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januarysnine 's review for:
Project Hail Mary
by Andy Weir
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was... fine. I was surprised with the consistently high ratings and barely any negative reviews, but I realized it was because most people who didn't like it didn't even bother finishing it, which for me gives an interesting angle on the flaws of this book, because it's the first time I've ever encountered a novel that had this kind of reaction - that people who didn't like it didn't like it so much they wouldn't even bother trudging through the rest of the story.
Personally, this was painful to go through. I felt the length of these pages; I would've DNF-ed if this wasn't a book club read. The main character, Ryland Grace... I didn't even know of the movie at the time, but I had a feeling that this was supposed to be Ryan Gosling, so it felt a bit like fanfiction, like Weir wrote this imagining and wanting it to be Ryan Gosling playing this character. He narrated and thought in a way that threw me off a lot, but maybe I just didn't understand because I wasn't a heterosexual white man - though Ryan Gosling does to the heterosexual white man schtick well, so kudos to the movie casting). But take that factor out of it, and this character is pretty obnoxious. Every character here felt ridiculous, so it felt hard to root for humanity to succeed. A lot of the dialogue was incredibly cliche and the way things progressed to get to different plot points was just way too convenient, both of which required for a lot of suspension of disbelief. Project Hail Mary is also very heavy on the telling rather than showing, to the point where I think it's a prime example, for me, of a book that just does that and nothing else.
Still, it's not a bad book; I understand why people are always recommending this for readers who are new to science fiction. It's an adventure story that promises space travel and a hero who has the capability to accomplish great things to save the world, all without making the reader actually feel the weight of the stakes, despite the fact that the threat can annihilate everything. Weir also spoon-feeds you the science and his ideas. The alien is interesting - I agree that Rocky is indeed the best part about Project Hail Mary - distinct but not too complex that new readers to the genre can no longer keep up. It definitely works as a "turn your brain off" book and enjoy the ride. But as someone who considers themselves new to the genre, even I can say this is far from the best kind of science fiction you can get your hands on.
I'd definitely watch the movie though. Maybe Weir's works are better that way.
Personally, this was painful to go through. I felt the length of these pages; I would've DNF-ed if this wasn't a book club read. The main character, Ryland Grace... I didn't even know of the movie at the time, but I had a feeling that this was supposed to be Ryan Gosling, so it felt a bit like fanfiction, like Weir wrote this imagining and wanting it to be Ryan Gosling playing this character. He narrated and thought in a way that threw me off a lot, but maybe I just didn't understand because I wasn't a heterosexual white man - though Ryan Gosling does to the heterosexual white man schtick well, so kudos to the movie casting). But take that factor out of it, and this character is pretty obnoxious. Every character here felt ridiculous, so it felt hard to root for humanity to succeed. A lot of the dialogue was incredibly cliche and the way things progressed to get to different plot points was just way too convenient, both of which required for a lot of suspension of disbelief. Project Hail Mary is also very heavy on the telling rather than showing, to the point where I think it's a prime example, for me, of a book that just does that and nothing else.
Still, it's not a bad book; I understand why people are always recommending this for readers who are new to science fiction. It's an adventure story that promises space travel and a hero who has the capability to accomplish great things to save the world, all without making the reader actually feel the weight of the stakes, despite the fact that the threat can annihilate everything. Weir also spoon-feeds you the science and his ideas. The alien is interesting - I agree that Rocky is indeed the best part about Project Hail Mary - distinct but not too complex that new readers to the genre can no longer keep up. It definitely works as a "turn your brain off" book and enjoy the ride. But as someone who considers themselves new to the genre, even I can say this is far from the best kind of science fiction you can get your hands on.
I'd definitely watch the movie though. Maybe Weir's works are better that way.