Zanny and quirky funny, this might be the perfect book for a lazy Labor Day weekend. Massive alien ships suddenly appear over all the major cities around the world, cutting out our power and Internet, temporarily. Just as suddenly, they quietly depart. How do people respond? Why didn’t the aliens attempt to communicate, or attack? Were we not worth the effort? Were we a disappointment? We follow three storylines through this event and its aftermath. Oliver was a teenager twenty years ago, escaping an abusive family situation with his sister, Jo, when they crash in their car during a snowstorm; Oliver survives in a catatonic state, cared for in an institution, while his sister perished, according to the official record. During the alien arrival, he mysteriously wakes up, and gradually recovers. Blaine, happy husband with a quirky super-wife, Ann, and two young extremely obnoxious and endlessly combative children, notices Ann being secretive and stranger than usual. Heather, a new high school grad without any direction or purpose, is pondering her future and whiling away time in her step father’s Malibu pool, drinking his expensive wine collection, while her sweet but perfect step brother is off for his last year in prep high school in the East. Jack P., Heather’s step dad, is a strange dude, producer of successful reality tv shows, former Jeopardy! champion, loves wine, food, inflatable pool toys, and any excuse for a family activity— family bocche ball tournament, family movie night, etc.

When the aliens visit, during all the ensuing chaos, everyone’s cat disappears. What happens to the cats becomes a critical plot point, as some return changed, and others do not, bonding to other humans. It is the cats who know that the aliens will return, and try to prepare their humans for this event.

Whatever you believe aliens might find interesting about us, you are likely wrong. It is our television, bacon, cheese, and plastic products that are the most amazing things about Earth. I don’t want to give anything else away, and may have already said too much. This is a pretty funny book, but in a weirdly humorous way, reminding me a bit of Kevin Wilson’s books (Nothing to See Here, and Now Is Not the Time to Panic.) A little bit like Grady Hendrix, too. Read it for the light-hearted laughs. Recommended.