Found: SF: First Contact story

For years I have been been trying to find a book I read maybe 10 or 15 years ago, and I'm not sure about date of publication. I'd guess sometime in the 90's, but I'm unsure.

- Science Fiction
- Story is about Earth's search for sentient extraterrestrial life
- Early in the book, the only aliens Earth has discovered are these creatures they call "angels" that look beautiful, but are actually savage beasts.
- A sentient alien race is finally found, but they are in an agrarian stage of development, and have not yet developed scientific theory.
- The aliens coincidentally look like characters from a children's TV show on earth.
- Humans coincidentally look like the aliens' myths of demons.
- The protagonists (first contact "specialists"/theorists) take a long time to observe the aliens, learn their language, etc, to try to discern an ethical way to make first contact.
- One of the human characters develops a friendship with one of the aliens, who is perhaps the first science-minded person of their race.

That's all I can remember.

Thanks for giving this one a crack, kind strangers!

Some overlap with The Angel Factory by Terence Blacker, but it's a bit of a long shot.

Searching for this I stumbled over Nor Crystal Tears by Alan Dean Foster, but seems like a long shot as well.

>2 beyondthefourthwall: Appreciate the attempt, thanks.

It's not that one, but thank you for the suggestion and you time.

Maybe Jack McDevitt, one of the Hutch series, the cartoonish characters are called "goompahs"

>6 tilmar: Amazing, this is the Answer! The particular book is Omega. Thanks so much!

touchstone: Omega