Book review: The Humans by Matt Haig

I recently read The Humans by Matt Haig, and since the main character is an extraterrestrial, I thought I should review it for my blog.  This alien is from a planet called Vonnadoria and has come to Earth to assume the identity of Professor Andrew Martin, a mathematician who may have discovered something that could change the world; the real Martin has already been killed, and it is this extraterrestrial's job to dispose of anyone Martin may have told about his discovery.  This Vonnadorian starts out thinking that humans are hideous and is generally disgusted by everything about them, but as he gets to know Martin's family (wife Isobel and son Gulliver), he begins to understand the human race and realizes that he does not want to kill Isobel and Gulliver, even though his superiors keep insisting that he must get rid of them.  At the beginning of the story, our otherworldly narrator states that The Humans is a book "about the meaning of life and nothing at all," but more than anything, it's the story of an alien who learns what it means to be human.  He learns that "caring is what makes you human," and he is turning out to be a better human than the man he's pretending to be. 

 

I really enjoyed this book, and even though it's about a visitor from another planet, it seemed believable.  I especially enjoyed the alien's interactions with Newton, the family dog, who he thinks is needy and annoying at first.  Of course it doesn't take long for him to love the dog...because even an alien can't resist a cuddly canine.

 

My score: 8.5/10

http://www.amazon.com/Humans-Novel-Matt-Haig/dp/1476727910/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1375918343&sr=1-1&keywords=humans+by+matt+haig

The International UFO Museum and Research Center

I've always enjoyed going to museums, and of all the museums I've been to, the International UFO Museum and Research Center in Roswell, New Mexico is my favorite.  There was no museum I wanted to visit more, and I finally got my wish on July 6th, 2013.  The museum, which opened its doors in 1992, was founded by Walter Haut (who was a public information officer at the Roswell Army Air Field at the time of the Roswell Incident) and Glenn Dennis (a mortician who received an inquiry from the military regarding child-sized caskets and claimed that a nurse told him that she had seen the victims of the Roswell crash and that they were around four feet tall, with oversized heads and four fingers on each hand) and is located at 114 North Main Street.

My favorite part of the museum was the display with a UFO and some aliens...I have a feeling that almost everyone who visits the museum has their picture taken in front of it.

If you're interested in the Roswell crash, the museum will help you learn everything you ever wanted to know about it.  There is a ton of reading involved (Roswell Incident timeline, official documents, etc.), but if you don't have time to read everything, there's a great book in the gift shop, Witness to Roswell by Tom Carey and Don Schmitt, whose cover boasts that it's "the most comprehensive investigation ever made into the 1947 Roswell Incident."  I read it and thought it was very informative, and I learned some things I didn't already know about the crash.

In the back of the museum, there is a section of wall covered with alien and UFO artwork and a model of an alien in a big glass tube.

Elsewhere in the museum, there is another one and a recreation of one of the crash victims about to be autopsied.

The section of the museum devoted to crop circles was interesting, and I really enjoyed the wall of alien cartoons...I wish they'd all been collected in a book and sold in the gift shop, so I could look at them whenever I want.  The gift shop was the best museum gift shop I've ever seen...usually I don't buy much in museum gift shops because they're generally overpriced, but most of the items in the UFO Museum's gift shop were reasonably priced.  I wanted almost everything in the gift shop, but since I could only fit so much in my luggage, I showed some self-control and only bought six or seven things.

I loved the International UFO Museum and Research Museum, and I definitely recommend it to anyone who is interested in the Roswell crash or just UFOs and extraterrestrials in general.  The museum was very interesting and informative, and admission is only $5.  Be sure to check out the gift shop and stop by the alien Coke machine on your way out. : )