Scan barcode
A review by manwithanagenda
My Teacher Flunked the Planet by Bruce Coville
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Who does Bruce Coville think he is? I remembered there being some heavy stuff in this book, but I completely forgot about that ending. The other 'My Teacher' books go into some deep waters with troubled homes, abuse begetting abuse, and the value of strong music programs in our schools, but Coville goes all-out here.
Remember those old Sci-Fi movies and episodes of the Twilight Zone or the Outer Limits where the Earth was held hostage by aliens? Some smug being in a silver jumpsuit or robe would lecture the assembled group of humans about humanity's lust for war and willful neglect of the starving and the poor, etc. The case against was (and is) pretty solid from that perspective. Death and famine versus art and non-lethal sciences. Humanity always gets saved though by some last-minute act of love or forgiveness. Aw, he forgives his daddy, I guess we won't blow up your planet after all. What a crock, right?
Coville avoids that, what he does do though just seems like the terrifying end of a book like 'Childhood's End' given a positive spin. I'm really not too psyched about humanity being screwed up because it was a malfunctioning hive-mind. But that's going to be fixed real soon kids. Sleep tight!
Creepy as those thoughts are I must respect Coville for what he did with this series. He didn't flinch from showing some really ugly truths to an audience that's traditionally overprotected.
And Coville did this with some really fresh takes on the juvenile sci-fi genre. Sure, there is hardly any science in this fiction at all, and the idea that human science has stagnated since the mass introduction of televisions is truly absurd, but what separates a good children's author from the rest is their ability to stimulate thought while entertaining. 'My Teacher Flunked the Planet' certainly did that for me when I first read it.
My Teacher is an Alien
Previous: 'My Teacher Glows in the Dark'
Remember those old Sci-Fi movies and episodes of the Twilight Zone or the Outer Limits where the Earth was held hostage by aliens? Some smug being in a silver jumpsuit or robe would lecture the assembled group of humans about humanity's lust for war and willful neglect of the starving and the poor, etc. The case against was (and is) pretty solid from that perspective. Death and famine versus art and non-lethal sciences. Humanity always gets saved though by some last-minute act of love or forgiveness. Aw, he forgives his daddy, I guess we won't blow up your planet after all. What a crock, right?
Coville avoids that, what he does do though just seems like the terrifying end of a book like 'Childhood's End' given a positive spin. I'm really not too psyched about humanity being screwed up because it was a malfunctioning hive-mind. But that's going to be fixed real soon kids. Sleep tight!
Creepy as those thoughts are I must respect Coville for what he did with this series. He didn't flinch from showing some really ugly truths to an audience that's traditionally overprotected.
And Coville did this with some really fresh takes on the juvenile sci-fi genre. Sure, there is hardly any science in this fiction at all, and the idea that human science has stagnated since the mass introduction of televisions is truly absurd, but what separates a good children's author from the rest is their ability to stimulate thought while entertaining. 'My Teacher Flunked the Planet' certainly did that for me when I first read it.
My Teacher is an Alien
Previous: 'My Teacher Glows in the Dark'