This review was first published in and is reposted with permission from Shelf Awareness.
The ability of humanity to face the unexpected is pushed to the limit in When the Moon Hits Your Eye, a sharp, absurdist satire from John Scalzi (Starter Villain; The Kaiju Preservation Society; The End of All Things).
It begins at the Armstrong Air and Space Museum. Its lunar rock sample initially appears to have been stolen and replaced with another material. Except it shortly becomes clear that not only have all the moon rocks on Earth now changed but the moon itself is also brighter than it should be in its crescent phase, as if it's reflecting light differently. Somehow, the moon has transformed into "an organic matrix" or, for those who want to be less technical: cheese. Worse, the moon cheese is unstable.
Readers follow a cast of characters from various walks of life as Scalzi explores how humanity reacts to the unprecedented. These characters include astronauts whose lunar missions are canceled, a billionaire of a familiar type who seeks to use the situation to the advantage of his own space exploration program, and a popular-science author whose profile skyrockets. Scalzi's trademark wit shines through as the apocalypse looms in a form more ludicrous than anyone imagined. The wealthiest scramble to be able to brag that they ate moon cheese. Some question their faith, some take to the streets, and some try to set personal matters straight before the end. To laugh instead of cry at how bad disaster response can get, turn to Scalzi. --Kristen Allen-Vogel, information services librarian at Dayton Metro Library
Discover: The world is ending not by fire, nor by ice, but by cheese in this sharply funny satire by John Scalzi.
The ability of humanity to face the unexpected is pushed to the limit in When the Moon Hits Your Eye, a sharp, absurdist satire from John Scalzi (Starter Villain; The Kaiju Preservation Society; The End of All Things).
It begins at the Armstrong Air and Space Museum. Its lunar rock sample initially appears to have been stolen and replaced with another material. Except it shortly becomes clear that not only have all the moon rocks on Earth now changed but the moon itself is also brighter than it should be in its crescent phase, as if it's reflecting light differently. Somehow, the moon has transformed into "an organic matrix" or, for those who want to be less technical: cheese. Worse, the moon cheese is unstable.
Readers follow a cast of characters from various walks of life as Scalzi explores how humanity reacts to the unprecedented. These characters include astronauts whose lunar missions are canceled, a billionaire of a familiar type who seeks to use the situation to the advantage of his own space exploration program, and a popular-science author whose profile skyrockets. Scalzi's trademark wit shines through as the apocalypse looms in a form more ludicrous than anyone imagined. The wealthiest scramble to be able to brag that they ate moon cheese. Some question their faith, some take to the streets, and some try to set personal matters straight before the end. To laugh instead of cry at how bad disaster response can get, turn to Scalzi. --Kristen Allen-Vogel, information services librarian at Dayton Metro Library
Discover: The world is ending not by fire, nor by ice, but by cheese in this sharply funny satire by John Scalzi.
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