fictional insanity, which makes it an excellent distraction from real-life insanity. Highly recommended for fans of Scalzi's Kaiju Preservation Society and Starter Villain, as well as anyone who loves cheese and astronomy.

I love the way this book starts, from the opening of short facts about the moon presented in a children's book approach to the awe-inducing discoveries regarding changes in the planet. It reminded me of how accessible to readers the science-fiction of Asimov, Heinlein and Sturgeon was - especially the works of Ray Bradbury. That's good company.

The story is told in episodic chapters, focusing on the point of view of a large ensemble of characters, related in chronological order corresponding to the days in a lunar cycle. There's a turn of events near the end that came as a complete surprise, and some may consider unsatisfactory, but I won't spoil it by hinting at anything. I was perfectly fine with this, and felt it was an appropriate way to end things.

It seems that Scalzi considered all the implications for us mere mortals on Earth should the moon turn to cheese and upset the status quo, etc. Some of the chapters are more serious than others, but there is a tonge-in-cheek vibe to everything here. Every possible scenario seems to have been accounted for, from the reaction of the scientific community, to big government, to Hollywood, to the common man.

Three of my favorite chapters are the three retired senior citizens who meet for breakfast at a diner and speculate on the future, the Elon Musk-like character who spearheads his own mission to the moon (and gets what he deserves - wishing something similar would happen to the real person), and the various screen-writers making their elevator pitches to Hollywood producers for a moon-themed script.

Some memorable Scalzi wit/satire, through the thoughts of Jody Bannon (think Elon Musk):"Follow: Jody Bannon wanted to go to the moon. Jody Bannon knew he had neither the time nor patience to go through real astronaut training. So if he was going to go to the moon, he was going to have to buy an aerospace company (which he did), make a credible bid to build a next-generation lunar lander (which he did), and then have it built with so many automated and redundant systems that even an untrained dipshit (which he was) could make it to the moon and back, just by pressing the occasional button."

Also, this little gem - - a conversation between President Boone and his wife regarding how to break the news about the moon to the public:
Boone snorted. "You've seen my latest poll numbers," he said. "My powers of persuasion are not what you think they are."
"This isn't about you trying to shepherd legislation," Angie said. "This is you being the actual most powerful human in the world. Right or wrong, that's who you are right now. People know it, even if they hate it and hate you. So if they get even a hint that you think we're doomed, it's all over. If they think you think we have a chance, they'll take that into their heads. Even if they think you're delusional."
"I might be delusional," Boone admitted.
"And you might not be. Maybe we will get through this."
"Maybe we will. And if we do, then maybe I'll get reelected."
"Don't get your hopes up," Angie said. "I've seen your poll numbers."

The premise of this book is weird, almost silly, but I love John Scalzi's ability to imagine what it would be like if something like that actually happened! He creates characters the reader can invest in and care about. There were a variety of storylines about the same occurrence in this book, and all of them were interesting and kept me wanting to read more!

What would you do if you woke up one morning to discover the moon had turned to cheese? This story , progressing through each day of a lunar cycle follows the reactions of people across the world as they deal to the new normal and learn the earths days are numbered.

Each chapter is a different point of view from the president, to religious believers, to highschoolers and the average Joe. Every one reacts differently, some more entertaining as others. My favorites were : The three old men at the diner, The rival cheese shop employees, the Highschool lunch bunch, Lyle and Austin's eclipse party text chain, and Lessa Sarah & Hector.

I really enjoy John Scalzi's writing and humor. When The Moon HIts Your Eye reads like a collection of short stories centered around the moon turning to cheese. Some I loved, some fell flat but overall entertaining. I do wish the ending had been a bit more explosive, if you've read it you know what I mean but o well lol

John Scalzi's latest begins with the discovery that the moon has miraculously become an "organic seeming compound" in the words of NASA, cheese to everyone else. When the Moon Hits Your Eye follows the events over the next month through a wide cast of characters as the world first tries to understand and then adapt to what seems a ridiculous premise, but actually has a high degree of danger and the possibility of annihilation.

Much of that initial reaction is shock, humor and for many astronauts, disappointment as the recently relaunched moon mission are cancelled. Focused on US citizens, we travel in the upper echelon with chapters focused on the president, upper level advisors and astronauts to the more dispersed population including an academic who just happened to write a book about moon myths, his publisher to a group of retiree friends at a diner, feuding cheese shops run by siblings and an excessively rich tech bro who has spent everything to get to space and maybe the moon first. There are also stand alone chapters satirizing or skewering specific groups or industries, like the one focused on banks figuring out how to ride the dystopia for the benefit of their bottom line or a Hollywood producer being pitched a full day's worth of moon or moon cheese related shows or movies just after the news is announced.

So as a whole, even though their is a clear narrative and passage of time, many of the chapters feel more episodic, revisiting certain characters as events unfold, sparing us a repetitive day by day life, but also distancing us some from journeying with the same person.

It's still mostly fun, and incisive, looking at how American society reacts to crisis, and sure most of that is greed and self centered, but others find it worthwhile to spend time with family, find love or finally have time for a long deferred dream.

Recommended to readers of contemporary fiction, dystopias or Wallace & Gromit's dream come true.

ARC - Tor Publishing Group

This book. This. BOOK.

I loved this book so much. This was my first John Scalzi novel, and when I finished this the other afternoon, I immediately panic bought 4 other of his books.

