See You in the Cosmos

by: Jack Cheng

One of my goal after finishing my degree was to read one or two books every week. That’s why, this week, I tried to read and finished this book called, See You in the Cosmos. This particular book was written by Jack Cheng, a fresh new face amidst the large and still- growing circle of young adult writers. Don’t get the wrong idea though, Jack Cheng already had written a book way back circa 2013 called “These Days”, which is his actual first book ever written and is quite a delightful book altogether as well, just on a different degree, because that one is for the more mature audiences. This second book however, is for the young readers, its Jack Cheng’s first entry on the YA domain and for the record, he did a remarkable job on his first try. This book after its released and early run on the bookstores, has already garnered an award, the Golden Kite Award under the young reader fiction category. That just solidifies how worth of an enjoyable read this book is.

So, unto what this book is all about, don’t worry, I delicately chose what details to include in this brief review to avoid spoilers.

The Structure

First off, I just want to talk about how this book was written. If ever you would’ve have the chance to read this book for yourself, we might find its structure a little bit new, something unusual per say. Jack Cheng architected the way the story will be presented in this intricate form of voice recordings, which in the story is recorded by the protagonist, kind of like a POV style of presentation, which is in fact a central part of the overall story. He, Jack Cheng, did this so cleverly, that the readers will enjoy this fresh new experience in which they will feel that they’re actually hearing or rather reading a great adventure take place, in the eyes of a young boy. The way he incorporates this style of writing so well that the readers will feel the story being authentic, realistic and so immersive. I can’t stop thinking how great it would be if one will try this as an audiobook, as I’ve heard recently that there are actual audiobooks version of this being released. The way this book was written makes me feel that “Catcher in the Rye” vibes, just in a fresher and much immersive sense.

The Plot

The story revolves around the little adventure an eleven-year-old boy named Alex Petroski had, together with his dog Carl Sagan (yep, the dog was named after the real life late astronomer). All throughout the entire book, starting from the premise until the ending, we are presented with this narrative, which are voice recordings by Alex, where in the story, he is going to send to the aliens in the outer space for them to hear and learn about humanity, in which actually, the aliens won’t be hearing these recordings, it’s us the readers who does. The book starts off with the introduction of who Alex Petroski is, the main protagonist of the story. He was a young but a very bright and knowledgeable boy for his age who adores rockets, and really loves the outer space. He has this dog which he named after his all-time favorite hero, Carl Sagan and a somewhat estranged family.

In the beginning of the book, he talks about a lot of stuff regarding his family, a little vanilla on the details, talking about his mother being all alone all the time, his brother being away, stuff about his father, but by reading between the lines, these first few details will actually help the readers grasp the setting of the story, its issues and predicaments. Which for the record, was done so cleverly subtle, presenting these principal details through the eyes of the boy, our protagonist, in which he sees the things around him so purely and innocently. Like there’s a part in the story where Alex first introduce Carl Sagan, which goes like this –

Then I took him back to my house and my mom was lying on the sofa watching her shows like she usually does, and I told her I got the groceries but I got a pup also and I’ll take good care of him I promise, I’ll play with him and feed him and give him a bath and all the stuff you’re supposed to say.

And she said, You’re in the way! So I got out of the way. My best friend Benji’s mom would freak if he brought home a pup, but my mom, she doesn’t care as long as I make us dinner and don’t bother her when she’s watching her shows. She’s a pretty cool mom.

Parts of the book like this one really makes the reader feel sympathetic with Alex, its done so effectively, you can’t help to feel sorry for Alex who is obliviously unaware of the sad things around him because of him being young and pure, but at the same time adore his sense of kindness and him having a heart of gold.

It then shifts to the main arc of the story, in which Alex Petroski is saying, that these recordings are really meant for the beings outside the Earth, how he tells that he painted his iPod gold (a side note, I haven’t yet said the detail about having the voice-overs recorded in an iPod, it’s a vital part actually, my bad) in reference to what his all-time hero, Carl Sagan did with the late astronomer’s golden record and he was planning to blast it off the earth with the help of his self-made DYI rocket. He was going to execute the said plan by attending this prestigious rocket camp known as Southwest High-Altitude Rocket Festival or SHARF. He goes to the camp alone, without his mother prohibiting him for doing so nor even at least asking how he will manage to do so. Along the way he meets the rest of the cast which are all interesting casts especially this eccentric guy who I thought has an exciting potential in the story.

