Was Project Hail Mary amazing, or have I not read anything good for a while?

I just finished reading Project Hail Mary a couple weeks ago, and I’m still not over it. I was extremely emotional when it ended, and I can’t seem to explain why. I know of several reasons why I enjoyed it, but can’t seem to describe what exactly makes it stand out from other books I have read.

I loved the fact that the book didn’t treat us like idiots, and fed us with only the minimum scientific knowledge to understand the concepts Ryland used throughout the story. I, myself am an engineering student, so I liked seeing all these mechanical concepts explained throughout, but I want to know if anyone struggled with following it, and if it affected their enjoyment of the book whatsoever? I believe it to be an accessory, something the reader could choose to believe rather than understand and move on, but I thoroughly enjoyed understanding.

Rocky is the goat. I remember almost stopping the book during the spinout and the incident, the image of a coiled up spider in my head. I couldn’t though, and the pure joy I felt at “hearing” the taps later on was something else. Did anyone think it was expected or cliche for Rocky to be brought back?

I did want to see Stratt and Ryland interact, but we know that’s not possible now. And I’m aware she was right because they would’ve failed if not for what she did. And she was clearly prepared for any consequences for any crimes she might have committed. Still would have been fun to see what Ryland had to say to her.

The part that got me emotional was ending it with the classroom on Erid, with the decorated classroom and the kids who can’t see. Almost forgot about Ryland and his students. They did mention his teaching career a lot, but that classroom not too many times. But it did feel like his thoughts throughout the story were teaching us everything that he was learning as we went on.

I would love to know what other people think about all this. I have read other discussions on the same book, and I can’t help being happy seeing the ones who admired it. But were there parts you found boring or predictable? Or parts you had to force yourself to read? I was stuck to the book for 3 days straight. And now I can’t help comparing books I’m reading right now to the way PHM kept me hooked.