Description
“Anderson’s vision of alien invaders is captivating: They bring advanced technology but are infatuated with classic pop culture. So two human teens turn a 1950s-style relationship into a TV show to make some cash off them.”–Entertainment Weekly
“In the near sci-fi future envisioned by M.T. Anderson in his slim and coruscating young-adult novel ‘Landscape With Invisible Hand,’ human adolescents flirt and banter for the pay-per-view pleasure of earth’s new overlords, a squat species of alien known as the vuvv…In this bitter, witty story for readers ages 14 and older, Adam’s only hope seems to lie in winning a lucrative trans-galactic art prize—until he hits on an even more radical solution.”—The Wall Street Journal
National Book Award winner M. T. Anderson returns to future Earth in a sharply wrought satire of art and truth in the midst of colonization.
When the vuvv first landed, it came as a surprise to aspiring artist Adam and the rest of planet Earth — but not necessarily an unwelcome one. Can it really be called an invasion when the vuvv generously offered free advanced technology and cures for every illness imaginable? As it turns out, yes. With his parents’ jobs replaced by alien tech and no money for food, clean water, or the vuvv’s miraculous medicine, Adam and his girlfriend, Chloe, have to get creative to survive. And since the vuvv crave anything they deem “classic” Earth culture (doo-wop music, still-life paintings of fruit, true love), recording 1950s-style dates for the vuvv to watch in a pay-per-minute format seems like a brilliant idea. But it’s hard for Adam and Chloe to sell true love when they hate each other more with every passing episode. Soon enough, Adam must decide how far he’s willing to go — and what he’s willing to sacrifice — to give the vuvv what they want.