After a few backstories here and there about the new characters while the SHARF arc was taking place, the story will then drag into much more outrageous adventure that the readers will expect for a young boy to have. By certain dilemmas regarding Alex’s father, the newly formed gang consisting of Alex and his new-found friends will travel to new destinations, making the story more exciting as every page is turned. That is where I’ll cut this gist, for I don’t want to spoil the entire book, which I had trouble not doing up to this very part. I hope this had already piqued your interest.

My Thoughts

Alex Petroski – Our main protagonist. Throughout the entire book, we see the story take place through his perspective with a little few exceptions by which a few casts like his sister who is later introduced on the story gives a few recordings of her own. The thing about Alex is that, he feels really authentic by on his own merit. The way he was written, still being a young boy but a mind and way of thinking far greater than his actual age really feels relatable in a sense. This character of his, an amalgamation of a young kind heart, still not knowing how miserable life can get and of wonderful bright mind is truly easy to be compassionate with. The line where is saying his actual age is 11 years old, but his responsibility age is for 13’s, it really just pulls the strings right. Throughout the entire plot, we could see the development in Alex’ character. From him being just fine on how things were especially regarding with the mystery of his father, unto him looking for the truth about everything about his life and longing for the love from his parents that he deserves so much.

There are times that it might seem the story is a little leaning on different tropes like the ever eternal “absent family trope”, and unlikely things, for example; how Alex could travel to far places on his own, and having sudden detours to top it off, but I guess it will depend on the readers themselves. If you won’t be much keen about stuff like these and just accept and appreciate the book for what it is, you would get a quite delightful read like I did.

A lot of characters in this story also deserve to be put into a proper review but due to restraining myself to get you guys spoiled, it is inevitable to not say much about them. I will just remark that their addition to the plot really spiced everything up to a point where in you will be in the edge of your sit throughout the entire story. Some reader might say that these other characters are quite easy to be put into disbelief, but I will say otherwise. Even though these corky characters are a bit too unusual to be believable, with how they think and act, but because of Alex’s magic way of bringing people together through his endearing personality and beaming kindness, these characters become passable enough, even for them to shine on the story.

Also, during the climactic parts of the book, certain mature things are tackled on; like mental illness, familial responsibility, relationships, adulthood and most importantly, how far should we go in order to support our family. These parts for me were the icing to the cake. It’s like during the later parts of the story, which the plot really shifts unto another story altogether, really offers a new flavor. It’s not all that corky and fun, with all the antics and witty lines that were thrown off here and there, there’s much more to it. Towards the ending, we see the relatability and utter empathetic the story gets.

In conclusion, this book is really as heart-warming as a book could ever get. It touches the important aspects that we should consider in our modern-day family. Especially nowadays were being a broken family is just being taken to be normal. It syncs with how important it truly is for a young child to have a parent or parents’ guide him through his growth into adulthood. It also delves into the idea that being true to your feelings about everything around you really mean a lot, it changes how things will fall into place, it shapes our futures outcome. This story beams the idea that if with every decision we take, that we don’t consider our own beliefs and feelings, we will never truly get what we aspire on. That’s why in the eyes of a young boy, wherein he doesn’t lie with how he feels, everything will be possible, achievable even.
With that context being said, this book is really a remarkable one, about a young boy, aspiring to do the purest thing which is to share what’s his life like to the beings he doesn’t know yet, and ending up realizing how such life could make unexpected turns, with all the simplest and hardest decisions combined, one just has to believe that there something great yet to come.

Book Recommendations

Upon finishing this book which I truly enjoyed, it makes me remember some novels that I read in the past, books that also has this similar vibe of being in a personal view of standpoint of a young individual. If you enjoyed reading this book “See You in the Cosmos”, you might enjoy these ones as well:

• Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger – both has this adolescent, oblivious about the things around kind of vibe. Both of them share the context of a young boy narrating the things around him take place as he makes different life decisions along the way. This one is a classic though, and a very popular book if I might add. If you haven’t read this one out, I suggest you read this one next right away.

• Absolutely Almost by Lisa Graff – Alex’s endearing but sometimes naïve persona really has this similarity to the character in this book, whose name is Albie. If you ever felt sympathetic towards Alex, you might feel the same way towards Albie.

• Wonder by R. J. Palacio - This book centers toward a similar kid like Alex, a young warm-hearted boy named August, who has this great love for science and discovery. Both books have this comparable way of narration, and both tackles things about family and most importantly trusting one’s capabilities. This book will really warm your heart for it is about of something vulnerable, I can’t recommend this book highly enough.

• Room by Emma Donoghue – This one however is a different read. It’s a suspense novel. But much like See You in the Cosmos, this is narrated through the eyes of a young child. And that’s just how the two were similar. But fret not, this is an exceptional book, heartwarming as well even being a suspense novel, and I might do a book review about this one in the future.