The characters are exceptionally well developed, as is the growing interrelationship between the Quozl and Earthlings, and the dangers such interactions can pose.
This is definitely a case of "do not judge the book by its cover". Sadly the cover art does not do the depth of this book justice, as it weaves a complex society into its integration on Earth with great skill and poise that belies the "cartoony" art. Again, it fits the mood but why is it there? Why does it end on this note? What is it supposed to show? Because the intent is not obvious or in any way insightful, the contempt leaves a sour taste in the mouth.ĭid I enjoy it? Yes in that it’s a well-crafted alien species. The ambiguous ending reinforces this deduction. The undercurrent is that human beings deserve this scorn and it serves us right to be peacefully subjugated.īut is it a stinging social commentary delivered with indifference by an alien race rightfully looking down their noses at us? Is it supposed to be a lighthearted spoof, as suggested by the silly flip-a-mation illustrations? Or is this an alien invasion story, showing a realistic method by which aliens would dominate mankind? At any given page it can feel like any of the three, but ultimately it is disdainful. It is appropriate for the alien perspective, but if it’s supposed to be funny, ironic or insightful, it doesn’t come across as such. Perhaps it’s the mood of this book that keeps it from being great. I must’ve missed how the ending ties in with the rest of the story, as it feels uncalled for. I wonder if it’s really crafted for the Quozl or if the author just isn’t good at dialogue and this is what we ended up with. But the book itself is narrated this way and the humans talk with Quozl-like eloquence as well. It works for the Quozl race, as it is part of their culture to speak with dodgy eloquence. (view spoiler) The dialogue is clumsy and overly wordy. The transition from encounter to integration is stupid, and it’s impossible to enjoy the story once it finally gets started because it really is a lousy twist. Which means two-thirds of the book is setup. Really, the most interesting part is integration, and it takes up less than a third of the page count. So what’s wrong with the book? Part of the reason is it dwells a lot on unnecessary details.
#Quozl alan dean foster movie#
Kinda like the movie Contact: we don’t want to believe we’d react this way yet at the same time we all know we would. I suspect it’s supposed to be funny, but it actually comes across as sardonic. It’s a bitter taste of reality, and in spite of branching from an absurd climax it is realistic.
#Quozl alan dean foster how to#
TV, press interviews, cartoons, advertising campaigns, talk shows-now that’s how to make humans comfortable with aliens. Would we really go to government officials to make the general population comfortable with aliens living on Earth? No, the best way is to channel the introduction through the media. Ignoring the climax, integration contains the most realistic method of introducing an alien race to the world.
All quite appropriate to establishing their mindset. Foster does a wonderful job creating this alien race, complete with their grooming, social and sexual practices. The events in landing and encounter are interesting enough. Would we really go to government Divide it into three parts for easy reference: the landing, the encounter, and integration. Divide it into three parts for easy reference: the landing, the encounter, and integration.
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