Book Review: The True Meaning of Smekday
The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex
The True Meaning of Smekday is the novel that the movie Home was based off of. Not only does this story have incredible, humorous writing, it’s also filled with detailed and realistic drawings, along with comic strips! I love this novel because unlike its movie adaptation, it’s a much more humorous and extended version of the story, where the lore of the main alien species is more in-depth. Despite its movie adaptation, the original story is less tailored for young children. What I especially enjoy about this book is how you get to watch the flourishing friendship between a human girl and a “Boov” develop over the course of the story, and that the main alien and human characters find themselves having many “human” conversations. They talk about how different their lives are, their cultures, and their ways of perceiving the same experience. This story is extremely creative– the author put in a great deal of effort determining how realistically an advanced alien species would view our traditions as human. Even if you aren’t a fan of the sci-fi genre, it’s overall a very entertaining, hilarious, and engaging story!
Reviewed by Teen Volunteer, 11/16/24.