Smek for President!

February 9, 2015
Having saved the world in The True Meaning of Smekday (2007), Tip Tucci and her alien sidekick, J.Lo, decide to seek adventure on the new homeworld of the extraterrestrial Boov, located on a moon of Saturn. Upon their arrival on New Boovworld, Tip and J.Lo learn that the Boov are hosting their first democratic election and quickly get embroiled in the race for the Boov Oval Office. Captain Smek faces off against the human Dan Landry, who took credit for Tip and J.Loâs world-saving plot from the previous book. Rexâs humorous wordplay and insightful satire remain on full display (on the whole enterprise of elections, J.Lo observes, âI have been watching the Americans. You like to think you decide things, but you only ever decide not to change. Because you are afrightened of change. You are the man who likes a big menu but always orders hamburgersâ). Inventive language, a smart and resourceful heroine, and an unerring sense of fun all contribute to a playful, action-packed sequel. Final art not seen by PW. Ages 8â12. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House.

Starred review from December 1, 2014
Gratuity "Tip" Tucci doesn't see why her mom won't let a 13-year-old who saved the world take an off-planet vacation. Two years after saving the world in The True Meaning of Smekday (2007), biracial Tip and her extraterrestrial best friend, J.Lo, need a holiday. They jet off to New Boovworld (otherwise known as Saturn's moon Titan) in Slushious, their flying car. J.Lo's wanted on New Boovworld for his part in the near-destruction of Earth two years ago, but he's sure everything will be fine if he just explains things to the HighBoov-for-life, Capt. Smek. The situation on New Boovworld is complicated: The Boov are holding elections for HighBoov. In election season, every politician loves an enemy of the state, and so J.Lo is recast as the Squealer, condemned to imprisonment in eternal silence. Only Tip can save him, with the help of a bubble-blowing bee named Bill, Funsize the garbage man and the imagined ghost of her old friend the Chief. It's a little less quirky than the last adventure (the Boov's seven magnificent genders are paid lip service, with important characters either male or female and even following Earth stereotypes), but still, plenty of gleeful ridiculousness adorns this outing, which is illustrated with Rex's own fanciful comics. The book is out just in time for the release of the movie adaptation of Book 1 (as Home, due out spring 2015). This sequel shares the strengths of its predecessor: the loving friendship between Tip and J.Lo, the respect for the absurd, and the social consciences of the teen protagonist and her ET BFF. (Science fiction. 11-15)

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Starred review from September 1, 2014

Gr 4-8-After successfully banishing the Gorg and ruining the Boovs's plans to colonize planet Earth, J.Lo and Gratuity (Tip to her friends) are back in this sequel to The True Meaning of Smekday (Hyperion, 2007). The Boov, dumpy little aliens who find English grammar amusingly challenging, have now settled, somewhat peevishly, on one of Saturn's moons. J.Lo, and Tip board J.Lo's converted Chevy spacecraft, Slushious, and blast off to New Boovworld, only to find themselves on the run from the police and Captain Smek, who is now campaigning to become New Boovworld's first president. Rex is a comic genius who has created a laugh- and groan-out-loud novel filled with spaceship chases, bubbling billboards, villainous villains, and reluctant heroes to say nothing of rousing games of Stickyfish and the obligatory garbage pit. Hilarious cartoons will please graphic novel aficionados. Don't skip Appendix A: Rules for Stickyfish.-Jane Henriksen Baird, Anchorage Public Library, AK

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2014
Grades 4-7 In Rex's madcap follow-up to his alien invasion novel The True Meaning of Smekday (2007), 13-year-old Gratuity (aka Tip) agrees to take a secret trip with her alien friend, J.Lo, to Saturn to visit New Boovworld. A pariah for accidentally betraying the Boov during their invasion of Earth, J.Lo (a Boov himself) hopes to clear his name with their leader, Captain Smek. Almost immediately the plan backfires. Smek, who is in the midst of a political campaign, decides that capturing J.Lo would earn him more votes than pardoning him. An escape attempt separates the friends, leaving J.Lo in custody and Tip on the lam and on rescue detail. With the story narrated by Gratuity, humor abounds in her tone, the plot high jinks, the low gravity, and J.Lo's stumbling English: Ha! This is one of those humansjokes I do not get? Illustrations and comic spreads enhance the already entertaining narrative and add to its adventurous feel. Light political satire mixes with action, death rays, and time travel, making this book a smart, fun ride.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

November 1, 2014
It's been two years since the alien Boov invasion (Rex helpfully -- and cleverly -- uses cartoon panels to review the events of the first book, The True Meaning of Smekday, rev. 11/07); and now Gratuity "Tip" Tucci and her Boov pal J.Lo are ready for another road trip. After the retreat of their Gorg enemies, the Boov left Earth and relocated to Saturn's largest moon, Titan, renamed New Boovworld. J.Lo votes to see his new homeland, and Tip agrees. (Tip's mom, by the way, thinks they're off to the theme park Splash World.) In New Boovworld, J.Lo and Tip head to the HighBoovperial Palace to explain J.Lo's role in defeating the Gorg. But all does not go according to plan: J.Lo is arrested, and Tip winds up in a garbage pit. Rex packs his sequel with loads of action and a steady spotlight on friendship; plus, he adds witty send-ups of political elections, time travel, and even sports rules (again using cartoon panels to good effect). And his humor is, as it was in Smekday, laugh-out-loud funny: "A death ray in the home is more likely to be used against a loved one than on your enemies anyway. Statistically." tanya d. auger

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)