Rating: 
Summary: There's a starman waiting in the sky...
Review: This first person narrative is penned by Dr. Gene Brewer. The protagonist's name is also Dr Gene Brewer. However, the author was a scientist prior to becoming an author, and the fictional Brewer is a psychiatrist and acting director at the Manhattan Psychiatric Institute.Dr. Gene Brewer is a middle-aged man who is very involved with the administration of MPI when his attention is called to a special patient. The patient's name is prot, and prot claims to be an alien from the planet K-PAX. Dr Brewer is, of course, all too familiar with delusional patients, so he sets out to unravel the mystery of prot's identity. Brewer finds that he is at first annoyed by prot, but then he becomes intrigued. Not only is prot extremely intelligent, but he is also popular with the other patients. To Brewer's amazement, prot actually begins to "reach" patients who have been written off as hopeless for years. It soon becomes clear to Dr Brewer that prot is not your-run-of-the-mill case. Brewer elicts information about the planet K-Pax from prot in an attempt to understand prot's past. While Brewer can put nice little neat labels and explanations on much of prot's descriptions of life on K-PAX, he cannot explain prot's amazing knowledge of the universe, and Brewer soon finds that after several sessions with prot, he has more questions than answers. Brewer's search for the truth intensifies when he realises that prot intends to return to K-Pax on a specified date and time. As the time for prot's departure approaches, Dr Brewer must balance discovering the truth against damaging his patient. K-Pax is book one of a trilogy and covers Dr Brewer's therapy with prot from sessions 1-16. This gripping novel is an easy read and manages to grab the reader from page one. It's impossible to overlook the fact that the author's name is the same as the protagonist's, and I found myself wondering just how much of the story is true, No doubt this is deliberate on Brewer's part, but this just adds to the mystery of prot. Is prot an alien as he claims, or is he only one layer of a delusional mind? If you saw the film and enjoyed it, you will doubtless enjoy the book too. And if you haven't seen the film, I can recommend it highly.
Rating: 
Summary: Just delightful
Review: This is a wonderful little book - it is relatively short, insightful, witty, and best of all gives us a unique insight to the fascinating subjects of mental health and interstellar travel. The story is simple enough - the main character prot (no capitalisations except for other planets!) claims to be from the planet K-Pax, but is he simply a mentally traumatised man called Robert? This is a very clever book which has you thinking yes and no to both of these questions as you read along. Another very clever plot devise is that the author writes in the first person, and refers to himself as the psychiatrist who is treating prot/Robert. This is done with such skill and candour that you can almost get drawn into thinking that this is a true case study of a doctor who is relating the story of his most fascinating subject. It is very, very clever. Finally, it is also very uplifting. Some of prot's observations and advice to his fellow psychiatric inmates changes their lives almost exclusively for the better - somewhat simplisticly sure, but hey, this is a novel for entertainment, and here it hits the mark very well. I recommend it highly.
Rating:
Summary: Just delightful
Review: This is a wonderful little book - it is relatively short, insightful, witty, and best of all gives us a unique insight to the fascinating subjects of mental health and interstellar travel. The story is simple enough - the main character prot (no capitalisations except for other planets!) claims to be from the planet K-Pax, but is he simply a mentally traumatised man called Robert? This is a very clever book which has you thinking yes and no to both of these questions as you read along. Another very clever plot devise is that the author writes in the first person, and refers to himself as the psychiatrist who is treating prot/Robert. This is done with such skill and candour that you can almost get drawn into thinking that this is a true case study of a doctor who is relating the story of his most fascinating subject. It is very, very clever. Finally, it is also very uplifting. Some of prot's observations and advice to his fellow psychiatric inmates changes their lives almost exclusively for the better - somewhat simplisticly sure, but hey, this is a novel for entertainment, and here it hits the mark very well. I recommend it highly.
Rating:
Summary: captivating, insightful read
Review: When a friend first recommended this book to me, I was a bit apprehensive at what I deemed was a typical alien conspiracy book. Admittedly, the first couple of chapters are kind of dull, but gene brewer soon gets over a rough start to develop an enthralling and thought-provoking story
The structure of the book is its strength. The book is essentially little more than a collection of the transcripts of psychiatric seesions dr. brewer has had with "prot". However, within this simple framework, brewer manages to flesh out characters, family, suspense and plot.
At the start, its easy to believe that prot is really the alien he claims to be, with his unusual ways and encyclopeadic knowledge of the universe. However, the introduction of an investigative journalist serves to strengthen the case for prpt being a human with a terrible past. the book becomes extremely interesting as prot's fascinatingly charming character and mysterious background are systematically developed. the other mental patients also provide fitting emotional accompaniment to showcase prot's mysterious ways
This book is an intriguing and enjoyable read thanks to brewer's clever character interactions and witty humour that serve to uplift an already scintillating exploration of the world of two very different men.
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