Punk Rock vs. the Lizard People

by Joshua S. Porter

The 1980s have become a decade of incredible technological advancement thanks to a race of occupying alien reptiles, but sixteen-year-old Danny Thomas thinks they’re up to something.

Mostly your average video game loving, pop-culture obsessed teenager, Danny finds adolescence in 1987 a bit trying. Now there’s this whole new alien technology called social media. According to the world’s allegedly benevolent alien benefactors, sharing photos and personal updates online is the first step to guiding Earth toward a peaceful utopia. Danny and his friends have begun to suspect the opposite is true.

Together, seven teenagers and a defecting alien reptile set out to expose a sinister plot while navigating the treacherous waters of teenage friendship and romance. Punk Rock vs. The Lizard People combines the coming-of-age teen comedy-drama of The Breakfast Club with the frenetic sci-fi grit of District 9. Celebrating and subverting beloved tropes, what begins as a loving, nostalgic romp becomes a powerful meditation on grief and the quest for significance.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy

399 pages, Paperback

Published April 30, 2019

About the author

Joshua S. Porter is pastor of teaching and creative vision at Van City Church in Vancouver, Washington. He is also a former member of the experimental art-punk band, Showbread, and the author of With All Its Teeth, Death to Deconstruction, novel Punk Rock Vs. the Lizard People.

Find out more and connect with Joshua at joshuasporter.com.

Reviews

[Tyler Klumpenhower · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a complicated relationship with Mr. Porter.

I’ve been a huge fan since the “Age of Reptiles” era of Showbread. I have bought every record (DIES, Showbread, The Bell Jar, Church of Agony) , listened to every song, watched every music video and bought every DVD, owned and read every book (I missed out on the comic :(), and worn Showbread shirts until they were falling off my back. I enjoy his preaching and teaching via podcasts. Needless to say, I am a huge fan of Mr. Porter and have tremendous respect for him and his art.

Punk Rock vs. Lizard People is a wonderful book - the adventure, the creativity, the humour. I felt like a kid racing through the pages of this adventure.

I would be curious to know Mr. Porter’s perspective on the use of vulgar language in art, especially since he is a preacher. I was surprised to see f-bombs, b——, motherf——-, and the use of of Jesus Christ, God, and goddamn.

And that’s where my relationship with Mr. Porter gets complicated. I respect him and his art greatly. However, I see an incongruence with the language in the book (Jesus, God, especially) and the teaching of the Bible (in my limited understanding). This is where my respect starts to waver.

This book is an easy 5/5. I know a book speaks to my soul when I get goosebumps and a shiver goes through my spine at the end.

Thank you for the book. And thank you for having it available through Amazon.ca. It was a very reasonable price. Put the rest of your books on amazon.ca please.

[Jacob Gane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow Josh. You made a fantastic book. I feel like o can say that with a good amount of confidence just because I don’t think that I have much fan-boy-bias influencing me. I didn’t grow up listening to Showbread and have only recently heard of them and Mr Porter through my boss at Bad Coffee; an awesome coffee shop in SoCal (the Bad Coffee crew loves the book as well btw!).

This was such a fun read for me as well as one that had a profound effect on me. The amount of research that went into it is worth the price of the book but also how freaking well written it is made the book all the more enjoyable. There was never a dull moment in it and had me eagerly turning the page to find out what happened next. I also found myself developing a deeper sense of pity for those immersed in the world of social media as well as re-evaluating my own dependence on that kind of culture although I don’t have any social media other than goodreads.

With that all that said, if you want a book that is the Goonies meets Stranger Things meets Divine Conspiracy meets Infinite Jest meets E.T. meets Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles meets all the classic puppet shows from the 80s meets the word “undulating” meets NT Wright meets the Marvel universe meets James Bond meets Tarantino gore then I cannot recommend this amazingly original book enough to you.

THANK YOU JOSH!

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's the 80s and there are high school tech heads that are rigging old atari game systems to be robots and there is a social media system that has grown out of the old-tech. Alien lizard people are part of the world, but in a covert way and they are the ones behind the social media system. Danny is suspicious of the lizard agenda, and there is a rogue lizard kid who connects with Danny and his group of misfit friends who are trying to get to the bottom of the plot. Kinda like going into a Stranger Things world where the high-school kids are in touch with the other side and are trying to save the world. But throwing social media controlled by lizard people into everything else 1987 is very a very fun and weird twist. I enjoyed this one a lot.

[Tristan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Damn what a fun ride. I listened to the podcast for this book and was always chomping at the bit waiting for a new episode to come out - that I finally bit the bullet and got the book for Christmas.

