Jordie and Joey Fell from the Sky
by Judi LaurenPublished by: Jolly Fish Press on April 19, 2022
Genres: Contemporary, Middle Grade
Pages: 240
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
Twin brothers Jordie and Joey have never met their parents. Maybe it’s because they aren’t from this planet?
When another kid at school tried to force Jordie to show him the “crop circles” on his back that prove he’s an alien, it was Joey who took the kid to the ground. And when the twins got kicked out of their foster home because Joey kissed the other boy who lived there, it was Jordie who told him everything would be okay. And as long as Jordie and Joey are together, it will be. But when the principal calls their current foster mother about a fight at school, the boys know she’ll be done with them. And, from spying in their file, they also know they’re going to be separated.
Determined to face the world side by side rather than without one another, Jordie and Joey set off to find their birth parents. From Arizona to Roswell to Area 51 in the Nevada desert, the twins begin a search for where they truly belong. But Jordie’s about to discover that family isn’t always about the ones who bring you into the world, but the ones who help you survive it.
Content Tags:
Perfect for readers who want:
- Heartwarming contemporary about finding one’s self.
- Very cute sibling bonds, willing to risk anything for each other.
- Cute adventure to find one’s roots.
- Possible aliens? Probably.
- Found family.
- Orphans in the system just looking for a place to belong.
Many thanks to Jolly Fish Press and TBR and Beyond Tours for a copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
Orphan twin boys who are convinced they’re descended from aliens? Color me curious. The blurb for this one absolutely grabbed my attention and demanded I read it. Who wouldn’t want to be descended from aliens, first of all?! And second, I have a soft spot in my heart for children who are just trying to find a home. Call me sentimental, I suppose. What can I say?
Jordie and Joey Fell from the Sky is a heartwarming story about two orphan twins trying to find their place in the world. One is convinced they’re descended from aliens, and the other is willing to go along with anything, as long as they stay together. Both are in for an adventure.
This book ended up being not quite what I expected, but not in a bad way. Honestly, going in, I wasn’t sure exactly where the story would go, so it’s pretty natural that I be a bit surprised. I enjoyed the journey, though. The boys are easy to relate to, and I love their friend they bring on the adventure with them. The ending seemed a bit sudden and almost incomplete in some ways, but it fit the overall message of the story and left on a hopeful note, which is pretty common in middle grade.
Jordie is absolutely convinced that he and his brother are aliens. And maybe they are. They were both mysteriously found abandoned in a cornfield, both have strange marks on their back, and they have no recollection of their lives before they were seven.
At the very least, it’s certainly a mysterious situation. I think we can all agree on that one. The alien narrative was just plain fun. I love me a good alien mystery. Even though I don’t really believe in aliens. But, I mean, how can you not love that conspiracy theory, “someone else is out there” sort of vibe to a story?!
Jordie has basically dedicated his life to proving the boys’ mysterious background and finding their alien ancestors. Surely someone will come back for them, and they must have had a good reason for leaving them behind. If this doesn’t just break your heart, I don’t know what will. Ugh, my poor feels. I imagine this is a common sentiment for orphaned children who are struggling to understand why they were abandoned and trying to make sense of it all.
The story is also riddled with small alien facts and tidbits and close encounters that will easily delight science fiction fans. As I said, I’m not a huge fan of aliens, but even I enjoy a bit of alien mysteries now and then!
She notices me looking and gives me a grim smile. “Our chances of developing skin cancer later in life have gone up a considerable percentage over the last two days.”
That . . . wasn’t exactly something I wanted to hear.
Joey grunts. “Maybe if Jordie and I aren’t actually humans, we can’t get skin cancer.”
“That’s a fair point,” she says with a nod. “Maybe you can’t experience puberty either.”
“There wasn’t a need for that.” Joey scowls. “Aliens probably turn out way better than human guys after puberty.”
The relationship between Jordie and Joey is absolutely adorable. Afraid of being split up after they find themselves in trouble again, the twins enlist their friend, Nadia, and go on an adventure to find their birth parents.
