3.5/5 - Well this was nice and fun and a pretty cool idea for an anthology!
A group of teen aliens crashland on Earth to rescue the captain's brother who is now a famous movie star in the USA.
If you think that sounds kinda crazy, it is. But it's also a lot of fun and a good way to see a bunch of queer teens around the States, interact with a bunch of aliens and realise how aliens can be relatable to us queer folk.

Here's the thing: it did feel a tad bit too easy in the way that every one accepted the alien situation super easily and they were all very happy to help and open up to strangers, I mean... aliens!! And of course each alien landed in a place where a queer teen with similar issues to them were there to help and become their friend over the course of five minutes...
If you're able to look past that, you'll have a great time though.

(One last thing: this could have been an incredible opportunity for found family subplots but it never occured to anyone!?)

Special shout out to One Last Shot Before the End of the World By Julian Winters and A Taste of Country by M.K. England which were stand-out stories for me.

If you know me, you probably know I’m a pretty big fan of anthologies, and I like to think I end up reading most YA ones, whether or not I know the authors. Why On Earth had a great mix of authors I already knew and loved (like Julian Winters), some I’d never read before but fell in love with, and others that I’ve read in previous anthologies and enjoyed reading more from!

I feel like this was a pretty balanced anthology with a good central theme that all the stories worked around without ever feeling too repetitive. I also really appreciated the wide variety of stories, from human coming of age to alien coming of age, humans falling in love with humans, aliens falling in love with humans, and a healthy dose of thinking about gender identity. While I definitely have a few favourites, I enjoyed reading all the stories and the overall arc that was captured!

All in all I had fun with this, and I definitely recommend if you like aliens, sci-fi in general, or you’re looking for a good anthology!

After all... aliens are just like us.

WHY ON EARTH is out now—an interconnected anthology of stories following a group of teen aliens accidentally crashing into the Pacific Ocean in search of their captain, Iona's brother Max who came to Earth on a mission five years ago and never came back. He's not dead, he's just... a movie star? And in a boy band?? And living amongst the humans???

Told from a new perspective each chapter, we follow the alien crew's mission to save Max after they all crash into a different city across the US. Now they all have to rely on help from internet friends they've never met in-person, strangers who are having an awful vacation but can't understand them because their translator device broke, and tourist trap gift shop owners who know someone who knows someone who knows Max.

But that's okay! The invasion isn't all bad for us humans in this story. Sometimes being trapped in an elevator with your crush who you've barely talked to or rushing around trying to fix the very expensive outfit that a movie star was supposed to wear to a premiere tonight that you spilled coffee on really puts thing into perspective and brings you closer to the people you love.

I'm not typically one for anthologies—I've tried reading several before and enjoyed them but not *gotten into them*, you know? But I just had to pick this one up when I saw one the cast of editors and contributors—some of my favorite authors like Rosiee Thor, Julian Winters, Eric Smith, and M.K. England, plus authors whose work I've heard great things about like Maya Gittelman, Laura Pohl, Rebecca Kim Wells, and Beth Revis, as well as new-to-me authors Alex Brown, SJ Whitby, Emily Lloyd-Jones, and Vania Stoyanova.

The story building in WHY ON EARTH that makes the chapters flow despite being by different authors is a work of art and you can tell just how much love and effort and fun went into writing it. I'm so glad I requested this one and you should do yourself a favor and pick it up too!

Thank you to Colored Pages Book Tour and Page Street YA for including me on their book tour and providing me with an ARC.

Thank you to TBR and Beyond for providing me with an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

Why on Earth is a delightful and surprisingly cohesive YA sci-fi anthology that takes the concept of an accidental alien invasion and spins it into a series of heartfelt, funny, and thought-provoking stories. With contributions from both bestselling and debut authors, this collection offers a fresh perspective on identity, belonging, and the universal desire to be understood.

One of the standout elements of this anthology is how well the stories fit together despite being written by different authors. The overarching premise of a botched rescue mission that turns into an invasion provides a solid foundation, making the entire collection feel connected rather than disjointed. It’s a fun, relatively low-stakes read that manages to weave in deeper themes about being "othered," gender identity, and self-acceptance without feeling heavy-handed.

There’s also a strong thread of humor throughout the book, with plenty of pop culture references sprinkled in. Some of these references made me laugh out loud, while others felt a bit dated, but overall, they added to the playful and engaging tone of the stories.

