A Field Guide to the Aliens of Star Trek: The Next Generation

Book excerpt: ONE KID’S CONTINUING MISSION: CATALOG ALL ALIEN LIFE FROM STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION. These are the voyages of Joshua Chapman. In 1990 at 11 years old, he wrote a field guide to the alien races of Star Trek: The Next Generation for school. He continued the project through his awkward teen years and into reluctant adulthood. Boldly go from season to season and learn about Acamarians to Zibalians. Explore strange new feelings, like Joshua’s obsession with Data, and Joshua’s angst toward his mother, who’s more terrifying than a Yridian’s face. Engage... with humanity at its weirdest. “One of my favorite artistic discoveries of the last few years, in any medium. It's funny, touching, wholly convincing, and even profound—the kind of book you'll want to give to every misfit adolescent you now know or once did, which is to say everyone who was ever worth knowing.” –Kevin Brockmeier, O. Henry Prize winning author of Things That Fall from the Sky