"The author begins with an alien alter ego named Yllek (Kelly spelled backwards) who is planning a possible journey through space. His perspective is sprinkled throughout this historical survey of UFO and extraterrestrial sightings, providing a humorous touch to the information. Beginning with a 1947 incident over Washington State, the narrative succinctly describes similar incidents in such places as Florida, Iran, Arizona, China, and New Mexico. One-page interviews with the witnesses of UFO/ET sightings inject personal details into the description. Possible terrestrial explanations follow each incident. Jaunty full-color illustrations flash off every page and provide a good contrast between what people claim to have seen and what the experts think they may have seen—clouds, lightning, and other weather phenomena; secret U.S. planes; weather balloons, etc. A double-page world map pinpoints modern sightings. A bibliography of books and websites and lists of UFO organizations and festivals might lead readers further into the field. While not as comprehensive as Eric Elfman's Almanac of Alien Encounters (Random, 2001) or as skeptical as Judith Herbst's UFOs (Lerner, 2005), this attractive, balanced view will update collections." --School Library Journal

Reported sightings of UFOs and aliens from other planets by people in the United States, the United Kingdom, Zimbabwe, and Thailand make up the bulk of this book. Broken into four short chapters and a conclusion, the book covers the common shapes of reported UFOs, the three most common life forms of reported aliens (Greys, Reptilians, and Nordics), and reported crashes and landings. It also includes a section about hoaxes and misunderstandings, including the radio performance of H. G. Wells' "The War of the Worlds" in 1938. The author rounds out the text with a half dozen interviews with scientists, researchers, and people with "personal encounters." The age range of ten to eighteen is the suggestion of the publisher. In reality, the picture book format and the six pages of fiction interspersed throughout the book about a character named Yllek who travels to Earth to learn about the alien population there likely lowers that range considerably. No real conclusion is drawn in the conclusion, perhaps to allow readers to draw their own. In the introduction, the author describes her interest in space as having originated in childhood. Unfortunately, that enthusiasm for the subject does not shine through the text. It does include all of the basic information presented in an accessible manner. The sparse text and illustrations may appeal to reluctant readers in particular. This is a worthwhile addition to an existing collection on the topic, but does not fall in the ?must have' category, since it does not include anything new on the topic. Reviewer: Lisa Colozza Cocca

Aliens and UFOs are popular topics among the middle school crowd. This title will satisfy readers who are fascinated by such things, with a balanced presentation of the topic. Numerous eyewitness accounts, plus interviews with scientists, keep the text objective without losing the high-interest appeal of the topic. Halls includes everything from the types of spacecraft reported to accounts of specific crash landings all over the world. She also devotes a chapter to the aliens themselves—what reports claim they look like, both over time and in different locations. A full chapter deals with the concept of hoaxes and misunderstandings, claiming that "even if UFOs and aliens are real, that doesn't mean that everything having to do with them is real." In fact, the conclusion, subtitled "Real or Unreal," leaves readers to decide for themselves. While the book is liberally peppered with various graphics, the design is a bit too inconsistent. There are several fonts used throughout the book, some which tie common items, like interviews, together, but the effect as a whole creates a disjointed feel. Also, several pages are told from an alien perspective—a team of them is travelling to Earth not knowing what they will find. Unfortunately, they are too sparsely interspersed throughout, adding to the overall disjointed feel, and may confuse unsophisticated readers. Most readers will forgive these shortcomings and be fully immersed in the graphics as well as the details of aliens, crash landings, and "men in black," who swoop in after a reported UFO sighting. Reviewer: Rochelle Garfinkel

Gr 4–6—The author begins with an alien alter ego named Yllek (Kelly spelled backwards) who is planning a possible journey through space. His perspective is sprinkled throughout this historical survey of UFO and extraterrestrial sightings, providing a humorous touch to the information. Beginning with a 1947 incident over Washington State, the narrative succinctly describes similar incidents in such places as Florida, Iran, Arizona, China, and New Mexico. One-page interviews with the witnesses of UFO/ET sightings inject personal details into the description. Possible terrestrial explanations follow each incident. Jaunty full-color illustrations flash off every page and provide a good contrast between what people claim to have seen and what the experts think they may have seen-clouds, lightning, and other weather phenomena; secret U.S. planes; weather balloons, etc. A double-page world map pinpoints modern sightings. A bibliography of books and websites and lists of UFO organizations and festivals might lead readers further into the field. While not as comprehensive as Eric Elfman's Almanac of Alien Encounters (Random, 2001) or as skeptical as Judith Herbst's UFOs (Lerner, 2005), this attractive, balanced view will update collections.—Frances E. Millhouser, formerly at Chantilly Regional Library, Fairfax County, VA

Halls' alien investigation is about as exciting as your neighbor's vacation slides for the third time. Unidentified flying objects… really, what more do you need to send a thrill up your spine? A mysterious aircraft, colorful lights pulsing like mad, piloted by who knows what and on a mission to, at the very least, shock the pants off any witness here on Earth, why not be agog and aghast? Plus, there are lots of stories out there, lots of photographs, too, to keep even most skeptics scratching their heads. So why, then, does Halls fail to serve forth the goods? It's another mystery, if not as compelling as Roswell or the Rendlesham Forest. Considering the slippery nature of the subject, it is critical that the meatiest evidence be presented, and Halls' use of archival photographs is particularly uninspiring. The accompanying text is likewise deflating. Typical of her enthusiasm is this close encounter with alien lights: "A squadron of F-94 fighters was scrambled (quickly sent up) to pursue them but was unsuccessful. ‘They've surrounded my plane,' one pilot reported. ‘What should I do?' " This is considered unsuccessful? And what, pray, did the pilot do? A superbly provocative topic drained of all its color. (Nonfiction. 10-14)