30-Day Wonder

The aliens came in peace. That's the problem. When the Monolithians touch down at an exclusive country club and announce they want a treaty with Earth, humanity should be thrilled. But these glowing visitors have a catch: everyone on the planet must 'act peaceful, love thy neighbor, and obey the law' - and they'll be watching. Sam Kent, a cynical newsroom reporter with a sharp wit and soft spot for the underdog, suddenly finds himself drafted as the aliens' chief publicist, tasked with selling peace to a species that never asked for it. What follows is a sly, acidly funny exploration of what happens when someone - or some thing - actually forces humanity to be good. Wilson's 1960s satire cuts both ways: at the absurdity of a press corps tasked with manufacturing consent, and at the darker question of whether virtue chosen freely is any virtue at all. The result is a peculiar kind of dystopian comedy where the apocalypse looks suspiciously like neighborliness.