Media Release November 14, 2007 Review of Hungry Martha Webster Middletown Times Star For Immediate Release Hungry, a humorous middle grade science fiction novel by Lake County teacher Alethea Eason, is about a sixth grade girl who is really an alien faced with the prospect of eating her human best friend to prove her loyalty to her home planet, a place she has never seen and doesn't care about. The premise doesn't sound very, well, appetizing, but it provides a look at issues kids face growing up. Deborah’s family arrived on earth from another planet when she was a baby. They have come to prepare for an invasion because their home planet has run out of food. The Jones family lives like normal humans except for once a year, on Halloween, of course, when Mom and Dad feed on a human they hope won't be missed. They bring some home to Deborah, who eats greedily despite her wish to be a normal human girl, but she is not expected to kill on her own until she's sufficiently mature. Deborah is able to overlook all this most of the time, caught up in the everyday ups and downs of a normal sixth grader. Her best friend, Willy Logan, is a bit of a social outcast at school, and Deborah does what she can to help him. As the time draws near for her coming-of-age ritual, the pressures increase. The overriding theme is really the immigrant experience. A child is caught between her parents' culture and her adopted culture, facing dietary restrictions, the prospect of arranged marriage, as well as being expect to prove her loyalty to her alien culture. "I was sick and tired of living my life for the Home World," Deborah reports. "I was an American girl, even if I had three stomachs." And tentacles. Deborah also has to deal with the ambition of her parents, who hope her performance in the Math Champs competition will help them win seats on the Home World's Supreme High Council. She confronts politics, political correctness, mean teachers and classmates, and the effects of a teacher's low expectations. Like most kids, Deborah just wants everything to be okay so she can enjoy her life. She navigates the pitfalls of her existence with humor and patience, and tries to keep her options open. To reveal more would spoil the story. The book abounds in math and language lessons, especially math because Deborah is a whiz who helps other students prepare for the math competition. There are ecology lessons surrounding the problems on Deborah's home planet, which has exhausted its own food supply and must invade other planets to survive. The aliens are apparently slow learners. "My species had invaded the last planet with a decent food supply more than thirty years ago, and now almost all the food was gone," Deborah says. "Mom said these frog people had supplied the invading ships and had also been sent back to the Home World because we'd eaten up almost all of the food there. But our species hadn't conserved the green frog people." The book is humorous and entertaining despite the grisly premise, and it offers many situations young readers will find familiar. Alethea Eason will be featured at Barnes and Noble, Santa Rosa at 11 a.m. on Saturday, November 17th. Tentacle making and an alien “make over” will occur, along with a reading from the novel. ####### MEDIA RELEASE Contact: Alethea Eason (707) 928- 4279 aletheaeason1@yahoo.com FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Lake County Educator Releases First Science Fiction/Fantasy Children’s Book, Copperfield’s Books, Calistoga September 24, 2007 (Calistoga, CA . ) – Cobb resident, Alethea Eason, and the reading specialist at Minnie Cannon Elementary School, Middletown Unified School District, will be signing copies of her novel HUNGRY at Copperfield’s Books in Calistoga on October 9th between 10 and 11:30 a.m. The humorous hardcover book published by HarperCollins is a science fiction/fantasy story geared to children 9 to 12 years old. Deborah Jones, the protagonist in Hungry, reflects on, among other things, the necessity of eating, the effects of consuming resources, genetics, and evolution. Deborah, a 6th grade girl, is also known as “Dbkrrrsh” by her family and the rest of her species. Her family has come to Earth to make preparations for an invasion. She is caught between wanting to be a good citizen of the Home World, living up to her parents expectations, and the values she has learned growing up in America. The dilemma she faces is a moral one as she has been brought up to believe to survive she must feed on human beings. Her best friend, Willy, who has started sixth grade as a social outcast, becomes the focal point of her problem. She is expected to feed on him to prove her loyalty to her planet. A publication party for Hungry will also occur on October 4th at 7 p.m. at The Bookkeeper, Cobb Mountain Village. Other dates for local visits are Funtopia Books and Games, October 6th, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Wild About Books, Clearlake, October 20,1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Gallery Bookshop, Mendocino, October 28, and Barnes and Nobel, Santa Rosa, on November 17th. “Turtle Soup,” another story by the author, has been selected for the What’s the Story? Contest sponsored by SRA/McGraw Hill and will be a supplement for 2nd grade portion of the new Imagine It! Reading Series. “Turtle Soup” will also be available in CD form from Shooflyl Audiomagazine. ####### MEDIA RELEASE Contact: Alethea Eason (707) 928-4279 http://www.aletheaeason.com/ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Cobb Educator Releases First Science Fiction/Fantasy Children’s Book September 2, 2007 ( Cobb , CA . ) – Cobb resident Alethea Eason will be on the book-signing tour next month for Hungry, her first children’s book published by HarperCollins. The 208-page hardcover book is a science fiction/fantasy story geared to children 9 to 12 years old. A teaching guide and lesson plans accompany Hungry according to Eason, a 20-year educator, third- grade teacher and reading specialist. “As a teacher, I understand the demands of using state - based curriculum and not having time to teach everything expected; therefore, lessons accompany my book,” Eason said. “The lessons are designed around 6th grade curriculum standards and include English-language arts, math, science, social studies, behavior intervention, and healthy eating. “Teachers of other grades, and in states other than California , should find lessons applicable for their classrooms as well.” Deborah Jones, the protagonist in Hungry, reflects on, among other things, the necessity of eating, the effects of consuming resources, genetics, and evolution. Deborah, a 6th grade girl, is also known as “Dbkrrrsh” by her family and the rest of her species. Her family has come to Earth to make preparations for an invasion. She is caught between wanting to be a good citizen of the Home World, living up to her parents expectations, and the values she has learned growing up in America. The dilemma she faces is a moral one as she has been brought up to believe to survive she must feed on human beings. Her best friend, Willy, who has started sixth grade as a social outcast, becomes the focal point of her problem. She is expected to feed on him to prove her loyalty to her planet. Local publication parties, author presentations and book-signing events include, The Bookkeeper, Cobb Center, Hwy 175, October 4, 7 p.m.; Funtopia Toys & Games, Middletown, October 6, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Copperfield’s Books, Calistoga, October 9, 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.; and Pomo Elementary School, Clearlake, 12:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Wild About Books, Clearlake, October 20,1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Gallery Bookshop, Mendocino, October 28, 3 p.m.; and Barnes and Nobles, Santa Rosa, November 17, 11 a.m. For more details about Hungry, see the HarperCollins website: http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/HarperChildrens/Kids/BookDetail.aspx? isbn13=9780060825546&BDMode=3. The book may also be purchased at www.amazon.com. |
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