As the description states, the moon turns into cheese. From there, the story is told through multiple character's point of views on how the moon and its' sudden change effect everyone in their own way. While this book doesn't release until later March, meaning this books was written over a year ago. That said, Scalzi's writing is a scary accurate snapshot of the billionaire insanity we currently have throwing our constitution in the garbage, following by lighting it on fire with a can of Aqua Net,
Now, honestly, this book really lifted my spirits and gave me some literal 'LOLz', when I really needed it earlier this week. Well...really the last month, but I digress.
This story was wonderfully unique, and seeing everyone's thoughts and views on the sudden change of the moon from basically a rock, to an 'organic matrix," was truly a riot. Each perspective had it's own tone, without missing a beat. One of my top 2025 books, hands down. Yes, already.

Thanks so much to Tor Publishing for this ARC! I've already pre-ordered a hard copy!

I binged this in two days (where I should've definitely been doing other things) it's that compelling.
This book is literally amazing. And any book that references Congo (the movie IYKYK) deserves 5⭐ in my opinion.
This is a story about how Americans of all backgrounds would react if the moon turned to cheese. If that sounds like something you'd enjoy, I implore you to pick this up. 💚

THANK YOU THANK THANK YOU to Tor and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review 💚 💚 💚 💚 you made my year with this one 💚

A fever-dream of the moon turning into cheese transcends its absurdist roots. I didn’t go into this book expecting to finish it in teary-eyed contemplation of my own morality, but here we are! Scalzi truly is one of a kind!

This book is about as ridiculous as it sounds. The moon mysteriously turns to cheese, and the world starts descending into chaos. There are some laugh out loud funny parts, but there are also some very serious parts with a surprising amount of depth, which you wouldn't expect at the beginning.

The book follows a whole host of characters throughout the cheese moon debacle, with each chapter being a different day and a different set of characters. Some of those characters do show up again in later chapters, so we get to see their reactions as the situation about the moon changes. Some of the chapters are very light, with minor discussions about what is happening. Some of them are cute, with fate meetings involving cheese. Some are rather exasperating, involving a very Elon Musk-ish character deciding he is the most important person on the planet and he can do whatever he wants because he has the money too. And some are rather moving, with characters actually thinking about what is going to happen to them and the Earth. There are also plenty of cheese puns, and everything is delivered in Scalzi's typical wit and humor. Any fan of Scalzi will enjoy this, along with anyone who enjoys a rather ridiculous sci-fi story.

Please Scalzi, never change.

Thanks to NetGalley and Tor Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars

Maybe John Scalzi lost a bet and had to write a book with a random premise. Somehow the moon turned into cheese. Actual cheese. Yet it works. This was an enjoyable read. There were so many different characters, most only in one chapter, yet you got sucked into liking them very quickly.

From what starts as something of a ridiculous premise - what would happen if the moon actually turned into cheese? - Scalzi creates a story that feels real. He's not so much interested in the science of what might or might not happen (although there is certainly some speculation along those lines), but rather how people and society would react. Along those lines, he nails it. From the individuals anticipating the end of the world to those calling it all a grand conspiracy to individuals, politicians, and corporations looking to figure out how to use the situation to benefit themselves, Scalzi provides a realistic landscape of perspectives and responses to a life and reality altering event like this. While he includes his typical humor throughout the book, it doesn't feel tongue-in-cheek. He's not playing this book for laughs, except for those that come from the ways in which people really might engage this scenario.

Structuring the book as a set of days across the lunar cycle and providing a ton of different perspectives creates a wide picture of how society might react and how that reaction would progress as more is understood and ramifications are discovered. This progression also leads to a more emotional book than is typical for Scalzi, but it really works.

In queso emergency: As other people have commented, this book has no business being this good. Scalzi uses a very silly premise to launch a humorous but poignant and thoughtful tale about normal people dealing with an unusual situation the best way they can. Over the course of a full moon cycle, Scalzi shares people reacting to an existential crisis in the time of an apocalypse, but many of the themes are also relevant to dealing with the existential crises of pandemics, war, and the political arena of our modern times. Like most Scalzi books, there was an equal amount of humor and seriousness, and a lot of humanity. I enjoyed it.

When The Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi


Finally! A return to form by one of my favorite authors. I’m a big fan of Mr. Scalzi’s work since I found Redshirts on the new books shelf at my local library years ago, and Ive been reading his website regularly for a long time. But his last few novels have been weaker than some of his earlier work, and I think it was due to his habit of rushing through writing them to make his deadlines (as he has eloquently described on his blog).

But I knew when I got the new John Scalzi book from NetGalley and Tor in exchange for an honest review that I would enjoy it - because I already read it!! I was at NYCC in October and got an ARC from the Tor booth and I got it signed by John Scalzi there. He was surprised because he hadn’t realized they would have hard copies available, and he said that my copy was the very first he had signed for this book!

The premise for this book is fun - suddenly without warning the entire moon - and all of the moon rocks on earth - turn to cheese. The book then has some vignettes and snapshots of how different people around the country are dealing with this.

In some of Scalzi’s more recent books, the protagonists have been glib and unpleasant ciphers, but not in this book. The characters feel like real people!

The format of the book is both a strength and a weakness. You don’t get to spend a lot of time with interesting characters before a new chapter starts and we leave them behind (often forever, though some recur in later segments). But a bigger flaw is the ending. With a high concept SF book like this, a lot of the value comes from the ultimate answers to the question of how did the big weird thing happen. Remember Stephen King’s Under the Dome? Remember how the ending cheapened the whole book and undercut everything? SPOILER ALERT: this isn’t as bad as in Under the Dome, but it’s close. There is no answer. The moon cheese just reverts back to moon rock. Nothing is ever explained. It’s left as a big mystery. This makes the book feel much more fantastical than science fictional, if that makes sense.

But, problems with the structure and ending aside, I really enjoyed this book. It was a total page turner and very readable. Best Scalzi book I’ve read in years.