At its heart, Why on Earth is a collection of coming-of-age tales wrapped in a sci-fi setting, making it a great choice for YA readers looking for a mix of adventure, self-discovery, and a touch of intergalactic chaos.

Final Thoughts:
If you love stories about aliens, identity, and finding your place in the universe, Why on Earth is a fantastic anthology to check out. It’s fun, heartfelt, and offers a refreshing twist on the classic coming-of-age narrative.

Thank you to @pagestreetya and @coloredpagesbt for the ARC of *Why on Earth: An Alien Invasion Anthology*. I must admit that I am not typically an anthology reader, which is evident by how long it has taken me to finish this collection. However, this anthology has been an enjoyable journey. Each story allows the human characters and aliens to shine, providing unique perspectives and challenging the common human belief about aliens.

Rather than being portrayed as horrible creatures intent on harming humans, the aliens in this collection are depicted as kind and loving beings who are simply trying to help someone who does not wish to be saved. Throughout their journeys in different parts of America, they all grapple with the same communication barriers.

Ultimately, this anthology showcases the beauty of the literary form. While not every reader will connect with every story, there is something here for everyone.

This might be the most fun anthology that I’ve read to this point. I loved how the individual stories connected together. Each one, as the cover copy infers, explores love and identity. Some follow romantic relationships or hopes, while others explore a character’s dreams and what makes them feel they belong.

The opening story tells about an alien captain and her crew on a rescue mission to earth to retrieve a family member the captain fears is being held captive. Each story that follows connects to the stories that came before it in some way. Some of them include the same characters. Others witness the alien ship crash or lift off.

I enjoyed every single story. The individual stories feature an inclusive cast of characters. The authors captured a sense of humanity, wonder, and what it means to be alive and connected to others. This is a great anthology for this moment in time. It’s filled with hope and humor. Definitely worth a read!

Several connected short stories detail what happens when an alien ship crash lands on Earth- but all they want is to “rescue” one of their own who has been living disguised as a human. Each story focuses on a different character and someone they meet on earth- I like that everyone is wholeheartedly in on making friends and helping the aliens to reunite! A lot of character growth in each short chapter- I’d love to read more!

This was an absolute DELIGHTFUL alien invasion anthology with some unique twists! We have a central plot of an alien invasion told through multiple short stories. What’s even better? It’s an accidental alien invasion and we get the story from the alien’s side.

So much fun! All of the authors’ voices blended so well together!

I had a lot of fun with this book! It's a science fiction read full of adventure, humor and yes some romance. Each chapter is told by a different author and you would think that it would have messed with the flow but it didn't and each story is unique and entertaining! The authors match well with each other! This was definitely one of my most enjoyable reads so far this year! Thank you Colored Pages Book Tours, Page Street Ya, Vania Stoyanova and Rosiee Thor for sharing this book with me!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Page Street Publishing | Page Street YA for the ARC copy they provided.

I only read a small portion of this book. Unfortunately, it just did not pull me in as I hoped it would. The writing was lovely and the storyline engaging, but Why on Earth simply wasn’t for me. This is obviously an opinion solely my own and I feel this is a book many people will enjoy. Just because I didn’t finish it shouldn’t stop you from picking it up and deciding for yourself.

Go forth and read! It’s the only way to know what you’ll love, and Why on Earth seems to have a plethora of characters to love.

What I liked most about this one was to see the humans through the alien who was living among us in disguise. It adds humor but also very interesting thoughts.

Aliens say gay rights! 🌈 Happy publication day to this beauty! 👽 🛸 This book is so important. It is the kind of book that I wish I had when I was younger. It is the kind of book that has something for everyone.

I don't normally read short story anthologies but now I'm going to read more because I really adored this one. Each story in Why on Earth follows a different alien after they get separated in a crash landing. Each alien has a meaningful impact on the life of one or more humans in their short story and each story had a meaningful impact on me too.

While not every story hit quite the same, I think that's the beauty of the anthology. There is something for everyone. Different identities were explored in each story and so many of them had me tearing up because I was THAT invested in the characters after just 20 or 30 pages. Even the stories I didn't quite mesh with as well as the others surprised me!

If you need more LGBTQ+ YA books in your life and more aliens, do yourself a favor and pick this one up.

