From Publishers Weekly
The premise of this bland SF tale is that David's Aunt Margaret has been taken over by a friendly being from another dimension. This benevolent possession has extended the elderly woman's life and has, supposedly, left her with her own personality intact--although her characterization is so insipid it's hard to tell. Now Mrs. Gaumer, founder of the local animal shelter, is on the brink of death. The spirit that occupies Aunt Margaret wants to take over Mrs. Gaumer so that she can continue her good works. When jealous aliens interfere with this plan, Aunt Margaret enlists the help of David and his twin sister, Julie. Lackluster writing, laced with references to movies and television shows, does little to support this rickety plot. To succeed, fantasy must be in some way rooted in real life; the novel fails because the characters seem to have no lives apart from their participation in a lumpish supernatural melodrama. Ages 8-12.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 4-7-- When people in a small rural community are taken over like pod people in Invasion of the Body Snatchers, it seems like it's septuagenarian Aunt Margaret they are after. She enlists the help of 12-year-old twins, David and Julie, so she can complete her mysterious plans to help Victoria Gaumer, an ailing animal lover who runs the local humane society, before the aliens catch up with her. While the premise of this science fiction story is immediately captivating, the writing is awkward; for some bewildering reason the identity of the main character is kept from readers until well into the second chapter, and even after that readers will be unsure of what is happening. Aunt Margaret is interesting, but some of the other characters are slight and often stereotyped, limited perhaps by the first-person point of view. The plot fails to convince, for there's never any clear motive for Aunt Margaret to help Mrs. Gaumer, there's no basis for David's understanding of who the aliens are, and Aunt Margaret herself is never fully explained--who she is, where she came from, and why she is running away. Even the climax is messy and forced. Overall, this is a frustrating book; William Sleator does a much better job with similar concepts. --Annette Curtis Klause, Montgomery County Department of Public Libraries, MD
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.
