Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson have come up with a great stand-along story about a boy who attracts trouble and somehow gets out of it all. Barry and Pearson stick to their youth target by avoiding offensive language or situations. I would consider this book good, clean fun.
Science Fair has enough action and movement to keep younger readers interested, but does not dwell too long on any activity. There are a lot of individual events but everything is resolved clearly in the end. The characters are fun and enjoyable to follow. The main character, Toby, amazingly always seems to be getting in trouble. Each time you think that nothing else can be put on his plate, somehow it is. Luckily, he has good friends to keep him company through his troubles. He is pestered by Star Wars die-hards, authoritarian teachers, spoiled students, the U.S. government, and a quirky foreign government. Even though it was like bad acting in a comedy, I was very entertained by the foreign government. A lot of the quirkiness of the book is related to the country called Krpshtskan, a man named Prmkt, and a stinky cheese called smirk.
Science Fair is not overly energetic or chaotic, but very fun to read. Since the chapters are relatively short and engaging, it would be a great read-a-loud. Science Fair is a mystery, adventure and middle school science fair gone wrong. It is for a good reader who wants something fun, adventurous, quirky, and positive. I recommend Science Fair to elementary and middle school libraries.
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Posted by Kristin