Thoughts on the book "Project Hail Mary"

Book spoilers ahead

I have been sick nearly all of the last week, so all personal projects are on the back burner. Since I was confined to the house and we will not be entering a movie theatre for at least some time, I picked up a book. Actually, two. I finished "Strange Houses" by Uketsu and then dove into Project Hail Mary, which I breezed through. Like, 2 days, maybe 5–6 reading sessions. It's a good book, no question.

• I like reading sci-fi (Ted Chiang is my current favorite). Most sci-fi is sad and dystopian, which is part of the appeal. Project Hail Mary has sad incidents, but they don't last more than a few pages, with the exception of ONE MAJOR SAD ONE, which is only discussed in passing and is more of an assumption that the writer thinks the reader will make. The entire human race of 8B people presumably suffered for 25–30 years before a solution was found. So it was off-putting to me as I was reading the book that sad incidents were resolved fairly quickly. Turns out, this is Andy Weir's style—optimistic sci-fi. I have a lot more appreciation for this direction switch by the author that goes against the genre—very impressive.
• The writing style is fast-paced, maybe too fast-paced for my liking. I would have liked more pause-and-reflect moments from the characters. It is a real page-turner.
• The book felt like multiple "reels" or short stories assembled together. Plot points are introduced and resolved well before a chapter ends, and the through lines (context aside) from chapter to chapter are mild at best.
• The flashback and the current timeline felt forced to me. Could I have read the story if the main character, Dr. Grace, did not have amnesia from the coma and just remembered everything? I think so, yes.
• As with all good stories -- and this is a good story -- Project Hail Mary is about human emotions. Friendship, sacrifice, love, grit, heroism are all present in generous doses. Which is probably why it has made for an excellent movie.
• I was really hoping for a twist or more tension in the relationship between Dr. Grace and Rocky, but they were like chuddy-buddies. If intentional, this was excellently done by Andy Weir—to create the feeling that "something could go wrong at any moment"...but it doesn't.