Maxx is an alien on a research trip to Earth. He isn't supposed to make contact with the humans but when he isn't getting any response from his own planet, he befriends a smallish human called Jibreel at an alien exhibition. One of the things Maxx wants to learn about is human feelings, because his species don't have them. As the story progresses, Maxx learns all about human feelings and that some humans are much nicer than others!
This is a wonderful story, told in a simple diary form about friendship, emotions and fitting in. It is told in child friendly language with a few fun alien words thrown in. The addition of questions about the story is great as it encourages children to talk about and remember what has happened.
The reason for not giving this book five stars, is that there are places where I felt Maxx showed a little too much understanding...I'm not sure this would bother a young reader though.
I would definitely consider using this book in school to talk about emotions and refugees as part of PSHE lessons. For independent readers, I'd recommend this book for confident readers age 6+
I received an eARC of this book from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.