On Earth As It Is On Television

First Contact stories have never been as intoxicating and fun as in Emily Jane’s novel of the sudden arrival—and equally sudden departure—of spaceships above Earth.The arrival of spaceships can bring up a lot of big questions: What does it mean that we’re not alone? Why did aliens come here? Who knew beforehand? Where…. are the aliens going?Wait… They can’t just leave! Without inviting us into their galactic federation—or at the very least obliterating us! In Emily Jane’s debut—a rollicking paean to what it means to be alive in thetwenty-first century—the fleeting presence of alien vessels, and the certaintythat humans are not alone in the universe, sparks intense uncertainty as to ourplace within it.Blaine has always been content to go along with whatever his supermom wifeand television-addicted, half-feral children want. But when the kids blithelyponder skinning people to see if they’re aliens, and his wife announces a surpriseroad trip to Disney World, even steady Blaine begins to crack.Half a continent away, Heather, bored in a Malibu pool while the ships hoveroverhead, watches as the Arrival heralds the demise of her dead-end relationshipand sets her on a quest to understand herself, her accomplished (and oh-so-annoying)stepfamily, and why she feels so alone in a universe teeming with life.And Oliver, suddenly conscious and alert after twenty catatonic years, strugglesto piece together broken memories and understand why he’s following astrange cat on a westward journey and into the greatest adventure of his—oranyone’s—lifetime.
In Emily Jane’s rollicking debut, when spaceships arrive and then depart suddenly without a word, the certainty that we are not alone in the universe turns to intense uncertainty as to our place within it.“Weird and sweet … like a 2020s White Noise: loud and colorful Americana with a sprinkle of apocalyptic doom.”—Edgar Cantero “Heartfelt, witty, and secretly romantic … a delightful and poignant story about what it is to be human, and what we owe each other.” —Christina LaurenSince long before the spaceships’ fleeting presence, Blaine has been content to go along with the whims of his supermom wife and half-feral, television-addicted children. But when the kids blithely ponder skinning people to see if they’re aliens, and his wife drags them all on a surprise road trip to Disney World, even steady Blaine begins to crack.Half a continent away, Heather floats in a Malibu pool and watches the massive ships hover overhead. Maybe her life is finally going to start. For her, the arrival heralds a quest to understand herself, her accomplished (and oh-so-annoying) stepfamily, and why she feels so alone in a universe teeming with life.Suddenly conscious and alert after twenty catatonic years, Oliver struggles to piece together his fragmented, disco-infused memories and make sense of his desire to follow a strange cat on a westward journey.Embracing the strangeness that is life in the twenty-first century, On Earth as It Is on Television is a rollicking, heartfelt tale of first contact that practically leaps off the planet.