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Project Hail Mary
2021 science-fiction novel by Andy Weir From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Project Hail Mary is a 2021 science fiction novel by American writer Andy Weir. Set in the near future, it centers on school teacher and former biologist Ryland Grace, who wakes up aboard a spacecraft afflicted with amnesia.
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Project Hail Mary received generally positive reviews, and it was a finalist for the 2022 Hugo Award for Best Novel.[1] The unabridged audiobook was read by Ray Porter and won the 2022 Audie Award for Audiobook of the Year.[2]
A film adaptation has been made, starring Ryan Gosling and Sandra Hüller, with Drew Goddard writing (his second Andy Weir adaptation) and Phil Lord and Christopher Miller directing.[3] It is scheduled for release on March 20, 2026.[4]
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Plot
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In the near future, scientists observe the Sun dimming coinciding with the formation of a bright line from the Sun to Venus. As the dimming will cause a catastrophic ice age within 30 years, the world's governments appoint former European Space Agency administrator Eva Stratt over a task force to solve the problem. A space probe, sent to investigate the issue, discovers alien microbes at Venus.
Stratt appoints Ryland Grace, a middle school teacher and infamous former molecular biologist, to study a sample of microbes. He discovers that the single-celled organism consumes electromagnetic radiation, naming it "Astrophage".
Astrophage has also infected and dimmed nearby stars; one star, Tau Ceti, has resisted the infection. Other scientists discover that Astrophage can be mass-bred for use as rocket fuel. An Astrophage-fueled starship, the Hail Mary, is created to travel to Tau Ceti to investigate its Astrophage resistance. There is only enough time to breed enough Astrophage for a one-way trip, so the mission will return its findings to Earth using unmanned mini-ships called "beetles". Grace trains the science experts for the mission, but they are killed in an accident shortly before launch. With no time to train a comparably-skilled replacement, Stratt forces Grace to join the mission. Grace threatens sabotage, so a sedative is administered to him before launch, along with a temporary amnesia-inducing drug.
Years later, Ryland Grace emerges from his coma aboard the Hail Mary with no memory of his identity or situation. Grace finds that his crew members have died en route and gives them a space burial. Hail Mary reaches Tau Ceti and is approached by an alien starship, which Grace names "Blip-A". The other ship indicates, via a star-map sculpture, that it came from 40 Eridani. The ships dock, and Grace develops a system to communicate with the spider-like five-legged alien, whom he names "Rocky". Rocky, a skilled engineer, has been in the Tau Ceti system for 46 years and is the last survivor of his crew, with the rest having died of radiation sickness. As Eridani is also under threat from Astrophage, Grace and Rocky agree to co-operate.
Grace learns that the Eridians did not know about relativity and Blip-A has more than enough Astrophage fuel for both ships to return to their planets. Grace and Rocky discover that one of Tau Ceti's planets is Astrophage's home planet, where some force is keeping the Astrophage population in check. The planet's atmosphere is hypothesized to contain a natural predator of Astrophage. Grace and Rocky construct a 10 kilometer chain made of xenonite, an Eridian super-material, in order to collect a sample. While collecting a sample, a hull breach occurs; Grace and Rocky risk their lives to save each other. From the sample, they identify the predator and name it "Taumoeba".
Grace and Rocky use selective breeding to produce Taumoeba that can survive on Venus and Eridani's analogue. Rocky repairs and refuels the Hail Mary, and they part ways. En route, Grace discovers that he has accidentally bred into the Taumoeba the ability to penetrate their xenonite containers. Although Grace fixes the problem on Hail Mary, he realizes that the Blip-A is made almost entirely of xenonite and that the Taumoeba would have consumed Blip-A's Astrophage fuel, leaving Rocky stranded.
Grace is forced to choose between returning to Earth but dooming the Eridians, or saving the Eridians and his own starvation on Erid, where the food is toxic to humans. Grace sends the beetles back to Earth with Taumoeba farms and instructions to save the Sun. Grace locates the Blip-A and reunites with Rocky. Rocky is overjoyed and points out the possibility that Grace could consume Taumoeba, giving him a chance at survival.
