Space Opera by Catherynne Valente

 

When the aliens arrive on Earth, it's not like the dire warnings of science fiction.  They come with a proposition.  Although they consider humans to be woefully simple, they are inviting the race to enter this years intergalactic singing competition, the Metagalactic Grand Prix, sort of a Eurovision grown huge.  If they place, the humans will be recognized as valid members of the universe.  If they place dead last, total annihilation of the entire race.

The aliens come with a list of singers they consider valid for the competition.  Unfortunately, most on the list are dead or too ancient to perform.  But there is one group still around.  The British pop group, Decibel Jones and the Absolute Zeros are still alive and still relatively young.  But there's issues.  Of the three members, only two are still alive and they haven't spoken in more than a decade.  Still, the future of the human race is at stake so they agree to the plan.

Once on the planet where the competition is held, Decibel and his partner, Oort St. Ultraviolet, face other issues.  The first is just wrapping their heads around the enormous number of other species and their appearances and actions.  The second is coming up with a competition song after years of inactivity.  The third is surviving the pre-competition maneuvers where killing your competition is considered a perfectly valid strategy.  Can the group make it to the competition and save Earth?

Catherynne Valente has written an over the top, zany space book with interesting characters and a plot that will delight fans of the Eurovision competition.  This book is recommended for science fiction readers.