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paperbackd 's review for:
See You in the Cosmos
by Jack Cheng
Alex Petroski loves space and rockets. All he wants is to launch his golden iPod into space the way Carl Sagan launched his Golden Record on the Voyager spacecraft in 1977. From Colorado to New Mexico, Las Vegas to L.A., Alex records a journey on his iPod to show other lifeforms what life on earth, his earth, is like.
As soon as I heard about this book, I was intrigued. I loved the concept of a middle-grade novel introducing child readers to the wonders of the universe, and the idea of life beyond Earth. Unfortunately, while Cheng does do an excellent job of instilling that sense of awe in his readers, I was disappointed by the little details of Alex’s story.
See You in the Cosmos wasn’t badly written, but as someone who works with children of all ages Alex’s voice didn’t feel authentic to me for several reasons. Firstly, Alex seemed much, much younger than eleven. Secondly, he didn’t even sound like a real child - instead, he sounded like an adult attempting to write from the perspective of a child. I think adults who read kidlit will enjoy reading Alex’s endless monologue, but I doubt many child readers will be able to identify with him.
Cheng’s portrayal of a child suffering from neglect also didn’t ring true. Neglected children often take on the role of caretaker for their parents, and feel compelled to protect them by lying about the lack of care they receive at home. But although Alex acts as his mother’s caretaker, he is seemingly oblivious of the fact that his home situation isn’t normal, and immediately reveals the extent of his mother’s abuse to all the adults he meets. To me, this came across as a very simplistic and misinformed portrayal of neglect. I’m also tired of the abusive-character-is-secretly-mentally-ill trope. It’s overused and usually distasteful.
Nevertheless, a few things kept me reading See You in the Cosmos. Alex’s enthusiasm for science was wonderful, as was his obsession with the late great Carl Sagan. I also liked that the book was written in the style of voice recordings - and not just any voice recording, but a recording intended to be listened to be alien life forms.
Ultimately, I don’t recommend See You in the Cosmos, but I liked many of the ideas behind this book and I’m open to reading more from Cheng in the future.
Many thanks to Puffin Books for providing a copy of See You in the Cosmos. The opinions expressed in this review are my own. See You in the Cosmos will be released on February 28th in the U.S. and March 2nd in the U.K.
Publisher: Puffin Books
Rating: 2 stars | ★★✰✰✰
Review cross-posted to Paperback'd Reviews
As soon as I heard about this book, I was intrigued. I loved the concept of a middle-grade novel introducing child readers to the wonders of the universe, and the idea of life beyond Earth. Unfortunately, while Cheng does do an excellent job of instilling that sense of awe in his readers, I was disappointed by the little details of Alex’s story.
See You in the Cosmos wasn’t badly written, but as someone who works with children of all ages Alex’s voice didn’t feel authentic to me for several reasons. Firstly, Alex seemed much, much younger than eleven. Secondly, he didn’t even sound like a real child - instead, he sounded like an adult attempting to write from the perspective of a child. I think adults who read kidlit will enjoy reading Alex’s endless monologue, but I doubt many child readers will be able to identify with him.
Cheng’s portrayal of a child suffering from neglect also didn’t ring true. Neglected children often take on the role of caretaker for their parents, and feel compelled to protect them by lying about the lack of care they receive at home. But although Alex acts as his mother’s caretaker, he is seemingly oblivious of the fact that his home situation isn’t normal, and immediately reveals the extent of his mother’s abuse to all the adults he meets. To me, this came across as a very simplistic and misinformed portrayal of neglect. I’m also tired of the abusive-character-is-secretly-mentally-ill trope. It’s overused and usually distasteful.
Nevertheless, a few things kept me reading See You in the Cosmos. Alex’s enthusiasm for science was wonderful, as was his obsession with the late great Carl Sagan. I also liked that the book was written in the style of voice recordings - and not just any voice recording, but a recording intended to be listened to be alien life forms.
Ultimately, I don’t recommend See You in the Cosmos, but I liked many of the ideas behind this book and I’m open to reading more from Cheng in the future.
Many thanks to Puffin Books for providing a copy of See You in the Cosmos. The opinions expressed in this review are my own. See You in the Cosmos will be released on February 28th in the U.S. and March 2nd in the U.K.
Publisher: Puffin Books
Rating: 2 stars | ★★✰✰✰
Review cross-posted to Paperback'd Reviews