This book had a lot of fun parts, and I loved all the different stories coming together to fuse this really interesting book.
I didn’t always connect with the writing, but I don’t think I was the intended audience. The humor is geared toward someone younger that just didn’t always hit for me. But the writing was fun, easy, and interesting. I just don’t think I was the geared audience for these stories! Any young person who enjoys fast paced science fiction with romance, and real life interconnection would like this.

I had a wonderful time reading this collection of short stories! It was wonderfully put together and I don't think there was a single one I didn't enjoy. Why on EARTH would anyone not read this?! I recommend it highly.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I love anthologies and this one was so good! Aliens are a plus as well. Some of my fave authors are in here, so I was so excited to read it! I also love the idea of the queer alien aspect.

What starts as a simple rescue mission for a crew of teen aliens to recover one of their own soon becomes an interstellar encounter no one will forget.

Edited by beloved YA author Rosiee Thor and YA talk show host Vania Stoyanova, the anthology crosses genre bounds to bring in tropes from romance and contemporary adventure with stories from Alex Brown, Beth Revis, Emily Lloyd-Jones, Eric Smith, Julian Winters, Laura Pohl, Maya Gittelman, M. K. England, Rebecca Kim Wells, and S. J. Whitby.

^from the publisher!

I am OBSESSED with this anthology of stories. The alien invasion was so incredibly cool and fun and I just really really loved these. The romance was fantastic. The friendship was wonderful.

The stories had me literally squealing with excitement. I especially loved the story with Alex for the squeal factor!! I can’t even choose a favorite because I’d literally read a full book on each and every short story. They’re that good.

AAAAAAHHHH. Okay this is one of my most anticipated this year, and I can now report that it didn't let me down 🥹

Why on Earth, as a whole anthology, was lovely and entertaining. It's equal parts funny, adventurous, and introspective. I think the authors did a great job crafting stories that interweave with each other, while also creating stories that represent being human and/or how it relates to being an alien.

Some of my favorite stories in here are:
- One Last Shot Before the End of the World By Julian Winters
- Red Carpet Blues by Rebecca Kim Wells
- A Taste of Country by M.K. England
- The Road Less Traveled (Because There's a Detour Sign) by Emily Lloyd-Jones

I'm on a book tour for this book, with Colored Pages this February! Please look out for my post on my blog/booksta soon! 🥹

(Thanks to Colored Pages and Page Street YA for having me and sending an ARC. This of course did not affect my overall opinion of the book.)

What a charming short story collection! Lately have been feeling burned out by both YA and story collections, yet this series of interconnected tales kept me interested, amused, and charmed. Usually I put "standouts" in a review, which can mean anything from "these are the only stories I liked" to "these were the best of a good bunch," but the best thing about this collection is that it's so SOLID. Every story is equally as good as the next, whether about love, family, or a singing fish plaque.

Rated 4.75 stars on Storygraph

Wow, what a fantastic , queer, interconnected anthology!

Why on Earth is a series of interconnected short stories, wrapped up in one anthology. The book starts with aliens preparing to land on Earth/Terra with the intent to rescue Captain Iona’s brother Max from the Terrans. Max went on a 3-month mission to the planet 5 years ago, and is obviously being held against his will as he has become a famous boy band member and movie star. But the landing goes wrong, and the young aliens (who definitely shouldn’t have snuck out of their houses to fly to Terra), get scattered across the U.S.

The stories that follow are a series of interconnected events about the aliens’ encounters with humans, and human encounters with the aliens. They’re queer, written by a diverse group of authors, and it was a genuinely fun read! Themes of hope, fitting in, loving yourself, loving others, joy, humanity, and (found) family appear in lots of these stories.

My ONLY hang back from giving this book a full 5 stars is that I wanted one more story: we started with all of the aliens together on the ship, and I would have liked a conclusion to the anthology to be a story of all the aliens coming back together and figuring out what happens next. It would have been such a nice little wrap up to the whole thing!

I highly recommend this anthology, and I need to give a HUGE thank you to the publisher for sending me a physical ARC and an eARC in exchange for an honest review. A thank you to NetGalley for the eARC as well.

DNF at 40%

The premise is the best thing about this. I liked Julian Winter's entry in the anthology but the rest have fallen flat thus far.