I absolutely love sibling bonds. And what could be stronger than the bond between twins who have grown up in the system and are the only consistent people in each other’s lives? The depth of caring between the boys is out of this world (pun only slightly intended). That’s not to say that they’re the same, because they absolutely are not. Jordie is intent on his alien theory and sort of has his head in the clouds, wanting so desperately to find a legitimate reason behind their abandonment and the absence of their family. Joey, on the other hand, is more practical, doing whatever he needs to keep himself and his brother safe and together in the face of challenges.
They’re not alone on this adventure to discover their origins, though. They bring along friend and classmate Nadia, whose parents are lawyers and who is studying the law herself. Nadia is determined to find a legal loophole that will allow the twins to stay together in the face of the threat to put them in separate homes. While Nadia means well, she doesn’t always say the right thing, as someone who has two loving parents. Still, she’s there for the twins through it all, and I really want to see their friendship continue!
“What about them?” Nadia asks.
Nadia’s eyes widen. “You’d just steal money?”
“Do I sound like I’m proud of it?” Joey asks.
“Yeah, a little.”
What starts as sort of a light-hearted, sci-fi ode to aliens quickly becomes a story that will tug on your heartstrings, especially as the reader learns more and more about what Joey and Jordie have been through in the foster system.
I have never been in the foster system. While it’s true that I didn’t know my biological father until recently, I was adopted by a wonderful man who raised me and has been there for me since I was a toddler. Sure, I had the traditional thoughts about why my biological father wasn’t around and why he didn’t want to be part of my life (a whole complex story for another time), but it definitely wasn’t the same. Reading about Jordie and Joey grappling with why they were abandoned, why they couldn’t find a forever home (even though they aren’t bad kids), and so desperate to find their origins . . . well, it just broke my heart! It’s hard not to feel for these kids.
His gaze shifts to the lake on the side of the cabin. The sun is glinting off it, making the surface look like diamonds. “Everyone’s got a different opinion on that, kid.”
“I know. But I want to hear yours.”
He clicks his tongue against his teeth, then jams his hands back into the pockets of his overalls. “They were way more advanced in 1947 than we were. It stands to reason they’re still way more advanced than we are today, even with all the stuff we’ve accomplished. I don’t think they’re looking to take over. I think they’re just . . . looking.”
“For what though?”
He shrugs. “What’re any of us looking for?”
“If you don’t think they’re trying to hurt earth, then why would you tell us not to go digging into it?”
“Because you can waste your whole life looking for something like that.” He gives me another look. “And because if they are just looking, then that means they’re lost. And lost creatures are dangerous and desperate creatures.”
Expect a happy ending, but without everything fully wrapped up. Because that’s usually the case with kids in foster care.
While I’m a bit of two minds about the ending, it felt realistic. One big middle grade trope (for better or worse) is that books should have a happy (or at the very least hopeful) ending. That’s sometimes hard to do when you’re talking about children in foster care, who sometimes never get their happy ending. Especially ones like Jordie and Joey, who have been passed around so often and not always to good homes.
So while there’s a very heavy-handed “fade to black” element to this ending, it did justice to the situation. Who knows whether Jordie and Joey live happily ever after or find the home they’ve been looking for? The reader can hope they do, but I like this compromise, where the author isn’t promising that everyone in the foster system is going to end up with a happy ending (which, to me, inspires false hope). Instead, she does give some hope, which feels like the perfect balance between the two!
“Were you born there?” I ask.
“No. I was born in Oklahoma, actually.” He smiles a little. “After college, I just picked the closest city that had a cool name and went with it.” He shrugs. “You can make pretty weird decisions in your early twenties.”
I’ve already made pretty weird decisions, and I’m only twelve.
About Judi Lauren
Judi Lauren was born in the Midwest and misses those winters. She now resides in an area where the bugs are way too large. She has an unnatural obsession with Chicago, Dean Winchester, and Friends (the TV show.)
Judi is represented by Heather Cashman of Storm Literary Agency, where she writes books for kids and teens about family, friendship, and surviving impossible things.
In her spare time, she also works as an editor at Radish Fiction. You can connect with her on Instagram @judilauren.
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I appreciated the ending, as well, and the feeling that things likely are going to be pretty good for them from now, even if not perfect.
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