The Rudest Alien on Earth - Hardcover

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Rezensionen

Grade 4-7-Oluu is a capricious, shape-shifting alien sent to Earth on a fact-finding mission. She has rules to follow-keep your identity secret, don't get attached to your subjects, check in daily, and so on. She ignores them all, befriending humans and going incommunicado for days on end. The narrative follows a familiar "fish-out-of-water" formula, complete with misunderstandings that are more troubling than hilarious, all leading up to the moment when Oluu comes to love her young companions and chooses to assume human form permanently so that she can start over as an earthling. Thematically, the story invites readers to cast a critical gaze on humanity. Unfortunately, the dialogue is spotty and the characterization is weak. Also, too much of Conly's plot is implausible at best and downright facile at worst. "You're a shape shifter! And you've come from another planet, to visit us!" young Jack aptly concludes after a notably brief one-sided exchange with Oluu, who is at that time a cat. Later, he tells a strange old lady that he and his cat are "on our way to join the circus. If you'll give us food, we'll show you awesome stunts." The notion that Jack would panhandle from a rumpled old woman leaning out of a run-down shack is a stretch, and contemporary kids do not run away to the circus any more than they fasten their shoes with buttonhooks.
Catherine Threadgill, Charleston County Public Library, SC
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Oluu, an independent-minded, impulsive young alien, lands on a Vermont farm and, in very short order, breaks every rule established by the Wise Ones in her galaxy. Rather than "wait and watch," for example, the invisible Oluu decides to assume the shape of the border collie she spies, which belongs to 10-year-old Molly's family. Molly, of course, is amazed when the new dog mimics her speech and eventually begins communicating with her in English. When the dog incarnation gets Oluu into trouble, she changes into a bird; subsequent identities include a fly, pony, cat, etc. Violating more rules ("Tell no one"; "Do not under any circumstances form an attachment to the subject matter"), Oluu reveals her identity and befriends not only Molly but her lonely, brainy friend Jack, who shares Oluu's math prowess. Though some aspects of Conly's (Crazy Lady!) plot may spark readers' imagination especially as Molly and Jack try to explain to their new pal such concepts as imagination, holidays and computers the narrative grows somewhat sluggish and the fantasy elements are underdeveloped. The explanation for Oluu's "mission," for example, feels skimpy, while the denouement may disappoint the audience. Ages 10-14.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 6-8. An alien named Oluu comes to Earth as a sort of intergalactic anthropologist, assigned to observe the native creatures. She's aided in her mission by her ability to take the shape of any animal she wants. Although she is supposed to approach her assignment with clinical detachment, Oluu finds that she is too lonely and curious to merely observe, and she breaks the rules and befriends two farm kids in rural Vermont. The first part of the book centers on Oluu's humorous attempts to adapt to the world. As the novel progresses, however, it takes on a weightier focus, becoming a meditation on what it means to be human and to live with human imperfections. At the novel's end, Oluu is faced with a choice of returning to her home planet or staying on Earth. Conly effectively alternates the points of view between the children and Oluu in short chapters that keep the story moving at a quick pace, but she throws in plenty of thought-provoking issues that enhance the novel's heft and appeal. Todd Morning
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