Reviewed by Debra Williams
What happens when a young artist wants to win the National Young Cartoonist Competition and doesn’t have any inspiration? Alex Le wants to enter and win the Junior Comic Category. The prompts were “A Helping Hand” and “Truth is Stranger Than Fiction.” Not keen on the first prompt, she opts for the second, aiming to prove that truth is stranger than fiction. She decides to test the old cliches about slipping on banana skins and cactus spines sticking into your backside as a topic for her entry. Intending to test them on herself, she sets up her sister Tish’s phone to film her efforts. Unfortunately, her dad Sam unwittingly slips on the skin and spikes himself on a cactus plant, ending up in the hospital. Later, Tish uploads the video to Tik Tok, and it goes viral.
Alex is left on her own to take her dog Patti for an evening walk. She lets Patti run free and takes a seat on a park bench, staring at the stars (trying to find the Southern Cross) and suddenly, her whole world changes! An alien lands in his starship and introduces himself as Hi-as in Hieronymus Bosch, the famous artist-after uttering the now famous words, “Take.Me.to.Your.Leader.” Hi (who is green and has three eyes), is from the planet Wendy, where the fascination with shoes (single shoes only) as mantelpiece décors is high on the Wendyan agenda.
What follows is an hilarious tale of friendship and collaboration between the human/s and the Earth’s leaders, for his Earth Studies school class. He wants to speak with the Prime Minister. And he only has 3 days to do it before his Wendles (parents) come back for him. Can it be done?
She takes him home and discovers that she is the only one who can see him. Hi sleeps in her wardrobe snuggled up into her old shoes. Alex also discovers that Hi is likewise a talented artist and his way of recording information is through drawings.
After a series of incidents involving her dad (who is in a band), her sister and her best friend, Taqi, (who, as it transpires, is also able to see Hi later on in the story), and the lead singer of a forgotten rock group called Planet Wendy, Hi comes up with his own definition of what makes a good leader. Alex now has her storyboard for entry into the comic book section of the competition.
There are themes of acceptance, sharing, teamwork and learning about each other. This book will be enjoyed by readers in the 8-12 year age group as a fun, quirky and intergalactic adventure
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