On the HahaFiction shelf
The Humans
An alien takes the place of Cambridge mathematician Andrew Martin to stop humanity from benefiting from his discovery. Living among Andrew's wife, teenage son and dog forces the visitor to reconsider the species he has come to distrust.
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What makes it funny?
The opening narrator explains humanity to other aliens as though our existence needs proving. Eyebrows puzzle him, and the rules around clothes seem almost inexhaustibly complicated. Readers in book groups repeatedly single out the alien's deadpan response to human customs as a reason they laughed.
The comedy at work
Haig lets the visitor describe familiar habits without accepting our explanations for them. His account places ordinary conversation and our efforts to be happy under skeptical scrutiny, while poetry begins to disturb his certainty that humans are only ridiculous.
Try this if…
The curious outsider gives science-fiction readers a way into an intimate story about family and belonging. Publishers Weekly finds humor in his growing wonder, and readers describe the book as funny, heartwarming and thoughtful.
Good to know
The philosophical passages divide readers: one found them excessive, and another reported struggling to continue. Publishers Weekly also finds the novel sentimental at times. Expect reflection on human life alongside the jokes.
A few distinguishing details
- Human customs explained to a skeptical alien audience
- A mathematician's household seen by his replacement
More funny science fiction
Sources & further reading
- Publisher
Publisher
- Reader discussion
Reader discussion
- Read the opening
Reading sample
- Publishers Weekly review
Review
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