little green men by christopher buckley

rating:

67%

synopsis:

this is the story of a resolute right-wing television news commentator who is ‘abducted by aliens’ twice. as one might expect, he responds to the first abduction with tight-lipped denial, but responds to the second abduction with unbridled acceptance. the protagonist then becomes willing to reduce his celebrity life to rubble to find the truth about alien abductions. This leads into part 2, where the author explores the bureaucratic red flags that are raised when a renowned media figure tries to spread ‘fantastic’ ideas to the public and how the protagonist deals with them in his quest for honest answers.

positive:

i feel that this author did well covering the intricacies of the subject, in that, there are only a few inconsistencies in the plot. the main character had some likable personality traits hidden beneath his abrasive exterior, and the rest of the cast supplemented the story well. parts of the book are undeniably well-written; enough to keep the reader engaged throughout. The author had plenty of fun with the subject matter, which is important for both the reader and the author alike.

negative:

the punchlines of most of the jokes become predictable and stale by part 2. never did I feel that the author allowed himself to follow the train of thought that aliens could actually exist, and the protagonist reflected it; the main character’s stance seemed veiled by superficiality. overall, I felt that the plot was unsatisfying. most of the characters lacked spontaneity (and most other components of the "human element") and seemed more like placeholders to keep the plot in motion than personalities to which the reader could identify.

all in all:

aside from some minor twists, this book is exactly what I thought it would be. i’m really not sure why I continued reading it. mostly, I wanted to know what would happen if someone like bill o’reilly was ‘raped by aliens’, i guess. now that i’ve said that out loud, i think i might be a twisted son of a bitch.

vocabulary:

mammon, n
the personification of wealth and avarice as an evil spirit; synonym: avarice

quotation:

“doesn’t anyone have imagination enough not to believe in something?”

see also: indian home rule by mahatma gandhi

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