I come from another galaxy

An intrepid youth describes life among alien peers in this interstellar journal account turned school tale. Clad in an astronaut get-up, the pale-skinned, dark-haired human narrator anthropologically details the differences that abound: the school bus is a spaceship that beams passengers aboard, the bathroom contains a confusingly many-buttoned contraption, and recess with googly-eyed and noodle-armed classmates centers on a game called "slime-ball." Finding themself "not slimy enough," the subject struggles to feel a sense of belonging, but show-and-tell provides an opportunity for connection when the child reads from their journal, finding unexpected support from perspective-taking peers: "It turns out I am the alien here--and it's OK to be different." Kwan's cool-toned drawings combine polychromatic outlining and digitally colored shading that amplifies the story's fantastical elements. Ages 4--8. (July)

A young space explorer records the ups and downs of intergalactic education in this lighthearted, affirming take on the perennial first-day-of-school tale. Clad in a tiny space suit, wide-eyed astronaut James lands a rocket and bounces delightedly across a novel planetary landscape before reporting to the bus stop. Our narrator is curious about new alien classmates, but the dizzying UFO ride to school kicks off a disorienting day in an unfamiliar environment. The bathroom is too perplexing to use, the rules of recess slime-ball don't seem human-friendly, and nobody can say James; his optimism beaten down by mid-day, James retreats to "this little book" and writes about the day's experiences in solitude. With candy-colored pencil and digital landscapes and smiling goggly-eyed students, Kwan establishes a quirky extraterrestrial atmosphere that feels strange but not threatening. Diary-style prose captures James's earnest, often charming perspective: "I can even see my old home, like a faraway blueberry." The protagonist's gift of observation provides a pivotal point of connection when, after recess, James offers the journal up for show-and-tell; riveted classmates are now quick to share the bathroom code and their excess slime and generally welcome the new kid into the fold. This reassuring, accessible story speaks to both nervous newcomers and their future friends. Jessica Tackett MacDonaldSeptember/October 2025 p.47 (c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Spacesuit-clad James touches down from an intergalactic commute just in time for the first day of school. Unbound by the laws of gravity, the young earthling, who presents East Asian, nervously navigates life on a new planet, logging questions along the way in a letter to home. What's the deal with the bathroom? Is James' name really so hard for extraterrestrials to pronounce? And just what are the rules to slime-ball? With help from a crew of otherworldly classmates, James learns to confront the self-doubt that sometimes accompanies difference, affirming in equal measure the importance of vulnerability and the value of diversity. Adult readers may understand that the story's climactic declaration--"It turns out Iam the alien here"--carries particular weight given current conversations around immigration and xenophobia. Deeply approachable in tone, the text's epistolary style and first-person perspective offer emotional insights into the experience of relocation. Throughout, James can be seen writing and drawing in a book; this metanarrative structure places the story we're reading at the center of James' journey, while visible pencil strokes suggest that the child is the story's illustrator, too. Charming visual details such as interstellar traffic signage add narrative depth to the appealingly spare illustrations, while the endpapers, which feature whimsical doodles on notebook paper, complement similarly styled elements throughout. That the main character shares a name with the author/illustrator only serves to underscore the tale's self-referential, personal nature. A comforting dispatch about interplanetary acceptance.(Picture book. 3-6) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.