Make no mistake, Science Fair by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson is pretty silly stuff and all about fun.  Levitating frogs, countries with a shortage of vowels, and car chases in Weinermobiles is not high art, but it sure is entertaining.  I can practically guarantee that a reader between the ages of 9 and 13 (especially if the reader is a boy) will like this book.  Rapid-fire dialogue moves this book along and I was impressed that the last third of the book was a sustained climax.  There is no such thing as over the top in this book.  If you or someone you know is in the need some escapism material, pick up Science Fair and get started.

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language:  8 religious exclamations.

Violence/Gore:  A character chases another character and is bitten by a dog; a robot with laserbeams destroys some property and chases a character; a character is punched; a character is hit with a traquilizer gun; characters are tackled; there are reports of mobs, rioting, and gunshots; characters battle with toy lightsabers; there is a car chase and crash; a character’s head is knocked into a wall; a robot pokes a character; characters wrestle; a character is stunned with a stun stick.

Sex/Nudity:  Two characters discuss whether another character is “hot”.

Mature Subject Matter:

Terrorism, cheating in school, lying.

Alcohol / Drug Use:

An adult drinks a glass of wine.