From Publishers Weekly
A boy has a dreamlike encounter with a wise child who has fallen to earth from a spaceship in Gaarder's (Sophie's World) limp imitation of Saint-Exupery's The Little Prince. The page layout directly recalls that classic, and the illustrations even feature the same small planet and very similar-looking characters. The setup promisingly suggests the book is about a child who must reimagine his position in the world because of the arrival of a new sibling. As Joe waits alone at home for his parents to return from the hospital with a baby, he meets Mika, a boylike alien who teaches Joe that there are worldviews other than his own. Their conversations, however, are unfocused and somehow never urgent, only occasionally touching on issues related to Joe's becoming a big brother. They discuss the process of evolution, whether animals can think, how babies are born, the five senses, the existence of God, the structure of time, and the concept of meeting together on a mountaintop when each one lives in a metaphorical valley. Repeatedly, Gaarder reminds readers that certain ideas are important: "What Mika had said seemed to give a whole new meaning to everything we'd been talking about." Overall, a tepid exercise. Ages 7-12.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 3-4-Eight-year-old Joe is waiting alone at home for the birth of his sibling when he sees something fall from the sky. It's Mika, from the planet Eljo, hanging by the seat of his pants in Joe's apple tree. During the first meeting, the two explore the thought-provoking concept of when down becomes up and vice versa. This conversation begins a fast friendship for these two creatures from different worlds who discover they have much in common, and Joe teaches Mika all about planet Earth. The importance of questioning everything, from what's a pancake to religious beliefs, makes this gentle story fun to read as well as eye-opening. Gaarder shows how explaining what we take for granted to someone who's never experienced it can be exhilarating and fulfilling. The fact that Mika disappears when Joe's brother is born may be predictable to older readers, but doesn't diminish the magic of the book, nor does the obvious fact that Mika is in truth an alien version of the long-awaited baby brother. The story is written in the form of a letter to a child from her uncle, who was the same age as Camilla when his brother was born. Simple line drawings help keep the tone light and accessible in spite of the often deep discussions. Slow readers may find the philosophizing cumbersome and confusing, but the main themes of friendship, sibling love, and the ability to question and think on one's own are so clear and easy to understand that many children will enjoy this story.
Linda Bindner, formerly at Athens Clarke County Library, GA
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Linda Bindner, formerly at Athens Clarke County Library, GA
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
