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Not Quite Human #5
Terror at Play
Chip, the electronic boy, is delighted when he lands a role in the school play, but sabotage threatens the production, leaves Chip the prime suspect in the "accidents," and severely damages Chip's leg
- GenresMiddle GradeFiction
Paperback
First published June 1, 1986
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 17, 2013
These are not good by any means of modern standards, but I will still give them 5 stars because of their significance to me when reading them for the first time. It was a book about a family that loved each other so much they were willing to fight, tooth and nail, to protect the secret of their robot son/ brother. I didn't have much of that at home, and McEvoy gave it to me.
December 15, 2010
I can't say I cared for this particular entry in the Not Quite Human series. Literally the ENTIRE story revolves around the kids performing a play, and various suspicious accidents occurring, and the attempt to figure out who's causing them. While the Not Quite Human series has always blended sci-fi and comedy with mystery elements, this time it pretty much focuses entirely on the mystery, and practically the only setting used for 90% of the story is the gym where the play is being rehearsed or carried out.
A book in which 90% of the story revolves entirely around one issue, AND takes place almost entirely in one location, is just not much of a story. There's a minor subplot involving Erin, the girl who has a crush on Chip, getting angry at him because she misinterprets his odd, robot-like responses to her as dislike. For example, when Erin is accused of sabotaging the play and says "I'm not going to stand here and be accused", Chip, logical and robot-like as ever, says "Would you rather sit down and be accused?" Considering his odd speech mannerisms and inappropriate questions are usually played for humor, it's refreshing to see someone responding to him in a more realistically offended manner.
Still, as I said, there's barely any story here. And when you have such a great premise for a series - an android goes to middle school disguised as a normal human boy - it's a shame to see it all squandered, especially after the previous story involved a hacker taking control of Chip, which was a much more interesting use of the premise.
A weak entry in an otherwise fun series.
A book in which 90% of the story revolves entirely around one issue, AND takes place almost entirely in one location, is just not much of a story. There's a minor subplot involving Erin, the girl who has a crush on Chip, getting angry at him because she misinterprets his odd, robot-like responses to her as dislike. For example, when Erin is accused of sabotaging the play and says "I'm not going to stand here and be accused", Chip, logical and robot-like as ever, says "Would you rather sit down and be accused?" Considering his odd speech mannerisms and inappropriate questions are usually played for humor, it's refreshing to see someone responding to him in a more realistically offended manner.
Still, as I said, there's barely any story here. And when you have such a great premise for a series - an android goes to middle school disguised as a normal human boy - it's a shame to see it all squandered, especially after the previous story involved a hacker taking control of Chip, which was a much more interesting use of the premise.
A weak entry in an otherwise fun series.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews