SNEAKS

Sixth grader Ben Harp and two of his classmates must stop an alien invasion in their small town.

Eleven-year-old Ben has had a miserable start to Livingston Middle School. He’s having trouble finding his footing socially since Ashok, his Bengali French Canadian best friend, is spending a year abroad in Paris. He also thinks he saw his teacher’s watch crawl across the floor. Things look even grimmer when the school librarian forces him to team up with two loner girls—newcomer Akemi Hanamura and unpopular Charlotte Moss—on a local history project. After interviewing Agatha Bent, the elderly subject they are assigned to, the trio starts to unearth the truth about the mysterious objects they keep seeing. They’re Sneaks—interdimensional aliens who feed on fear and pose as everyday objects or animals, and their presence signals that an even greater evil is intent on destroying Earth. There’s a fun vibe to the plot that channels Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Men in Black, and Stranger Things, but Egan relies too heavily on the tired inattentive-parents device for characterization. Ben’s inventor mom and professor dad are so immersed in work and each other that they leave him to watch over his 7-year-old brother, Leo, and Ben often feels neglected. The story positively explores Ben and Akemi’s growing friendship and the importance of being seen and appreciated, however. Ben and Charlotte read as White; Akemi’s name cues Japanese heritage.

An action-packed adventure that focuses on friendship and teamwork.