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Gremlins Go Home
Several hundred years ago a band of explorers were marooned on Planet Earth. Alas, the Little People are not strong on gadgetry, and they have had to while away the centuries of their youth, living for the day when they could get off this god forsaken mudball, this most benighted, desolate - and boring! - planetary slum in the Known Universe.
206 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 15, 1974
2 people are currently reading
80 people want to read
About the author
Ben Bova
715 books1,039 followersBen Bova was born on November 8, 1932 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1953, while attending Temple University, he married Rosa Cucinotta, they had a son and a daughter. He would later divorce Rosa in 1974. In that same year he married Barbara Berson Rose.
Bova was an avid fencer and organized Avco Everett's fencing club. He was an environmentalist, but rejected Luddism.
Bova was a technical writer for Project Vanguard and later for Avco Everett in the 1960s when they did research in lasers and fluid dynamics. It was there that he met Arthur R. Kantrowitz later of the Foresight Institute.
In 1971 he became editor of Analog Science Fiction after John W. Campbell's death. After leaving Analog, he went on to edit Omni during 1978-1982.
In 1974 he wrote the screenplay for an episode of the children's science fiction television series Land of the Lost entitled "The Search".
Bova was the science advisor for the failed television series The Starlost, leaving in disgust after the airing of the first episode. His novel The Starcrossed was loosely based on his experiences and featured a thinly veiled characterization of his friend and colleague Harlan Ellison. He dedicated the novel to "Cordwainer Bird", the pen name Harlan Ellison uses when he does not want to be associated with a television or film project.
Bova was the President Emeritus of the National Space Society and a past President of Science-fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA).
Bova went back to school in the 1980s, earning an M.A. in communications in 1987 and a Ph.D. in 1996.
Bova has drawn on these meetings and experiences to create fact and fiction writings rich with references to spaceflight, lasers, artificial hearts, nanotechnology, environmentalism, fencing and martial arts, photography and artists.
Bova was the author of over a hundred and fifteen books, non-fiction as well as science fiction. In 2000, he was the Author Guest of Honor at the 58th World Science Fiction Convention (Chicon 2000).
Hollywood has started to take an interest in Bova's works once again, in addition to his wealth of knowledge about science and what the future may look like. In 2007, he was hired as a consultant by both Stuber/Parent Productions to provide insight into what the world is to look like in the near future for their upcoming film "Repossession Mambo" (released as "Repo Men") starring Jude Law and Forest Whitaker and by Silver Pictures in which he provided consulting services on the feature adaptation of Richard Morgan's "Altered Carbon".
http://us.macmillan.com/author/benbova
Bova was an avid fencer and organized Avco Everett's fencing club. He was an environmentalist, but rejected Luddism.
Bova was a technical writer for Project Vanguard and later for Avco Everett in the 1960s when they did research in lasers and fluid dynamics. It was there that he met Arthur R. Kantrowitz later of the Foresight Institute.
In 1971 he became editor of Analog Science Fiction after John W. Campbell's death. After leaving Analog, he went on to edit Omni during 1978-1982.
In 1974 he wrote the screenplay for an episode of the children's science fiction television series Land of the Lost entitled "The Search".
Bova was the science advisor for the failed television series The Starlost, leaving in disgust after the airing of the first episode. His novel The Starcrossed was loosely based on his experiences and featured a thinly veiled characterization of his friend and colleague Harlan Ellison. He dedicated the novel to "Cordwainer Bird", the pen name Harlan Ellison uses when he does not want to be associated with a television or film project.
Bova was the President Emeritus of the National Space Society and a past President of Science-fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA).
Bova went back to school in the 1980s, earning an M.A. in communications in 1987 and a Ph.D. in 1996.
Bova has drawn on these meetings and experiences to create fact and fiction writings rich with references to spaceflight, lasers, artificial hearts, nanotechnology, environmentalism, fencing and martial arts, photography and artists.
Bova was the author of over a hundred and fifteen books, non-fiction as well as science fiction. In 2000, he was the Author Guest of Honor at the 58th World Science Fiction Convention (Chicon 2000).
Hollywood has started to take an interest in Bova's works once again, in addition to his wealth of knowledge about science and what the future may look like. In 2007, he was hired as a consultant by both Stuber/Parent Productions to provide insight into what the world is to look like in the near future for their upcoming film "Repossession Mambo" (released as "Repo Men") starring Jude Law and Forest Whitaker and by Silver Pictures in which he provided consulting services on the feature adaptation of Richard Morgan's "Altered Carbon".
http://us.macmillan.com/author/benbova
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
April 7, 2023
Little green aliens are real! Humans having been calling them leprechauns and gremlins for centuries. But now they want to go home, and the scheduled rocket launch to Mars is the perfect opportunity. They just need the help of a boy and his dog (who is the only sensible one in the whole group). Gremlins Go Home was a faintly amusing, easy going, children's urban fantasy book (novella?) with something of a pulpy science fiction feel. A fun and light-hearted evening's diversion.
