I read this as an ARC from Netgalley.com.

On Earth as It Is on Television follows the lives of four people as they deal with Earth's new reality - aliens are here, and they /aren't/ invading... or doing much of anything, as far as anyone can tell.

I picked it up for the premise, as I'm a sucker for first contact stories, but I have to admit that it was only the lure of the cats that kept me going until the story really picked up about a third of the way through. Jane has a staccato and detached style of writing that can take some getting used to, though it also lent itself well to humor. I'd give it a solid three stars and a recommendation for anyone who likes stories based on interpersonal relationships with a hint of sci-fi thrown in.

It was just another day. Then the UFOs appear in the sky. The aliens made no demands, no statements, and no declarations of war. They came, briefly hovered over major cities, and then abruptly left. All that remains are questions.

Why did they come?
Why did they go?
Are they coming back?
Why did all the cats run away?

What unfolds is an outlandish, slice-of-life, science fiction adventure that tells the story of what it means to be human.

On Earth as It is on Television is not your conventional first contact story. It is full of heart, fun, sadness, cats, and bacon. No, really. So much bacon. I smiled so many times. I laughed out loud. I thought about my place in the world. If you enjoy quirky adventures with unique characters and a bit of ridiculousness, I highly recommend picking this up.

"Everything here is like TV, and then there's TV, and it's all just so . . . awesomely insane."

It happened just like in the beginning of 'Independence Day', with spaceships hovering menacingly over major cities around the globe. The world held its collective breath. And, then . . . nothing happened. The ships departed, and life went back to normal. Well, mostly normal. Cats and certain spouses began acting a little bit stranger than usual. Jinkies! Could it be possible that aliens are already living among us?

I kind of loved this. Quirky, and strange, off the wall, and funny enough to please my slightly warped sense of humor.

I was also gaga over the half-feral kids with their bizarre internet-speak language of chumbis, chonky, and slonks, and their skin-peeling plans to reveal the real aliens. (And, I'm pretty damned glad they were someone else's children.)

This wacky, off-kilter gem makes my best of the year list.

What a delightfully weird read!! And I mean that in the best way. If you like the odd, heart-warming sci-fi book with a healthy dose of cats, feral children, bacon, and aliens - this one is for you!

This book is SO unique, and I genuinely had no idea where it was going. Were the aliens real? Was it all a big hoax? How are all these people related? What’s going to happen at the end?

Then it all came together so nicely! This is a great story about life and family, and also the great impact of TV. It’s quirky and funny, plus it’s a memorable read that stands out among other books I’ve read this year.

Thank you NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the copy in exchange for my honest review!

I’m very particular about my science fiction. And this book checked every box on the list of things I’m looking for: engaging characters, quirky and interesting story, humorous undertones, etc. There’s just so much to like about what’s going on in this most impressive debut.
There’s been a gazillion of first contact stories, so it takes inventiveness and imagination to come up with something new and original.
But what has always interested me the most in fiction in general and science fiction in particular isn’t the aliens themselves so much as what their presence (and absence) can reveal about the earthlings.
At that this novel excels. Because at first, the aliens are merely spaceships the sky, there one day (setting of all kinds of apocalyptic vibes) and gone the next.
But then, there’s more to the story and it’s close to home than you might think.
Then novel follows several different people/several different families to see how this potential alien apocalypse affects them. It’s tricky talking about it, and I’d rather say less than risk giving away crucial plot points. Suffice it to say, there are some fun twists in there.
The entire book, despite its end-of-the-world vibes is very fun and funny, and who wouldn’t love (or want to read about) a charismatic alien.
They are surprisingly relatable. In fact, they have a peculiar passion for some of the worst things about the Earth: plastic, TV sitcoms, junk food. And on top of all that, they can also teach us a lesson or to about enjoying life.
On Earth as it is On Television, in space as it is here, the things that make us happy are not that different. I suppose that’s the moral of the story. Not that it overly concerns itself with being moralistic.
I already described it as fun and funny, so let’s go with awesome next. An awesome read. I enjoyed it very much. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this Advanced Readers Copy of On Earth as it is in Television by Emily Jane

One morning the world wakes to find dozens of alien spaceships hovering around earth. They hover for a short amount of time and then leave. But the questions of what they were doing and what or who they may have left behind remains, and why are all the cats behaving so weird all of a sudden? This book explores different families dealing with the aftermath of realizing they are not alone in the universe. This sharp and witty Sci-fi story tells an interesting -if somewhat off the wall- story which unfolds in surprising ways. The author weaves together hilarious characters and storylines together into a moving story of interstellar migrants.

If you are a fan of sci-fi or books about aliens, then you need to check this one out! I struggled a bit in the beginning to follow all of the characters, but I was determined to find out what happens, so I pushed through and I'm so glad that I did! I loved all of this, but I especially loved all of the cats. I know that sounds weird what talking about a book about aliens but trust me it is so good. Overall, I really enjoyed this, and I can't wait to see what else this author comes up with!

Thank you, Net Gallery, for the advanced copy of this book. I really enjoyed the story. It started off a little slow but became more fast paced in dealing with feral children, aliens, mind reading cats and road trips. Fun times and a good pool book.

This is one of my favorite reads of the summer so far. Emily Jane has written a sci-fi novel that is both hilarious and heartfelt. I had no idea where she was going with the story at first and even once I figured out what was coming I thoroughly enjoyed the journey. It's like first contact- but make it fun! And touching! I think this is a fantastic debut and I would love to see where Jane's creativity takes her next. Five feline-friendy stars.

