The Homecoming [Hardcover]

The Homecoming is one of the Millennium series of books published by Byron Preiss. Each book dealt with a different science fiction theme. The subject of Project Pendulum is dinosaurs (a subject that isn't exclusively in the realm of sf, like time travel or first contact, but dinosaurs do make occasional appearances in sf novels).

Dinosaurs left the Earth in appropriately large spaceships, hung out in suspended animation for quite a long time, and are now ready to reoccupy the planet. Their plan is complicated by the discovery that strange creatures called humans now occupy the Earth. The dinosaurs disagree as to their next step: some favor wiping out the humans with The Power while others want to negotiate. They settle for fact-finding, inviting humans to a meeting on one of their ships. Baxter, a former astronaut now in the business of public relations, is quickly tapped for the job of working things out with the dinosaurs.

Barry Longyear obviously didn't mean for this short novel (more of a longish short story) to be taken seriously. As comedy, it has its moments, particularly as Baxter tries to explain humor to the dinosaurs (Robert Klein playing the blues, tapping his leg, and singing "I can't stop my leg. I can't stop my leg" really is funny, but try explaining that to a dinosaur). Given the way the book ends, it might be intended to convey a serious message, but a rather obvious one.

Byron Preiss (1953-2005) was known for his efforts to marry the printed text with visual art. The Millennium series furthered that ambition by pairing stories with illustrations. The Homecoming features several black and white drawings by Alan Clark. He does a nice job on the dinosaurs. I'm no art critic, but the people in the drawings look like puppets carved from wood. Maybe that's what he intended. The hardcover is printed on bright white, heavy, probably acid-free paper, so if you can find a copy, it should last a long time.

The Homecoming is amusing, but not much more than that. I would give it 3 1/2 stars if that option were available.

I love Bary Longyear and this book did not disappoint. Suppose the dinosaurs did not become extinct, they just left, and now they have returned and they want their world back. My son absolutely adored this book from the time he was ten or eleven and, years later, he remembers it still. Both of us recommend it highly.