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Alien Agent #4
Alien Encounter
Zack's back at work again, as an Alien Agent. His assignment: find an alien kid who hijacked a spaceship to Roswell, New Mexico. Sound easy? Not quite. Because Zack's dad is going too. And he's being chased by a man with a serious grudge against aliens. Can Zack find the missing alien and keep the truth from his dad while escaping the clutches of one Major Garrett? It's all in a day's work for Earth's Alien Agent.
152 pages, ebook
First published April 1, 2010
25 people want to read
About the author
Pamela F. Service
38 books48 followersBorn in Berkeley, California, Pamela F. Service grew up loving to hear, read, and tell stories - particularly about weird stuff. Pamela earned a BA in Political Science from UC Berkeley followed by an MA in history and archaeology from the University of London.
She spent many years living in Bloomington, Indiana, writing, serving on the city council, and being curator of a history museum. She has a grown daughter, Alex, who is also a museum curator. Pamela is now living in Eureka, California, where she writes, works as a museum curator, and acts in community theater.
She spent many years living in Bloomington, Indiana, writing, serving on the city council, and being curator of a history museum. She has a grown daughter, Alex, who is also a museum curator. Pamela is now living in Eureka, California, where she writes, works as a museum curator, and acts in community theater.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
April 7, 2022
Awesome illustrated science fiction for the lower middle grade set -- a step above a chapter book, but still funny, engaging, with lots of illustrations. My two kiddos loved these!
February 14, 2012
Alien Encounter, the 4th book in the Alien series by Pamela F. Service (illustrations by Mike Gorman) continues the saga of Zack, alien agent on Earth. Zack was placed on Earth as an infant but only found out about his alien status last year. (They do not indicate his age but I feel he was a teenager.) His mission on Earth is to act as a representative for the Galactic Union. This time his mission is to intercept a “Nythian” alien youth named Tu before he scares Earthlings so much that they will not want to join the Galactic Union (when the time comes). Tu is in search of his father, Iv, who he believes is the sole survivor of the Roswell, New Mexico U.F.O. crash in 1947. The action takes place in Roswell during the annual U.F.O. Festival. The “plot thickens” when Zack needs to bring his father on the trip and his father is unaware of him being an alien. Zack finds Tu and befriends him. To complicate matters Major Garrett (Army Intelligence) is hot on their trail and kidnaps Zack’s father. All ends well but you will have to read the book to find out how our protagonist rights the world on Earth again!
Alien Encounters won the Eleanor Cameron Award for Science Fiction Literature for Middle Grades for 2011. (Amazon book review suggests a grade level of 3 and up and an age level of 8 and up.) Its simple text makes it easy for middle grade readers to follow the fast past science fiction storyline. I gave it three stars because i feel it lacked something in the storyline but I am sure it would be attractive to boys who like alien encounters.
The illustrations are done in black and white sketches and although sparse they add a visual cue to how the characters look. Interestingly, Gorman’s illustration of Zack reminds me of Darren Stevens from the Bewitched TV series!
Classroom recommendations include a study of the Roswell incident in American history. Students who enjoyed this text might also comparing and contrasting it with Steven Spielberg’s movie, E.T. In addition, this text would be ideal for extended writing activities. Students can write about; “What they would do if they met a real alien” just as Zack did. (Zack supposedly wrote about this topic and won a trip to Roswell, which was not true.)
Alien Encounters won the Eleanor Cameron Award for Science Fiction Literature for Middle Grades for 2011. (Amazon book review suggests a grade level of 3 and up and an age level of 8 and up.) Its simple text makes it easy for middle grade readers to follow the fast past science fiction storyline. I gave it three stars because i feel it lacked something in the storyline but I am sure it would be attractive to boys who like alien encounters.
The illustrations are done in black and white sketches and although sparse they add a visual cue to how the characters look. Interestingly, Gorman’s illustration of Zack reminds me of Darren Stevens from the Bewitched TV series!
