Night the Heads Came [School & Library Binding]

William Sleator (Author), Puffin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1998 | Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

There's no such thing as an alien--at least, that's what Leo thinks until he and his friend Tim are abducted one night. When Leo comes to, Tim is gone, and no one believes his story. After Leo sees a psychiatrist and undergoes hypnosis, even he doesn't believe his story. But then memories begin to surface, and when Tim suddenly returns, Leo knows they are in otherworldly, extraterrestrial danger. The author's many fanswill find plenty here to please. ---- Kirkus Reviews William Sleator is the author of many enormously popular science-fiction and suspense thrillers for young adults. He divides his time between Boston and Bangkok.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Aliens abducted Tim and Leo. Now Tim is missing, Leo has amnesia and everyone is endangered by extraterrestrials. "For those whose idea of mind candy includes plenty of slimy creepy-crawlies, it may be just the ticket," said PW. Ages 10-14.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-10?One night Leo and his artist friend Tim are abducted by aliens. The kidnapping follows the standard scenario described by those who claim to have undergone such an experience (the car engine dies, they are taken up into a hovering spacecraft, and subjected to strange medical procedures), but these aliens are different. The physical work in their society is done by tall, thin creatures with tiny heads, operating under the order of squashy bodiless heads with multiple protruding eyes. After the medical procedures, during which they speak of their enemies, the Others, they keep Tim but return Leo to Earth with his memory erased. After a tense encounter with both sets of parents, Leo has a hypnosis session with the strange Dr. Viridian, who, for purposes of his own, obscures Leo's real memory of the event and supplants it with a false one. Two days later Tim returns, appearing to have aged two years, and with vivid three-dimensional drawings he did of destroyed civilizations and alien worlds. Now a cat and mouse game ensues, as the boys question the motives of the Heads, suspect that Dr. Viridian is one of the Others, and wonder what to do with Tim's drawings. It is not until the very end of the book that the boys (and readers) find out what is going on and who is good and who is bad. Although perhaps not as original as some of Sleator's earlier work, this fast-paced science fiction romp is very entertaining and will keep readers turning the pages.?Lyle Blake Smythers, Library of Congress, Washington, DC
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• School & Library Binding
• Publisher: Tandem Library (June 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0613084454
• ISBN-13: 978-0613084451
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 6.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,921,791 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good, but not one of Sleator's best, December 21, 1999

By 

Louise Dana - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Night the Heads Came (Puffin Novel) (Mass Market Paperback)

Leo is driving his friend Tim to New York, where Tim has an appointment with a publisher who is interested in Tim's drawings, when the two are seized by strange, dirty aliens who take their blood. Leo awakes with no memory of what happened, and there is no trace of his friend Tim. His story of what happened--"I don't remember"--sounds like a more than ordinarly pathetic excuse, until a psychiatrist begins working on him to recover memories. Strangely, those memories are not of what really happened....This book lacks Sleator's usual carefully structured plot--it just flows along, helter-skelter. Also lacking is strong characterization and the tensions between humans that Sleator usually works in as a sub-plot, and that's quite a loss. But it's a good, fast-paced read, with a eyebrow-raising twist at the end.

3.0 out of 5 stars alien abduction thriller, April 14, 2008

By 

sf reader (nj, usa) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Night the Heads Came (Puffin Novel) (Mass Market Paperback)

Poor Leo and his friend Tim get abducted by very dirty, messy aliens who return Leo but not his friend. He does not remember what happened and is told by the police to see a psychoanalyst. Dr Viridian unfortunately turns out to be from another group of aliens and scrambles poor Leo's memories even further. Leo begins to realize there are two groups of aliens fighting for dominance of the planet and he and Tim are pawns in the game. Leo is unfortunately the only believable character in the book and it is written from his viewpoint which is slightly immature. The echo friendly ending is mildly predictable but the ending twist is excellent. I would recommend this book to younger readers who can tolerate the slightly bloody ending.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An awsome book, March 21, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Night the Heads Came (Hardcover)

The Night the Heads Came is a pretty good book if you like sci-fi with aliens and heads in them. A sixteen year old boy named Tim was driving in his car with his best friend Leo. They woke up the next day thinking that aliens or the heads attacked them. The following day Tim's dad took them to a psychiatrist because Leo and Tim didn't no what happened. They told the psychiatrist about the heads but he didn't believe them, he said the aliens put a false memory in their heads hoping that none would find out about it. Tim told Dr.Viridain about a dream or what he thought happened before he was abducted. He said aliens brought him up into there space shuttle so he could save the world.

A few days later the aliens where back for Tim and Leo. Leo called another doctor about people getting abducted by aliens and she made an appointment for him. That night after the appointment he was driving home and lost control over the steering wheel, the aliens were controlling it. He started speeding a little faster until he saw Tim on the side of the road with a portfolio of drawings in it. Leo pressed on the brake and stopped Tim jumped in and hung on. I asked him what's going on and he said, "they like my drawing". As they went home there parents where there waiting for Tim because they where really worried. That night the aliens and heads sorrounded the house wanting Tim and his drawings. Leo said not to go out of the house because they wanted u to take over the world like the others. You'll have to read it to find out what happens to Tim and his drawings!