Close Encounters of the Nerd Kind

December 1, 2014

Gr 5-8-A top-secret spacecraft, the Newt, has been stolen. With the help of the nerdy dozen, Neil "Astronaut" Andertol, are recruited from NASA to bring it safely back home to planet Earth. Before using their video gaming skills to smoothly navigate the Fossill, a spacecraft, they must pass a few basic training obstacles, including boarding the Vomit Comet. Andertol is chosen to lead the NASA nerdy dozen crew, along with a chimpanzee in a jumpsuit named Boris. While flying into space with little training in a spaceship full of space bananas, Andertol and his crew face several stumbling blocks, such as running away from a monstrous Polar Bear on a Yeti Bobsled inflatable raft and meeting a scientist's kid trapped in a space-bubble-community. Time speeds up as they learn Q-94, the world's most dangerous asteroid, is headed toward Earth. Neil is a born space explorer, and astronomy fans will surely enjoy the story. The short time span of the novel does stretch plausibility. However, there is a great assortment of characters with varying degrees of weirdness, gaming abilities, astronomical jargon, silliness, and, most importantly, a clear mission. The characters are quite interesting and well developed. Middle school students who enjoyed Michael Buckley's "NERDS" series (Amulet) and Dan Gutman's "Genius Files" (Harper) will most likely get a kick out of these books. Reluctant readers who are into online gaming and astronomy will find this an easy action/adventure read.-Krista Welz, North Bergen High School, NJ

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 15, 2014
Recovering a stolen NASA spacecraft turns out to be only the beginning for Neil and his crew of gonzo video gamers.Having carelessly lost both the Golden Gecko, which carried an expedition to Mars, and now the sleek new Newt, NASA has only the Fossil left in more or less flyable condition. Unfortunately, that prototype was designed for a chimpanzee crew and so is too small for full-sized astronauts. Fortunately, the teen geeks introduced in series opener The Nerdy Dozen (2014) are not only the right size, but eager to get their hands on yet more secret government high tech. (The revelation that Earth is just days away from being destroyed by a large asteroid raises the stakes somewhat.) And so the stage is set for Neil and Co. to go careening through clouds of space junk to a secret orbiting settlement, then on to Mars and back for a dramatic double rescue. Credible astrophysics never even approach Miller's bucket list, and his blithe assumption that the cast will already be familiar to readers may cause a bit of floundering. Still, along with copious compensatory banter and silly antics, the author folds in opportunities aplenty for Neil to demonstrate leadership qualities-ranging from befriending a hostile chimp by teaching him a better way to peel a banana to single-handedly saving a planet. Space farce, to infinity and...well...if not beyond, then to Mars at least. (Science fiction. 10-12)

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July 1, 2015
In this action-packed sequel, Neil and his nerdy dozen use their gaming skills to help NASA locate a stolen spaceship. This fast-paced adventure is full of quirky characters (including a chimpanzee named Boris) and obstacles to overcome (e.g., monster polar bear). Space and gaming fans are sure to delight in this imagination-stretching story.

(Copyright 2015 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)