The lunch lady is an alien and Earth is about to be invaded with eminent destruction as the goal. That’s not all: these invaders think humans are a tasty treat once cooked to the right temperature. What better choice than 10-year-old Matt to save the world in this laugh out loud adventure.
It all begins when Matt finds a cellphone on the sidewalk. His parents have yet to let him have one so Matt decides to secretly keep this unexpected gift. Not such a good idea especially when Matt goes to take a picture and the crossing guard appears as a monster alien. With help from Mrs. MacGillicuddy, that alien lunch lady, and friend Marcella, they “cook” up their own plan to hopefully send General Guggenheim and his giant spaceship far away to another galaxy.
Matt narrates the story with kid like humor and decision making. The plot moves along at a fast pace with frequent challenges for the characters. There are some scary moments but all are solved quickly.
With mostly short chapters (59 of them), PRESS 1 FOR INVASION is a great choice for a read-aloud. I’d also welcome a sequel. Bravo to the author for a perfectly entertaining middle grade debut.
BOOK BIRTHDAY: Sept. 9, 2025 PAGES: 320
J. A. Dauber is a professor of Jewish literature and American studies at Columbia University, where he has also served as director of its Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies. He lives right near there, with his family, so that he can walk to work and see if anyone has dropped anything. Like a phone. After all, you never know. He also wrote a YA novel about a teenage supervillain named Mayhem which won an award from the Children’s Book Council. Dauber received his undergraduate degree summa cum laude from Harvard and his doctorate from the University of Oxford, which he attended as a Rhodes Scholar.
Dauber has published many adult nonfiction and humor books—including Jewish Comedy and The Worlds of Sholem Aleichem, both finalists for the National Jewish Book Award. More recently he is the author of Mel Brooks: Disobedient Jew, American Comics: A History, and American Scary: A History of Horror, from Salem to Stephen King and Beyond.
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GIVEAWAY NEWS! The winning names have been drawn for my LUCKY 13 Giveaway. Congratulations to these three lucky readers:
DAY 1 Rosie Hollinbeck won the 3-book hardback set of the FRAMED series
Day 2 Melanie Delaney won Books 1-3 in the CITY SPIES series
Day 3 Danielle Hammelef won books 4-6 in the CITY SPIES series and the new novel, HURRICANE HEIST
I will get those books to you in the next week. Thanks to all who entered and more giveaways will be coming soon.
Always in the Middle... 
This sounds like a terrific book. I must say, the author’s bio was a surprise for a book like this. I’ll look for a copy. I could use a funny book. Thanks for the post.