mjfmjfmjf's review against another edition
2.0
Humor is tricky. Once you don't think a funny book is funny, there isn't necessarily anything else left. It's books like this that make we wonder if I will appreciate [b:The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy|11|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #1)|Douglas Adams|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327656754s/11.jpg|3078186] and its followups on a re-read. I'd like to believe that Hitchhiker is an always-funny. This book was basically an intellectual joke. It made references to times and places that I didn't care about. And joked about philosophical things that I didn't care about. It had no straightforward plot and the characters were literally interchangeable. The conceit of the book was that flying saucers landed and it was just like it was talked about in the 50's in the ufo community. And it just didn't matter. It kind of reminded me of Steve Martin's joke about going to heaven and finding pearly gates. Which wasn't actually one of his funnier jokes. This though was a bunch of drek. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZfmoAWaszs
urlphantomhive's review against another edition
2.0
Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com
To start with the good: It is unlike any other alien invasion books I've ever come across. It provides an answer to the question which bother us all: what if the discovery of aliens showed that they were nothing but completely underwhelming, with their jumpsuits and new age-y religion.
The bad: I had a constant feeling when I was reading this that it was trying to convey something to me, but I couldn't find out what. It is partly a criticism on society I suppose, but I didn't think it was a particular strong one.
The ugly: I was bored. A lot. Part of the book is really confusing, and while I think that's intentional, it made that I could never get invested in the story. Basically, I was counting the percentages I still had to read on my Kindle.
All in all, an interesting concept, but its execution didn't work for me.
Thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
To start with the good: It is unlike any other alien invasion books I've ever come across. It provides an answer to the question which bother us all: what if the discovery of aliens showed that they were nothing but completely underwhelming, with their jumpsuits and new age-y religion.
The bad: I had a constant feeling when I was reading this that it was trying to convey something to me, but I couldn't find out what. It is partly a criticism on society I suppose, but I didn't think it was a particular strong one.
The ugly: I was bored. A lot. Part of the book is really confusing, and while I think that's intentional, it made that I could never get invested in the story. Basically, I was counting the percentages I still had to read on my Kindle.
All in all, an interesting concept, but its execution didn't work for me.
Thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
tregina's review against another edition
3.0
This was...interesting. I actually had no idea what I was going to rate this when I finished it, because I sort of stared at the book (or pixels, as it were) and thought, okay, so that happened. But it stuck with me, and while I virtually guarantee you that I didn't get everything (perhaps warranting a second read, though I'm not sure that would help), it's both entertaining and raises a lot of interesting questions. Ones that it may or may not answer, I haven't entirely sorted that out yet....
djwudi's review against another edition
2.0
I just couldn't get in to this one. I can see that there are some interesting ideas here and there around identity, but…it was odd in ways that just didn't resonate with me. I'm not sure I'd say I thought it was _bad_, just that there was no connection for me at all.
vylotte's review against another edition
3.0
There are books that are easy to fall into, the story flows and carries a reader away. And then there are those that take a lot of concentration, the story lies as much in the craft of the sentences than the words themselves. "After the Saucers Landed" is one such story.
The aliens have arrived, and they are a 1950s stereotype, complete with silver saucers filled with white plastic modular furniture. But along with the missing time and sparkly jumpsuits, hiding behind the happy crappy scientology-esque enlightenment lies some disquieting revelations about personality, identity and the future of the human race.
I must admit I had a hard time getting into this book, I don't like struggling to make sense of the plot, or even a scene. But I'm glad I persevered, there were some interesting nuggets to be found within about identity, memory and humanity.
I read this because it's nominated for the 2015 Philip K Dick awards. It falls well within the parameters and actually felt a lot like the spirit of PKD, not just looking forward, but off to the side and skewed a bit.
The aliens have arrived, and they are a 1950s stereotype, complete with silver saucers filled with white plastic modular furniture. But along with the missing time and sparkly jumpsuits, hiding behind the happy crappy scientology-esque enlightenment lies some disquieting revelations about personality, identity and the future of the human race.
I must admit I had a hard time getting into this book, I don't like struggling to make sense of the plot, or even a scene. But I'm glad I persevered, there were some interesting nuggets to be found within about identity, memory and humanity.
I read this because it's nominated for the 2015 Philip K Dick awards. It falls well within the parameters and actually felt a lot like the spirit of PKD, not just looking forward, but off to the side and skewed a bit.
octoberdad's review
1.0
Okay, I'm officially abandoning this one (though still marking it as "read" since I had to put up with it for so long).
I had high hopes for the story, but it just didn't grab me. The idea of being invaded by underwhelming aliens with 70s style is possibly a good one, and it might have been presented in an interesting way. It just didn't happen in this book. It's too slow to get to the point, and it's deliberately confusing in a way that doesn't really add to the story at all. Also, I have simply no motivation to care about the whiney, self-absorbed protagonist. In short, there's not much I can say about this book that I liked.
I wish I could've liked it. I wanted to like it. But I didn't.
I had high hopes for the story, but it just didn't grab me. The idea of being invaded by underwhelming aliens with 70s style is possibly a good one, and it might have been presented in an interesting way. It just didn't happen in this book. It's too slow to get to the point, and it's deliberately confusing in a way that doesn't really add to the story at all. Also, I have simply no motivation to care about the whiney, self-absorbed protagonist. In short, there's not much I can say about this book that I liked.
I wish I could've liked it. I wanted to like it. But I didn't.
tregina's review
3.0
This was...interesting. I actually had no idea what I was going to rate this when I finished it, because I sort of stared at the book (or pixels, as it were) and thought, okay, so that happened. But it stuck with me, and while I virtually guarantee you that I didn't get everything (perhaps warranting a second read, though I'm not sure that would help), it's both entertaining and raises a lot of interesting questions. Ones that it may or may not answer, I haven't entirely sorted that out yet....
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