WHEN THE MOON HITS YOUR EYE by John Scalzi – Review

I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi
Published by Tor Books on March 25 2025
Genres: Adult, Science fiction
Pages: 336
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: John Scalzi takes an absurd idea and adds humor, heart and thoughtful commentary about life in this fast-paced, engaging “what if” story.

You can always count on John Scalzi to come up with fresh ideas, even if they’re waaay out there (literally, in this case), and that’s what you get with When the Moon Hits Your Eye. What if the moon suddenly turned into cheese? Impossible, right? Yet that’s exactly the scenario Scalzi addresses in this funny, absurd and emotionally touching story. Rather than focus on a set group of characters, the book reads almost like a series of vignettes, as we follow people from all over the country, from all walks of life, as they attempt to make sense of what’s happening.

The story begins in Wapakoneta, Ohio at the Armstrong Air and Space Museum, where director Virgil Augustine is called into the Moon Room by an employee. Something odd has happened to one of the moon rocks on display. It no longer resembles a rock, and after some debate they decide to open the display case and take a closer look. A strong odor of cheese emerges from the…thing on display. How and when could this have happened?

We jump to the President of the United States and his staff, who are being briefed on the odd moon rock situation—which is happening in other museums across the country as well. Because of this, scientists have determined the moon is closer than it should be and has grown in mass. Spectral analysis proves that the material of the moon is no longer rock, and indeed resembles something like cheese. 

As this shocking news leaks out to the public, everyone speculates on what it means. LaMae Anderson is an astronaut scheduled to be aboard the upcoming NASA lunar launch, but with uncertain conditions on the moon, the launch has been put on hold; tech billionaire Jody Bannon also has plans to send his private launcher Major Tom to the moon, and despite warnings from his team, he insists on the launch going forward. As the lunar cycle progresses, each day brings new information, and things aren’t getting better—they’re getting worse. If the moon really has turned into cheese, what’s next for planet Earth?

Even though the set up is pretty ridiculous, I was surprised how much I enjoyed this book. The story isn’t actually about the moon turning to cheese, it’s about how society reacts when faced with something impossible. Scalzi shows us how various groups and individuals deal with the moon turning to cheese. Some are opportunistic and use it to their advantage, like a producer in Los Angeles who is taking pitch ideas for a new movie—all of which involve cheese in some way; or the non fiction writer who has just published a book about the moon and who suddenly finds himself in the spotlight. Then there are the rich who think they can buy whatever they want. One such man wants to taste a chunk of the moon cheese and will spend any amount of money to make that happen (this was one of the funniest, laugh-out loud chapters in the book!)

My favorite parts, though, focused on regular, everyday people. We meet three retired guys who meet at a local coffee shop on a regular basis, and of course the cheese moon is their latest topic of conversation. One of Scalzi’s strengths is his dialogue, especially when the conversations are funny, and Clyde, Dave and Alton have some of the funniest dialog in the book (and later in the story, some of the most heartfelt). Another favorite chapter involves two rival cheese shops in Madison, Wisconsin, where an adorable meet cute between two new employees offsets some of the more obnoxious characters in the story.

If you’re familiar with John Scalzi’s books, you’ll know he doesn’t shy away from political commentary, and while it’s much more subtle in this book than in others I’ve read recently, I had to chuckle at Jody Bannon, the “country’s most famous tech billionaire.” It was pretty clear who Scalzi was writing about and he nailed it. I won’t give away the details about Jody’s trip to the moon, but let’s just say it was extremely dark but funny at the same time. Scalzi, I approve!

The author includes just enough science to make you think there are actually scientists working on the issue of the cheese moon, and this speculation about how things would play out made a lot of sense. 

Not all of the chapters worked for me, though. Some just didn’t have the humor or emotional impact of the ones I’ve mentioned above, and I didn’t really understand their purpose. I’ll admit I ended up skimming one chapter about a comedy club that I didn’t find funny at all. But for the most part, I enjoyed the majority of the characters and scenarios immensely.

Later in the story the plot takes an apocalyptic turn, which I loved. Scalzi moves from humor to a more sober tone with lots of emotional moments. The ending wasn’t at all what I was expecting, but it worked. I’m betting Scalzi fans will love this book, and readers who are new to the author should definitely give it a try.

Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.