On Earth as It Is on Television

"I was introduced to Douglas Adams at nerd camp when I was twelve. He blew my mind. His writing is so funny and there are moments of real heart, but it’s also just a good time and doesn’t take itself too seriously. This book is the closest to Douglas Adams I’ve read in a long time. It intentionally leans into the nostalgia of campy sci-fi and combines that with really beautiful language and captivating storytelling. It comes together as an interesting combination of what I would characterize as speculative literary fiction and straight-up science fiction. It’s hilarious, moving, and very well done. The story is set in today’s world. Aliens arrive in giant ships that hover over all the major cities for a couple of days, and then they leave. These events plunge the whole world into an existential crisis, like: ‘Were we not cool enough to be invited to that party?’ It has an ensemble cast, and the story follows each character as they deal with the aftermath of the departure. There are a lot of cats in it, some of who can now communicate telepathically!"