The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex is not your typical science fiction novel. Sure, it does have some mind-boggling gizmos and gadgets, and your typical alien invasion, but it also has humor, an overload of alien cuteness, a few weird but funny wordplay jokes on an even weirder alien race, and much more that makes it stand out way more than you’d expect it to. The True Meaning of Smekday is a uniquely mind-bending, witty and hilarious novel centered around 11-year-old Gratuity Tucci’s essay about the time alien races invaded the United States and what it meant to her. The story starts out on Moving Day, the day when the Boov, an alien race trying to find a home for themselves, decides to put the whole population of America within one state, Florida. The protagonist, Gratuity, along with her pet cat called Pig decide to embark on a quest to find her mother, who had gone missing the same morning. After hiding from the Boov spaceships in a convenience store, she meets J.Lo, a quirky yet lovable Boov who tells her he accidentally sent a radio transmission of their location to another enemy alien race called the Gorg, who destroyed every planet they could get their hands on. Gratuity reluctantly teams up with J.Lo, who proves to be very resourceful when he wants to be. Together, their adventure to find Gratuity’s mother takes them across the country where they meet many friends and foes alike, visit many places to hide from the Gorg, and use many futuristic devices, like Slushious, Gratuity’s family van which J.Lo modifies to float in the air, and a cloning device which J.Lo used to refill the petrol in Slushious. Above all, though, the growing bond between girl and Boov is extremely heartwarming and special, and I personally enjoyed reading about the two of them learning and trying to experience each other’s culture and lifestyle. This book is special mainly because it has a trait which seldom many books have; you can’t summarize the whole story without revealing too much, like after Gratuity and J.Lo find ”mimom”, the story takes an even bigger plot twist. It seems as though all the adventures the two of them undergo for 300 pages seem to have nothing on what happens next. Another example is seen in the very beginning of the book, the title. What is the true meaning of Smekday? I also like the fact that the author has made all the characters (including the non-humans!) in a very humane way, unlike many science-fiction novels, where most scenes are exaggerated. Debut novelist Adam Rex was originally known for his picture books like ‘Frankenstein makes a Sandwich’, and in this full-fledged novel, his small drawings and comics like Smektastic Voyage, and guide to the Nimrog add little comedic touches which push this book to the next level. This book is definitely worth reading, and its entertaining narration, funny and easily relatable characters and one-of-a-kind plot will definitely make you want and reread and relive Gratuity and J.Lo’s world of adventures again and again. The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex. Disney-Hyperion, 2009. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process!
Book Reviews
Chirp, Reviewed by Mia, 13
Kate Messner’s new book Chirp is a captivating story of a cricket farm mystery, summer camp fun, and ultimately, one girl’s journey of finding the confidence to speak up. Mia is a girl who just wants to forget her past. Luckily, she has plenty of new things to distract her ever since she moved to be near her grandmother’s farm in Vermont. Mia’s grandmother is trying to convince the world that bugs can be tasty food. But Green Mountain Cricket Farm is struggling and not only because business is slow. Mia’s grandmother believes someone is deliberately trying to sabotage her cricket farm. Could her grandmother be right? Though Mia’s parents blame Gram’s suspicions on her recent stroke, Mia is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. Supported by her new friends from summer camp, Mia taps into her detective side to find out the truth about Gram’s farm. But Chirp isn’t just cricket farms and mysteries. It’s also a story of Mia coming to terms with her own secret. Since her time as a gymnast back in Boston, Mia has been keeping a painful secret that Messner masterfully hints at throughout the story. Near the end, Mia relives the memories and we learn what she has been struggling with the entire time. I cheered when Mia was inspired by another female to speak up and come to terms with the secret. Mia’s character development and the overarching meaning of the book were elements I enjoyed. I really loved watching Mia grow and not just because she shares my name. When we first meet Mia, she is underconfident, shy, and hurting from her big secret. As the story progresses, Mia goes through a metamorphosis, slowly coming out of her cocoon. She makes new friends, becomes stronger at Warrior Camp, and makes business plans at her local Maker Space camp. I loved watching Mia grow from a timid little caterpillar into a bold and confident butterfly. The next thing that really stood out was how the cricket farm setting contributed to the greater meaning in Chirp. I learned for the first time while reading Chirp is that male crickets chirp while female crickets do not. This was so interesting and it tied into Mia’s struggles as a girl in our current society. Chirp’s message to harness your voice to make change was empowering and thoughtful. It was so clever of Messner to juxtapose the message of the book with cricket biology. Although Chirp was a great book I think that certain elements were overly simplified. The mystery element of the story was unrealistic and never helped Mia’s character development. And I didn’t like how the dialogue and other characters were sometimes simplified for the message to come across. Mia was about my age but acted much younger. Finally, there was an absence of positive male characters in the story. Chirp had great female friendships and strong female leaders, but the closest we come to a “good” male character was Mia’s father. It’s important that boys have role models that are also respectful and supportive of women. I think it would’ve been better if Messner included some male characters who were supportive of the book’s feminist message. Aside from the minor flaws, I thoroughly enjoyed Chirp. The valuable lessons of the story make it suitable for anyone, although I would especially recommend it to girls who are lacking confidence. Mia’s journey will empower you to be confident and speak up. Chirp by Kate Messner. Bloomsbury Publishing PLC, 2020. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process!
The Long Winter, Reviewed by Chloe, 9
I was in my room reading and re-reading some boring history books for like, the hundredth time, when my mom, holding a stack of classic books, came in and said, “You need to read some classic literature.” I groaned. I knew that classic literature in my mom’s eyes was her having me read to my brother (besides, usually classic books are really hard to understand.) She gave me half the books and she said, “Here, these are for you, and these are for your brother.” So I took off the first book I saw and it was the first book of the Little House series. Soon I was deeply absorbed in how life was like about 100 years ago. It was amazing. For the next few weeks I could be seen with the book anytime anywhere. Once I was done, I was like, I want some more of these books, so I reread them, then reread them again. My favorite one of the books is The Long Winter. Set about 100 years ago, The Long Winter is about Laura Ingalls and her family, as they survive a series of blizzards that last for several months. They are cold, hungry and tired, tired of brown bread, tired of grinding the wheat. When the town runs low on food and fuel, Almonzo Wilder understands what must be done, even his life is at a risk. So he and Cap Garland go after some wheat that was rumored to be grown southeast of the town of De Smet. The Ingalls family continues to have hope, hope that somehow, sometime the blizzards will end. Will Laura Ingalls and her family survive the long winter? Will Almonzo and Cap Garland somehow survive the long drive and beat a blizzard? Even through all the challenges, Laura has hope, hope that someday that the blizzard will end. And Almonzo has courage, and with that little bit of courage and a touch of bravery, he goes after that wheat, with his companion, Cap Garland. This book teaches us all a lesson important to life, it is to never give up, always have hope, because there always is hope. It also makes me think how lucky we are to live in such an era. I also feel lucky that we have air conditioning, snowplows, and refrigerators. In conclusion, I think that we should learn from this book to always have courage, and to always have hope. This is what makes The Long Winter unique, the feeling that you have to read on, because you want to know what happens next, and the feeling that says, Wow, that is true courage. The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Harper Collins, 2019. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process!
