There's an Alien in Your Book

March 15, 2020
Earth friends are easy to make for this roly-poly, extraterrestrial cutie. Fletcher pens the fourth in his interactive book series, this time invading his pages with a crash-landed ET. At first readers are encouraged to tell the space being to shove off, but pretty quickly it becomes clear that it's just too adorable to send away like that. Mostly yellow, it looks like nothing more than a smiley face with antennae, its oversized head occupying more volume than its trunk, arms, legs, and tail combined. The undersides of its hands, feet, and tail are bright green. Repairing its damaged spaceship is out of the question, and attempts to launch it into space by having readers bounce, turn, and lift the book are fruitless. Does it belong here? Well, when readers stop to consider all the creatures that live on this planet (including a cameo by the author in the art), we can recognize that "we're all weird and wonderful." So the alien stays and even makes a friend with the star of There's a Monster in Your Book (2017). The story makes mild overtures toward the idea of embracing our differences no matter our appearance, but that's all superseded by the interactive elements. By now the series is treading familiar ground, but fans will find the combination of cute creatures and gentle moralizing a comfort. Not exactly out of this world but a pleaser just the same. (Picture book. 3-6)

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June 1, 2020

PreS-K-An alien has crash landed into this title. In the tradition of interactive read-alouds like Herv� Tullet's Press Here comes this follow-up to There's a Monster in Your Book and There's a Dragon in Your Book by British duo Fletcher and Abbott. Following many of the same prompts as in the previous books, readers are asked to blow on a page, jiggle the book, and make loud noises, all to help the poor alien get back into space. Digital illustrations aim to evoke a three-dimensional effect, emulating torn paper and smoke in several of the spreads. The cute, but sticky, big-eyed Alien, is fun to follow, and Monster makes an appearance helping Alien get his spaceship fixed and back in flight. The text uses various fonts and sizes, emphasizing actions for the readers to take, and the cues are clear for when the book must turned upside down, where to focus, and when and how to turn the page. VERDICT Though not original in concept or execution, this title will make for a fun story hour or one-on-one reading.-Danielle Jones, Multnomah County Lib., OR

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