Truth be told, I came into the book biased towards the premise as a social media skeptic myself, so I gave the book a very long leash to begin with. But I think it earned it as well! The thought that went into crafting the thesis was well articulated, I loved the characters, the premise, so much tongue in cheek that I'm scared you'd injure yourself.

I could see this world that Josh crafts, and I personally felt like I was on the journey with them. I strangely enough, having followed Josh's various projects over the years, also feel like this book peered into some real things in his own life that left me feeling like I also heard HIM in the book - a not entirely qualifiable statement for a random person like me to make, but hey here we are.

The only reason I didn't give this 5 stars is because there are a couple loose ends that I felt didn't add up. If I were able to speak with Josh maybe I could set things straight, but with no one to chat with at the mo I'm left slightly confused and puzzled on a few plot points, and the pacing towards the end.

But overall - such a fun read. Well done Josh. Will definitely recommend.

[Brett Balsley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, silly, weird, funny, thought-provoking, irreverent, insightful, punk rock book.

[Brett R · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best parts was the soundtrack. It made the story come to life. More books should incorporate this type of mixed media! Great work Joshua!

[Dustin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been a longtime fan of Josh as a lyricist so I really don’t know why I’ve waited so long to read any of his novels. I missed out on the first few but have had this and his more recent books just sitting on my shelf waiting. I’m glad I finally picked this up because it really does unfold like the 80s adventure he’d be destined to direct if he’d chosen to be a filmmaker & not a musician.

The writing is fun & snappy, with the action scenes paced well and the in between moments containing the type of heart that endears you to the characters almost from the get go.

I also will always appreciate the way Josh infuses his writing with his faith. Not overt or preachy, it instead feels like undercurrents that you can pick up on if you’d like to or just enjoy the story as it is.

Overall this makes me excited to read the other books he’s written recently & the novel he has upcoming but more than that it makes me kick myself for missing out on those earlier works cause I’d love to see the progression from story to story.

[Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun story. I loved all the 80s references and plan to make a Spotify playlist of all the music featured throughout the book. As a former Christian but lifelong Josh Porter/Josh Dies fan, I was skeptical of the Christian themes in the story. In the end I was pleased with the lessons the characters learned, and the challenges they overcame in such a fun and entertainment way. None of the Christian themes conflicted with my now more universalist spiritual woo woo outlook on life. I’d recommend this book to anyone into 80s music, aliens, and playful narratives. The story is relevant as ever in our world of social media addicts and aliens existing.

[Ryan Lindsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve never read anything like this.

It’s a wacky and incredibly fun journey through the perils of teenage angst and rebellion against lizard alien overlords, that’s also masterfully interwoven with lessons about grief, social commentary, and thoughts on all of our individual quests for significance and meaning.

Imagine a world where social media was introduced in the late 70s, where Jim Henson is a dark, revolutionary outlaw; a world where punk rock, Stranger Things, and Black Mirror all collide - that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

[Cameron · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun book with pointed looks at our desire for credibility through social media. It was hard for me to keep up with all the characters within the main group and felt like the balance between the long buildup and short payoff was a little off. Very effective in making me view social media with healthy skepticism and conspiratorial thinking.

[Brian Heckman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Totally righteous. This was a really fun and entertaining read. I LOL’ed a few times. Love all the music denoted throughout, it was fun to put the playlist on while reading. This book is a sleeper hit.

[Wesley Ralph · Rating 4 out of 5]

You’ve seen the title. You know you want it. An alternative 1980s where aliens gave humanity the internet in the 70s from the perspective of the weird kids from your high school. Story subverts the tropes as much as it celebrates them. David Bowie lizard person.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cool sci-fi premise. Nostalgic. Entertaining dialogs. Interesting commentary on technology addiction, animal cruelty, narcissism, and other stuff. Overall a radical time.

[Tino Ybarra · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really fun ride! I loved all the characters and celebrity cameos. I highly suggest reading with the soundtrack at the ready, it definitely heightens the experience.

[Dustin Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

So strange and so good! I did not know what I was in for and I think I'm better for it so just go read it.

[Taylor Ramage · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, chaotic ride that leans in hard to its intentional ridiculousness. Expect nothing but tropes and vibes.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Characterized by the gregarious banter of its ensemble cast, Punk Rock vs the Lizard People is an adventurous ride through the alt-80s. It's full of the best (and a few of the worst) parts of being a teenager, and finding our place in the world, wrapped up in an intriguing sci-fi setting. An incredibly fun adventure, and especially at the end, incredibly human.

[Bryant Trinh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fucking fun book, dude. <3