In short, "Project Hail Mary" is about a middle school science teacher who is humanity's last hope for survival. I don't want to give too much away, because part of the fun of this book is puzzling out the backstory along with the main character, who has amnesia at the beginning of the novel. But it's not giving too much away to say that Earth is facing an extinction-level event, and Ryland Grace is on a one-way mission to save us all. If that sounds depressing, I will add that Project Hail Mary is really more buddy comedy than disaster novel.

As science fiction books go, Project Hail Mary leans more science than fiction...which is to say, the world this book inhabits feels very close to our own, and the imaginary crisis feels not too different from some real issues we are facing. In a time of overlapping world crises, I found this book to be full of hope, humor, and humanity. I laughed, I cried, and I felt inspired by the idea that smart, ordinary people have the potential to figure out solutions to our challenges.