The true meaning of Smekday / by Adam Rex.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

The hilarious, genre-bending novel from bestselling author Adam rex that inspired the blockbuster feature film Home -- fully illustrated with "photos," drawings, newspaper clippings, and comics sequences.



When twelve-year-old Gratuity ("Tip") Tucci is assigned to write five pages on "The True Meaning of Smekday" for the National Time Capsule contest, she's not sure where to begin; when her mom started telling everyone about the messages aliens were sending through a mole on the back of her neck? Maybe on Christmas Eve, when huge bizarre spaceships descended on Earth and the aliens -- called Boov -- abducted her mother? Or when the Boov declared Earth a colony, renamed it "Smekland" (in honor of glorious Captain Smek), and forced all Americans to relocate to Florida via rocketpod?



In any case, Gratuity's story is much, much bigger than the assignment. It involves her unlikely friendship with a renegade Boov mechanic named J.Lo; a futile journey south to find Gratuity's mother at the Happy Mouse Kingdom; a cross-country road trip in a hovercar called Slushious; and an outrageous plan to save the Earth from yet another alien invasion.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

Who knew the end of the world could be so hilarious? With a misfit cast of characters led by a precocious 11-year-old narrator named Gratuity "Tip" Tucci and a bumbling alien named J.Lo who has an appetite for dental floss and air fresheners, Rex's high-octane fantasy could fairly be called an apocalyptic comedy. After the Boov (technologically advanced aliens) conquer Earth (or Smekland, as they call it, after its discoverer), they decide that humans must live on preserves; all Americans must move to Florida. Tip, driving her mother's car with her cat Pig for a passenger, meets the unexpectedly helpful Boov J.Lo, who, she later discovers, has bungled a mission and is on the lam. Parallels between the Boov and European settlers and their treatment of Native Americans deepen the impact of the story, but the author goes well beyond delivering a single political message. Incorporating dozens of his weird and wonderful illustrations and fruitfully manipulating the narrative structure, Rex skewers any number of subjects, from Disney World to various fleeting fads. Some of the best jokes come from throwaways and from J.Lo's and Tip's attempts to understand each other (when Tip asks if his society has boys and girls, he says, "Of course. Do not to be ridicumulous," and calmly lists the "seven magnificent genders" of the Boov). Picture book aficionados will already know Rex from Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich and Pssst! (reviewed Sept. 10); now another audience can savor his wit. Ages 8-up. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

School Library Journal Review

When aliens invade Earth and steal her mother, 11-year-old Gratuity Tucci sets out to find her mom and, along the way, discovers intergalactic friendship with her alien companion, J. Lo. An amusing road trip turns into an incredible journey as Turpin effortlessly gives voice to angst-ridden tweens, domineering humans, menacing aliens, street kids, cats, and the wonderful wobbly-voiced, tongue-clicking J. Lo, making this 2011 Odyssey winner an aural treat. Standard: Students will be able to describe literary devices such as plot, place, character development, and humor. Learning Activity: In art class, students can draw images of what they think J. Lo and Gratuity look like and and describe why their visual representations were chosen. (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Booklist Review

Eleven-year-old Gratuity Tucci is assigned to write an essay, The True Meaning of Smekday, explaining the significance of the day that the alien Boov, led by Captain Smek, took over Earth. Gratuity describes her journey across an occupied U.S. to rescue her mom, who has been abducted by the Boov. A renegade alien named J.Lo joins her quest, and together they return the planet to human control, while also defeating the mean-tempered Gorg, Boov rivals hoping to conquer Earth themselves. J.Lo's characterization, including his humorous clipped English and the touching sibling relationship he forges with Gratuity, help smooth out an otherwise sputtering narrative that is prone to tangential wanderings. Still, this mixed-media work, comprising letters, photos, and Rex's hilarious comics (among them, a strip entitled J.Lo's 8 Things You Have Always Wanted to Know about the Gorg but Were Afraid to Ask the Gorg Because the Gorg Might Punch You in the Face ) is guaranteed to tickle the middle-school funny bone.--Hubert, Jennifer Copyright 2007 Booklist

Horn Book Review

(Intermediate) What's an eleven-year-old girl to do when the same aliens -- the Boov -- who sucked up her mom ""like soda"" into their spaceship announce (after conquering the whole planet) that all Americans must relocate to Florida? Go along to get along? Not Gratuity ""Tip"" Tucci. Instead, Rex's spunky protagonist learns how to drive, packs up the Chevy, grabs her cat, and heads off to find her mother. Along the way, Tip meets a Boov mechanic named J.Lo, who soups up her hatchback with extraterrestrial parts, then hitches a ride. Turns out J.Lo himself is on the run after mistakenly advertising the planet's whereabouts to yet another alien species. Quite clever and highly entertaining, Rex's sci-fi/road-trip amalgam is loosely structured as a personal essay written by Tip two years after the Boov invasion. Now and then, readers hit a draggy stretch, but Rex holds interest with Tip and J.Lo's growing friendship and a sense of humor that calls Daniel Pinkwater to mind. (""'I spy, with my little eye, something that starts with...G.' 'Sausages,' guessed J.Lo."") Black-and-white illustrations -- a combination of Tip's Polaroid snapshots, J.Lo's comic-book panels, and additional drawings -- capture the characters' escapades and shed light on Boov history. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.

Kirkus Book Review

Gratuity Tucci ("Tip" for short) has a problem. Aliens have invaded Earth, stolen her mother, and now she and the rest of humanity are being shunted onto small reservations while the invaders (the Boov) take over the rest of the planet. In avoiding this plan, via her family car, Tip runs across J.Lo, a renegade Boov with problems of his own. Together, girl and alien attempt to locate Tip's mother only to discover that an even greater alien threat is imminent. It's up to the two heroes to defeat the invaders, Boov and otherwise, and save the day. The humor in this story is undeniably unique, containing a skewed worldview that children will certainly enjoy. Yet while the first half of the book is an entirely funny road trip of the Kerouac-meets-E.T. variety, the second half slows down considerably. Rex has such a nice grasp of small tender moments amidst a world gone haywire, it's a pity the book wasn't pared down significantly. Inspired but problematic. (Fiction. 11-15) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.