Only You Can Save Mankind (by Terry Pratchett)

Soon Johnny is entering the game in his dreams, and his actions are affecting all of the other copies of the game all over the world. Johnny finds himself responsible for a fleet of alien ships while gamers all over earth try to destroy them. Meanwhile Johnny's family is breaking up, his friend is in serious trouble, and Gulf War I rages on the TV set. The TV war seems like a video game, while the game is becoming increasingly real. But if the aliens really exist, does Johnny want that kind of responsibility if they are?

In addition to the major themes, Pratchett touches on a number of serious side topics, such as inner city violence and divorce, but then seems to drop them again. Perhaps they will be important to other entries in this series, but here they seem a bit gratuitous and out of place, as if the author wasn't quite sure where he wanted to go. But none of this quibbling will stop kids from enjoying the story, and the odd plot flaws may even be grist for more group discussions.