This book was sweet, funny, deep and moving. I really was surprised by this book in all the good ways.

On Earth as it is on Television by Emily Jane
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What a fun and wacky book this was!
Imagine one day alien spaceships appeared above large cities across the planet. What would you do? This book explores how several people on the planet reacted, and the long term ramifications these extraterrestrials have on them.
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What I liked:
-Our POVs seemed random but as the story progressed it is made clear that they were precisely chosen to tell the overall story of the spaceships.
-The cats. 🐈🐈‍⬛🐱
-The humor. I chuckled a lot throughout my time with this book.
-I don’t want to give much away but I enjoyed the story’s take on the aliens and their interests.
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4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I would describe this as fun and almost lighthearted sci-fi. Not heavy, not really science-y. Just an amusing story.
Posted to instagram @staciathebookworm on 6/30/23

<i>Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.</i>

<i>On Earth as It Is on Television</i> is, at its core, a novel about love. Yes, it's technically about aliens, but it's mostly about love. Through the lens of a first contact story, this novel really seeks to examine what it means to be human, what about that experience is beautiful and unique, and what it means to love and support each other through unprecedented times. Each POV character embodies this idea perfectly. Blaine, in particular, really captured my heart with the way he is so incredibly in love with and in awe of his wife, and the way he struggles but never stops trying to connect with his two children.

Admittedly, I struggled at times with the shifting narrative POV's and the very stream-of-consciousness style of narration. I usually love stories with multiple POV characters, but I found it difficult to connect fully to each narrative branch. Some, like Blaine's were very well developed -- I didn't specifically count, but it felt like half the novel was from his POV. Others, like Heather, never really grabbed my attention and felt like strange intrusions to the story being told by other characters.

I also expected a much deeper and more profound connection to the idea of television. I kept waiting for the novel to say something really meaningful, but any message I could glean just felt a little shallow and obvious. It's definitely possible that I missed something, but if it was in there then it was easy enough to miss in the first place.

Ultimately, <i>On Earth as It Is on Television</i> is a charming, humorous, and uplifting read. I'll be curious to see what else the author writes in the future, and to see if that style grows on me a little more a few years from now.

This book was about 40% longer than it needed to be. Some of the stories did not mesh well at all and the writing felt muddled at times. The cat memes and lolcat speak was outdated and annoying. No wonder Mr Meow Mitts kept mum. I would have run away too.

Found the ending to be a bit unsatisfying.

3-3.5 stars
This was a super fun read and pretty enjoyable. On Earth as It Is on Television is broken up into three main points of view and how those three characters deal with the aftermath after aliens visit Earth only to disappear shortly after. It was a bit chaotic and sort of had a rambling tendency with excessive use of ellipses. It was a bit hard to follow sometimes because there was a tendency for a lot of characters to be talking at once and it would get a bit hard to follow but it was fun and I enjoyed it!

I liked the concept, characters and overall story. I also really liked the cover and title. The book seemed a bit more YA than I had hoped and that mostly showed up in the dialogue.

If you are looking for something super fun and different, I definitely think you will have a great time with this one. The plot is divided amongst three differing perspectives as an "alien invasion" happens and the population of the United States learns that aliens have lived amongst us for a while. You don't really see how these three perspectives are related until the later half of the novel, but I found each of them to be interesting in their own way. I think the novel had a really strong opening half and my interest in the book sort of wavered in the latter half, but I was still engaged enough to finish the novel. Something that I think I was really needing to enjoy this novel more was to have some sort of philosophical discussions - which the marketing for this book does promise. I think it's sprinkled here and there, but I did not find it really questioned humanity or what it means to share the universe with other life. It focused more on being an uplifting and humorous book, and I think if you go into this knowing that, you will enjoy it more!

I read the blurb and was exciting to dive into this based on that, but this missed the mark. What am I reading? Even ignoring the terrible formatting for the ebook, this is just a big ramble. You are just shoved it 0 to 100 and it just seems like a big acid trip.

A fun read, On Earth as It Is on Television also serves as a guide to rethinking the reality of and navigating a (possibly ongoing) extra-terrestrial visitation. Do we really think we could react as a society to this realization (which may even now be dawning on us), that we're not alone, any better than what we see of ourselves reflected in our social feeds? Will our prejudices and egos extend our bigoted wielding of borders to that of gravity wells and orbital paths on that fateful day (or are they, even now)? Or will we prove ourselves to be the anomaly of history, and rise above our mob judgements and the safety blanket of our fears? Suppose even this writer was not who he seemed, not exactly human (of which he can neither confirm nor deny), and yet also a person of dignity, worth, and enamored with the beauty of life; regardless of any commonality with humanity, would his review of this fascinating book be read in a disparaging or antagonistic light? Or is the dear reader, at this moment, moved with curiosity and openness, seeking to find that connection, that spark, that unites us all, human and otherwise? Said reader may find their time well spent in this book, experiencing not only the joy of a well crafted tale, but also the inspiration to rethink one's own habits of seeing and relating to others not quite like ourselves.

A truly original story of another "what if" story. The synopsis was intriguing enough to draw me in and the tory truly entertaining enough that I found myself finishing the book much too quickly. Different is not quite descriptive enough for this book, but I'm pretty sure you'll not find anything close to it. I enjoyed ON EARTH AS IT IS ON TELEVISION immensely and have already recommended it to my reading circle.