Book Review: I Know What UFO Did Last Summer
- Charity Harvey
- Feb 18
- 3 min read
I received an Advanced Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley. It's official publishing date is in March of 2025, so it will be available to you soon. If you also like to read and review books, I highly recommend you sign up on NetGalley as well! It is free, and you can download books to read and review. This title stood out to me because it is a play off of a classic mystery, and the cover art pulled me in as well! It's also science fiction, which is a favorite genre of mine, so I just had to read it!
What a well crafted story! I wish more kids out there would put down their phones and pick up a good adventure book like this one. There are so many fantastic stories out there that really lets the imagination run wild, and this story is one of them! The author has done a great job writing for the intended age group. It is fast paced, exciting, and has memorable characters. It is a very unique plot, with a little bit of sci-fi, bad guys, monsters, and plenty of alien references.
The story is told by Marvin, who is obsessed with UFOs. He always drags his friend Jace into his preparation for an impending alien invasion, and now he has a new next door neighbor to involve too. Her name is Nora, and although she really isn't into Marvin's whole UFO and alien obsession, she doesn't have any new friends yet and decides to follow along. But the three spot a flashing light in the woods, and suddenly, there really is something going on. It's not a UFO, but it's still something that may involve outer space. Throw some actual bad guys into the mix, and three discover they are in for more than they bargained for.
The narrator, Marvin, is hilarious. He tells the entire story as if there really is an alien invasion. The author lets you know through other characters' dialogue that it is not an actual UFO, Marvin sticks to his alien theories. He likes to use code names, referring to himself as "Gold Leader"; Jace loves basketball so he is "Baller One", and Nora is "Space Cadet." Because he is determined that aliens are among us, he is a bit of an unreliable narrator, but that's what makes it so funny.
Not to spoil anything, but there are monsters in the story that could potentially scare younger readers. The monsters make it quite interesting and I was flying through that part to find out what would happen next! Some monsters do "chomp" people, but I don't think it was too scary. I could actually see this being made into the next family action adventure film! It also ends on a cliffhanger, and judging by the title, we should be getting a sequel or an entire series from this story. I think it will be a big hit with kids! Especially those who are "reluctant readers". It's a quirky, exciting story. I definitely recommend that librarians and teachers purchase this one and add it to their collection! If there are any kids signed up for summer reading programs, and they can choose which titles they want, I recommend you give them this one! This book is set to be released in March of this year, so make sure you check your local library this summer, or go ahead and order it for yourself! As always, happy reading!
