E.T. Storybook Green

by William Kotzwinkle

Book Overview

The gentle extraterrestrial's return to his home planet discloses that he has fallen out of favor with his colleagues, who try to prevent his journey back to Earth to provide spiritual guidance for his young friend Elliott.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0399212574
• ISBN13: 9780399212574
• Release Date: January 1985
• Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
• Length: 77 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Really good novelization that gets into the mind of our favorite alien.

Since we were kids, my sister and I have been huge fans of E.T. (we still have the old VHS tape!). While helping our grandmother deliver her trash and recycle her plastics, we wandered into the "Still Good" area (where things like books that were in good condition were left to be taken if interested) and I came across this novelization. I love to read, and the peek at the first few pages I had looked at sounded pretty good. So, we bought it. It was worth it, a very suprising book. Letting us into the mind of the alien, revealing a few deleted scenes (that, if I recall, were put back into the movie a few years after I read the book when it was re-released), and giving more detail into the hows and whys of the film. If you're curious, then I would suggest checking this book out!

Much better than you would expect

The outlines of this plot are familiar to anyone living in the free world. Boy befriends stranded alien. Alien phones home. End of story. The plot is familiar, but the movie captured the imaginations of millions because of the flourishes that Spielberg brought to it as a director. The children in the movie seemed so very real compared to the children in so many other movies. And the tear-jerking moments, especially when a body bag is zipped up over ET's ash-grey face, are emotionally gripping. I'm happy to say that Kotzwinkle is two and a half steps above the type of hack that usually writes this kind of adaptation. He successfully captures the flavor of the movie, and adds a whole other dimension to the story by mining the strengths of a book format. Unhindered by special effects limitations or the need for dialogue, Kotzwinkle brings us into the minds of the characters, most notably E.T. himself. He adds scenes that would have been too slow for the movie, and fleshes out existing scenes that could only be spared a moment of screen time. If all movie adaptations were done like this, the genre would have a better name. As it is, Kotzwinkle has done it right, and it's no surprise to me that he has a successful writing career outside of this adaptation. If you're a fan of the movie and the characters, this book is definitely a way to extend and deepen your pleasure.

Bridge to a new adventure on earth?

I bought the paperback edition in late July 1985 and,believe it or not,I have read it more than a hundred times over and over again.It's an astounding story, many clues are given while you read the book on how E.T. can solve his problems. The keen reader can easily predict the outcome of the plot.The way the author connects the two realities, one on the Green planet , the other on Earth is nicely blended through the introduction of the telepathic beam, naturally off course, 'cause ET's a little mixed up.This gives way to many funny situations.Let's not forget that events narrated belong to the mid 80's so it might seem a little old fashioned when Julie, Elliot's school friend asks him for some help with her "BASIC" with black screens flashing green text! The book can be read at many levels; Et's worried about Elliot becoming grown up.According to ET's point of view, people on earth grew up to become violent so his mission now is to save his friend.This is a great message of peace.Younger children should also read the illustrated storybook.To conclude I always ask myself why in these years Kotzwinkle didn't write a sequel to this book due to its open ending.I think a new adventure for ET would be great: what happens to the turnip ship after they enter the wormhole? I hope Kotzwinkle will soon let us know. In an interview, Spielberg said that his movie ET is a "wonderful gem" so a sequel was not necessary because a sequel would currupt its magic.A new movie about ET would be great considering the power of computer graphic animated charaters we have today.

Great Sequel! Should be a movie.

This novel is a joy to read. It leaves off where the movie ended, starting with E. T. watching the Earth slowly disappear out of the porthole of his spaceship. Kotzwinkle has a wonderful imagination and provides a heartwarming tale about growing up, memories, love, friendship, and best of all - adventure. This is a great read. It should be made into a movie. I give it a 5!

for my english class

In the book E.T., there is a view you don't get out of the movie. You get to see what E.T. actually thinks and feels about the world around him. In the very begining of this book, E.T. is with his crew on Earth. You actually find out why, and what the extra terrestrials are doing on Earth. E.T. got lost on Earth in the first place because he was attracted to the lights in the windows, he ended up in Elliots yard because the plants told him to go look in the window. E.T. was a botonist from another planet, and he understands what plants are saying. E.T. is very intelligent and sends dreams and thoughts to Elliot, Mary(Elliot's Mother) Gertie, and Micheal. You also get family history of the characters, and you understand why Elliot connects so easily with E.T. I felt this book was very well written, and I enjoyed every minute of it. Overall, E.T. is a very good book, and is worth reading.