224 pages · Released Jun 18, 2019 · Blackstone Publishing
Content report card
The Lesson parent’s guide: what’s inside
Medium confidence
LGBTQ+ themes
None · 0/5
What it offers
Educational value
Good · 3/5
A note for parents
The Lesson is a serious science fiction novel centered on first contact with aliens and escalating tensions that lead to conflict and tragedy. While not gratuitously graphic, the book deals with death (including a child's death), violence arising from cultural misunderstanding, and the moral consequences of power imbalances. The prose is literary and thoughtful rather than sensational, making it appropriate for mature teens interested in philosophical science fiction rather than younger readers.
An alien ship rests over Water Island. For five years the people of the US Virgin Islands have lived with the Ynaa, a race of superadvanced aliens on a research mission they will not fully disclose. They are benevolent in many ways but meet any act of aggression with disproportional wrath. This has led to a strained re...An alien ship rests over Water Island. For five years the people of the US Virgin Islands have lived with the Ynaa, a race of superadvanced aliens on a research mission they will not fully disclose. They are benevolent in many ways but meet any act of aggression with disproportional wrath. This has led to a strained relationship between the Ynaa and the local Virgin Islanders and a peace that cannot last. A year after the death of a young boy at the hands of an Ynaa, three families find themselves at the center of the inevitable conflict, witnesses and victims to events that will touch everyone and teach a terrible lesson.
