The Drake Equation

March 1, 2016
After finding a mysterious puck-shaped object in the woods, a young bird-watcher must play the hero--and at times fail--in this adventure. At first, white seventh-grader Noah Grow forgets about the disc when he discovers that a rare black swift has made its home in the nearby nature preserve, representing his "biggest bird-watching score ever!" The disc, however, derails his enthusiasm for the bird. With help from his two best friends, Noah learns that the object grants him strange powers. When some young children find themselves in trouble, Noah uses his newfound abilities to save them. Still, the peculiar disc both thrills and troubles him. "That puck wasn't mine, it was scary and mysterious, and I didn't want it." Soon enough, his shenanigans with the puck draw attention from a local bully and other, unforeseen enemies. Much of the humor stems from Noah's struggles to overcome his cowardice; other funny bits molded from poop jokes fall a bit flat. Mock "field notes" and reports on his friends and family repeatedly appear, offering contextual information from Noah's perspective in a clever, albeit gratuitous way. As Noah grapples with his timidity and discovers that the puck's origins may not be earthly, the story fizzles out in a cliffhanger ending. An overstuffed, messy sci-fi narrative whose saving grace is an enjoyable main character. (Science fiction. 8-12)

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February 1, 2016

Gr 5-8-Bird-watching meets science fiction in this middle grade adventure. Noah Grow loves to watch birds and is determined to spot a rare wood duck. Using the Drake Equation, a carefully crafted mathematical formula, he has figured out where to look. While getting off the bus to look for the bird, he runs into his bully, and things do not go well. Noah is forced to run away into the woods, where he falls and lands next to a mysterious disc. When he shows it to his friends, they discover it has powers. Soon, Noah and his friends are involved in an intergalactic adventure they won't forget. While the book has an interesting premise, it ultimately falls flat. King relies heavily on footnotes for backstory and character profiles, which break the pace and may turn off the intended audience. The novel also suffers from an overuse of potty humor, which, though appealing to younger readers, may serve to induce eye rolls in older middle grade readers. VERDICT Not quite short or fact-paced enough to pull in reluctant readers, and not sophisticated enough for die-hard science fiction fans, this book will likely have trouble finding an audience.-Patrick Tierney, Dr. Martin Luther King Elementary School, Providence

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2016
Grades 3-6 Noah Growseventh-grader and avid birderfinds far more than a rare bird when he hops off the school bus one afternoon. Aside from a run-in with the class bully and a serendipitous black-swift sighting, Noah pockets a curious hockey-puck-shaped object. Later, while showing the puck to his best friends, twins Jason and Jenny, it activates and causes ice to shoot out of Noah's hands. Clearly, this powerful puck comes from another planet. On the heels of finding what Noah dubs the quincunx, strange things start happening around townfreak accidents, an earthquake, a forest fireand Noah knows that he must use this alien device to put things right, and maybe even save some birds in the process. This zany tale never quite takes flight, as it gets weighed down by its own quirkiness. New characters are introduced via bird-species profiles, which interrupt rather than complement the narrative, but readers after funny sf fare may enjoy the book's absurdities, alien misunderstandings, and wordplay.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)