March 21, 2023
So this was one of those "Clearance rack" books I found for $1 at the Half price books. and..yep, it was worth $1. i'll sure say that.
The story is about a kid whose dad works for NASA and they're going to launch a rocket. a bunch of gremlins show up and ask the kid to help them bum a ride on the rocket to get back to their home planet. The gremlins have some magical powers and the kid can now talk to his dog. That's the general gist of the story.
The main character is fine if not the generic "i want to help people" good guy, and the gremlins are a bit interchangeable as there's so many of them i kind of just started squishing them together into 1 or 2 characters.
The majority of the book is just the gremlins and the main boy finding items to help them bum a ride
on the rocket as well as showing off what magical powers they can do.
It's not a very in depth book, but it's not meant to be. it's meant to be a short, 200 page wacky adventure where a kids helps gremlins realize a lesson. And overall, it was fine. I mean, i'm not going to keep the book or read it again or anything, but for what it was, the story was fine. I didn't HATE anything involved in it, and it didn't feel like a chore to get through. the only real stand out character to me was Mr. Sheperton. he's the main character's dog who he can talk to. He doesn't like gremlins and is kind of the voice of reason in the story.
The story ends in a very cute, happy ending way, and the book's fine if you want a light read. all in all, it was fine and worth the whopping $1 i spent on it.
3 out of 5.
The story is about a kid whose dad works for NASA and they're going to launch a rocket. a bunch of gremlins show up and ask the kid to help them bum a ride on the rocket to get back to their home planet. The gremlins have some magical powers and the kid can now talk to his dog. That's the general gist of the story.
The main character is fine if not the generic "i want to help people" good guy, and the gremlins are a bit interchangeable as there's so many of them i kind of just started squishing them together into 1 or 2 characters.
The majority of the book is just the gremlins and the main boy finding items to help them bum a ride
on the rocket as well as showing off what magical powers they can do.
It's not a very in depth book, but it's not meant to be. it's meant to be a short, 200 page wacky adventure where a kids helps gremlins realize a lesson. And overall, it was fine. I mean, i'm not going to keep the book or read it again or anything, but for what it was, the story was fine. I didn't HATE anything involved in it, and it didn't feel like a chore to get through. the only real stand out character to me was Mr. Sheperton. he's the main character's dog who he can talk to. He doesn't like gremlins and is kind of the voice of reason in the story.
The story ends in a very cute, happy ending way, and the book's fine if you want a light read. all in all, it was fine and worth the whopping $1 i spent on it.
3 out of 5.
May 29, 2023
The story is about a teenaged boy named Rolf who does not get along with his dad and goes to the wildlife preserve at Cape Canaveral. One day Rolf meets a gremlin named Baneen who strikes up a bargain with the boy. If Rolf will help the gremlins escape to their home world of Gremla, Baneen would fix Earth's ecology and clean up pollution. Rolf, with his faithful dog Mr. Sheperton and his girl friend Rita must stick a magical kite which will carry all of the gremlin's on a Mar's rocketship which is waiting to launch into space. There is not alot of tension in the book since the Gremlin's use magic to get Rolf out of hot spots. Overall, its a slim book and its a pleasant read.
December 19, 2021
A children's fantasy book written with a touch of pulp science fiction style. . .
Short, and illustrated. . . Might make a good book to read to your kids before bedtime. . .
Not as many nightmares as the Brothers Grimm. . .
Having DDT killing birds is a bit of an anachronism at this point, and who ever heard of a hardware store, in any decade, stocking transistor components?
But who am I to quibble about such trifling baubles. . .?
Short, and illustrated. . . Might make a good book to read to your kids before bedtime. . .
Not as many nightmares as the Brothers Grimm. . .
Having DDT killing birds is a bit of an anachronism at this point, and who ever heard of a hardware store, in any decade, stocking transistor components?
But who am I to quibble about such trifling baubles. . .?
June 12, 2017
It's an interesting mish-mash of science fiction and fantasy, with a dash of kids book thrown in. It was a fun and quick read, and will get recycled back into a little free library for someone else to find.
July 9, 2021
Gremlins go home
I had this book in paperback, but I can't read it anymore due to health issues. I was so glad to find it on my Kindle. It was a cute book. Thanks for having it available.
I had this book in paperback, but I can't read it anymore due to health issues. I was so glad to find it on my Kindle. It was a cute book. Thanks for having it available.
November 7, 2020
A cute little light-hearted story.
September 8, 2021
A bit off the wall, aimed at younger readers, but I enjoyed it nonetheless
April 20, 2024
Kids story of stranded 'gremlin' aliens. DNF. Too juvenile for me. Libby library book. Read Kindle book using Alexa audio asset.
May 23, 2025
Young adults.
August 21, 2025
Cute for Elementary kids
April 14, 2012
Sometimes I just need to read something silly and fun!
January 29, 2014
Date is wrong. This book was originally published in 1974. It was the 2nd science fiction book I ever read, and, to be honest, I don't really remember anything about it.
June 5, 2013
A light and fluffy read. I really wish NASA was working, really working, on a Mars mission.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews