Quozl, by Alan Dean Foster (Kindle edition)

Good news: Open Road Media is releasing a Kindle edition of Quozl, by Alan Dean Foster (Amazon link). Quozl is a lighthearted science fiction tale of a race of alien “rabbits” who land on Earth, go into hiding, and finally reveal themselves. Adults and young adults will enjoy this pleasant novel of first contact (both of the humans, and the Quozl) and how the Quozl are finally introduced to humanity at large.

The planet of Quozlene is overpopulated. A multi-generational interstellar ship is programmed for Earth. Unbeknownst to the Quozl, Earth already has an intelligent (well, somewhat) species occupying it. The Quozl land in a nearly deserted area of a national forest, burrow into the ground, and hope they won’t be discovered for hundreds of years.

The Quozl are rabbit like, in many ways including — you guessed it — their sexual appetite. This is mentioned, but not elaborated upon, throughout the story. Hence, I consider the book appropriate for teenagers. The aliens forbid anyone to leave the underground burrow. One curious, young Quazl sneaks out — and first contact is made with a young boy.

What makes Quozl such a satisfying book is the way Alan Dean Foster as developed an entire history and culture for the aliens, yet doesn’t let it bog-down the story. All of the characters, human and alien, are fleshed out (furred out?) and you wind-up caring for all of them. The author also deftly handles a story that covers many years.

Quozl is a nice diversion from all of the heavy, militaristic science fiction being produced these days. I enjoyed it, and I think that you will, too. My hope is that in the distant future, when humans finally do encounter aliens, that the meeting will be as pleasant as the one in this enjoyable story.

 

 


2 Comments

  1. Becky got this on inter library loan for me and I am reading it now. It is certainly different from anything I have ever read before and very well thought out.

  2. This was a pretty amazing story. The author created a convincing culture and history for these kind of cute, yet somewhat frightening aliens that contributed heavily to the story line. I enjoyed it, and yet I had to lay it down for a couple of days about half way through because I wasn’t comfortable with trusting the author. I hate books that kill off protagonists for whom the reader has developed a certain amount of affection and there was a sense that this was going to happen all through the center of the book. As it was it didn’t. The ending was satisfying, the plot twists were unexpected enough to keep it interesting. If I had a complaint it was that the story progressed at a rather uneven pace. Good read though and I am glad to have found it here.

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