Aliens on Vacation

Gr 5—8—Dave, nicknamed Scrub, is sent from his home in Florida to spend the summer with his estranged grandmother who runs the Intergalactic Inn in Washington. His boring vacation turns quite interesting when he's enlisted to help care for the alien guests. Scrub is torn between helping his grandmother, outwitting a suspicious sheriff, and trying to fit in with the other teens in town. It's hard to find good, fresh middle school science fiction, and what makes Clete Barrett Smith's story (Hyperion, 2011) so endearing is his focus on the theme of tolerance, a timely subject with the new anti-bullying legislation. Tweens will easily relate to Scrub who longs for adult attention and wants to feel needed and fit in with his peers. Little bits of humor, such as the banter between Scrub and Amy, his summer crush, add interest. Joshua Swanson brings to life a host of characters, adding just the right accent and intonation to make all of them believable but not over-the-top.—Cynthia Grabke, Coakley Middle School, Norwood, MA