Sixteen years later, Grace is living on Erid, now rid of its Astrophage infection. Using a digital archive of human knowledge, the Eridians have built an environment that enables Grace to live on Erid. Rocky tells Grace that Sun's brightness has recovered, meaning Grace's mission was a success. Knowing that humanity has survived on Earth, Grace contemplates returning to his home planet before returning to work―teaching a classroom of young Eridians about science.
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Writing process
In a profile in The New York Times, Weir says that after completing The Martian, he began a multi-volume space opera called Zhek, about a substance that could absorb electromagnetic radiation and be used as a fuel for interstellar travel. He wrote 75,000 words before abandoning the project and beginning his novel Artemis (2017). Several elements from Zhek were brought over to Project Hail Mary, including a ruthless bureaucrat character and an energy-absorbing substance used as starship fuel.[5]
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Publication
Project Hail Mary was released on May 4, 2021, by Ballantine Books. The audiobook narrated by Ray Porter uses melodic sound effects in the background whenever "Rocky" speaks.[citation needed]
Reception
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Writing for The New York Times, sci-fi author Alec Nevala-Lee wrote "For readers who can forgive its shortcomings, the result is an engaging space odyssey."[6] Kirkus Reviews gave the book a starred review, describing it as "An unforgettable story of survival and the power of friendship—nothing short of a science-fiction masterwork."[7]
In writing her review for The Washington Post, SFWA president and science fiction writer Mary Robinette Kowal states that the book has several appealing qualities, such as Grace's infectious enthusiasm for science. However, Kowal writes that the problems Grace encounters could have been avoided with common sense and the use of checklists, which are widely used in spaceflight to reduce human error.[8]
A reviewer for Locus Magazine wrote, "Project Hail Mary, however, isn’t a simple rehash of The Martian. Instead, it’s a celebration of Weir’s voice... Weir’s jaunty blend of science and fiction in Project Hail Mary is a return to the work that got him where he is."[9] The reviewer for The Boston Globe wrote that "Project Hail Mary is still a suspenseful space yarn that zigs and zags — sometimes literally — in ingenious directions."[10]
Project Hail Mary debuted at number three on The New York Times Best Seller list for Combined Print & E-Book Fiction in May 2021.[11] By August 2021, the book had been on the NYT list for nine weeks.[12] Project Hail Mary additionally achieved the #1 spot on the New York Times Audio Fiction Best Seller List for three weeks in February 2022.[13][14]
The novel debuted at number two on the Los Angeles Times SoCal Bestsellers for Hardcover Fiction[15] and number 6 on The Wall Street Journal Bestselling Books List for Hardcover Fiction[16] during the same month. The book was still on the L.A. Times list in mid-August.[17]
In August 2021, Project Hail Mary debuted at number one on the Locus Bestsellers list for hardcovers[18] while remaining at the top position for five consecutive months[19] before dropping to a lower position while still remaining on the list for 11 consecutive months by June 2022.[20]
Bill Gates and Barack Obama added the book to their respective 2021 book recommendations.[21][22]
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Awards and nominations
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Film adaptation
Weir sold the book's film adaptation rights to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in early 2020 for $3 million.[31] Ryan Gosling signed on to star in and produce the project in March 2020, with Phil Lord and Christopher Miller signing on to direct the film in May and Drew Goddard, who previously adapted Weir's debut novel The Martian into a film, signing on to write the screenplay in July.[3][32][31] In May 2023, it was revealed the film would begin production in early 2024 in the United Kingdom.[33] In April 2024, Amazon MGM Studios, who acquired MGM in 2022,[34] announced a possible 2026 release window for the film.[35] Later that month, a release date of March 20, 2026, was set.[36] At the time of the announcement, the list of people who are associated with this film as producers included Amy Pascal, Gosling, Lord, Miller, Aditya Sood, Rachel O’Connor and Weir.[36] Sandra Hüller was added to the cast as Eva Stratt in May 2024.[37]
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References
External links
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