Classroom recommendations include a study of the Roswell incident in American history. Students who enjoyed this text might also comparing and contrasting it with Steven Spielberg’s movie, E.T. In addition, this text would be ideal for extended writing activities. Students can write about; “What they would do if they met a real alien” just as Zack did. (Zack supposedly wrote about this topic and won a trip to Roswell, which was not true.)
February 11, 2012
This review pertains to the 2010 Kindle Edition.
Lexile: 570L, ages 8 and up. #4 in the Alien Agent series.
Planted on Earth as an infant to learn human ways, Agent Zack’s planned mission was to ease Earth’s transition to become a member of the Galactic Union of planets. To this point, only a few Earthly UFO enthusiasts believed in the existence of aliens, decrying the governmental cover-up of the 1947 Roswell UFO crash. Zack (a young adult, age not specified) learns of an unusual complication in the mission to admit Earth to the Galactic Union from Agent Sorn. Zack’s amusing first person narrative takes the reader on his journey to a festival in Roswell, NM, celebrating the events of 1947. Zack’s assignment is to intercept a descendant of the crash, on his way to Earth to seek a surviving relative. When Zack finds Tu, the Nythian child of the Roswell UFO’s captain, they encounter Major Garrett (Army Intelligence). Will Tu find his father? How will they outwit Major Garrett? Will Earth be able to join the Galactic Union? Follow Zack’s narrative dry wit as this unlikely twosome navigates the perils of being aliens in an alien land.
This Kindle edition features a few black and white illustrations. This reviewer did not detect offensive or didactic content. The setting was culturally ambiguous.
Possible classroom activities might include authorship of a fictional UFO encounter, (acted, written, or recorded). Students might write about what an alien encounter might be like, and how humans might react to a real encounter. A web quest might outline a project involving the science and rationale for searching for alien life.
Older students might enjoy Stuck on Earth (grade 6-9, ISBN: 0374399514), about an alien assuming the body of an Earthly teenager to determine whether Humans are worthy of survival. Another text about Roswell and other UFOs is What Really Happened in Roswell?: Just the Facts (Plus the Rumors) About UFOs and Aliens, (grades 4-7, ISBN: 0688172482) featuring possible explanations related to the Roswell incident, and listing additional resources.
Lexile: 570L, ages 8 and up. #4 in the Alien Agent series.
Planted on Earth as an infant to learn human ways, Agent Zack’s planned mission was to ease Earth’s transition to become a member of the Galactic Union of planets. To this point, only a few Earthly UFO enthusiasts believed in the existence of aliens, decrying the governmental cover-up of the 1947 Roswell UFO crash. Zack (a young adult, age not specified) learns of an unusual complication in the mission to admit Earth to the Galactic Union from Agent Sorn. Zack’s amusing first person narrative takes the reader on his journey to a festival in Roswell, NM, celebrating the events of 1947. Zack’s assignment is to intercept a descendant of the crash, on his way to Earth to seek a surviving relative. When Zack finds Tu, the Nythian child of the Roswell UFO’s captain, they encounter Major Garrett (Army Intelligence). Will Tu find his father? How will they outwit Major Garrett? Will Earth be able to join the Galactic Union? Follow Zack’s narrative dry wit as this unlikely twosome navigates the perils of being aliens in an alien land.
This Kindle edition features a few black and white illustrations. This reviewer did not detect offensive or didactic content. The setting was culturally ambiguous.
Possible classroom activities might include authorship of a fictional UFO encounter, (acted, written, or recorded). Students might write about what an alien encounter might be like, and how humans might react to a real encounter. A web quest might outline a project involving the science and rationale for searching for alien life.
Older students might enjoy Stuck on Earth (grade 6-9, ISBN: 0374399514), about an alien assuming the body of an Earthly teenager to determine whether Humans are worthy of survival. Another text about Roswell and other UFOs is What Really Happened in Roswell?: Just the Facts (Plus the Rumors) About UFOs and Aliens, (grades 4-7, ISBN: 0688172482) featuring possible explanations related to the Roswell incident, and listing additional resources.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews