Book Review - Only You Can Save Mankind by Terry Pratchett

Another excellent that my mother has recommended to me that has taken me over 10 years to read. I will confess that the list of books that fit that description is rather long. It doesn't help that she keeps recommending and I keep playing catch up. The list doesn't get bigger, but it doesn't get smaller either. Terry Pratchett is a personal favorite of mine. I haven't read one of his books that I didn't like and he has written dozens. Known for the Discworld, Only You Can Save Mankind is the first in a primary world trilogy. It takes place during Operation Desert Storm, the original Gulf War. In the introduction to the 2004 edition Pratchett points out that with the televised war and computer games getting more and more realistic (still nothing by 2004 standards let alone 2013) the line between game and reality could be blurred. This idea has been propagated for years having a special audience in young adult and middle grade fiction, so it is by no means original. But as usual Pratchett does a wonderful job in telling a fun story with a kernel of of idea that he plants into your mind. For those that worry about Pratchett pushing an agenda, I feel that he does this just to make you think.

Plot: Johnny Maxwell is 12 and going through "Trying Times." He is not a bad kid, nor even a misguided kid. He is just floating, living each day at a time and is one of those that just isn't noticed. He is not full of angst, or courage. In fact he could be described as very normal. One think he enjoys is playing computer video games. His current favorite is Only You Can Save Mankind, a space fighter game where you eliminate the foul aliens who are invading. He's gotten pretty good, not the best, but quite decent, and has reached level 7 when suddenly something happens. The aliens surrender. He now finds himself as their sole protector against the players that find them. As he falls asleep he finds himself at the controls of the space fighter. When he dies he wakes up sitting at his computer which is shut down. His friends thinks he's kind of crazy (but are okay with that). But it appears that the aliens have disappeared from every copy of the game everywhere. As he watches the war on TV and flies his game fighter at night he starts to wonder what is game and what is reality.

Personal Favorites: I remember seeing some of the footage of Desert Storm when I was a kid, and I also happened to be playing computer games, so I was able to relate to Johnny pretty well, even if I was a little younger than he is. Per the usual Pratchett style, the book was entertaining and thought provoking and I enjoyed the characters.. They were well done satires which provided fun perspectives. It was interesting to watch Johnny grow and and felt like the transition was logical and believable, even for a twelve year old.

Considerations: The book is a middle grade novel, and as I mentioned in my last review sometimes I have difficulty believing that the character is acting like an actual 12-year-old. Johnny seemed like a real kid most of the time. Over the course of the book Johnny comes face to face with death and destruction. This is painted in a "kid friendly" kind of way that is not graphic, yet is impressive and thought provoking. The characters are parodies of themselves and so may seem stereotypical, but I felt that it was clear that they were their own people.

All in all it was a good book and quite thought provoking, like most Pratchett books. It's certainly dated, but with the conflicts nowadays, it is still very applicable. I'll be reading the rest of the trilogy and report on those when the time comes. I'm locking for it.

The total length of the book was 201 pages.