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Overview
Owen Foote wants to be a real scientist with a white lab coat. He’d like to spend the next school year in Mr. Wozniak’s fourth-grade class, where science is king. Owen figures that Mr. Wozniak will let him and his friend Joseph in if they can win first prize in the school science fair. But the “project,” a uromastyx lizard named Chuck, isn’t exactly cooperative. The boys come up with another idea that seems like a winner, but once again, unruly personal feelings seem to be undermining the scientific method. It takes an inspired blend of science and friendship to get them back on track.
Fast-paced and funny, this new story treats themes of competition, ambition, squeamishness, and loyalty in the appealing style Owen Foote fans have come to expect.
Synopsis
Owen Foote wants to be a real scientist with a white lab coat. He’d like to spend the next school year in Mr. Wozniak’s fourth-grade class, where science is king. Owen figures that Mr. Wozniak will let him and his friend Joseph in if they can win first prize in the school science fair. But the “project,” a uromastyx lizard named Chuck, isn’t exactly cooperative. The boys come up with another idea that seems like a winner, but once again, unruly personal feelings seem to be undermining the scientific method. It takes an inspired blend of science and friendship to get them back on track.
Fast-paced and funny, this new story treats themes of competition, ambition, squeamishness, and loyalty in the appealing style Owen Foote fans have come to expect.
Susan Hepler, Ph.D. - Children's Literature
Third-grader Owen takes charge of the science project, railroading his best and a bit squeamish friend Joseph into working with a lizard. Oops, make that tadpoles, when the lizard poops on Owen's hand. With two bowls of frog eggs, Owen decides to put "a little bit" of pesticide into the experimental group when he reads about malformed frogs as a result of fertilizer run-off. When he does not tell Joseph and tadpoles in the control dish die, Owen cannot figure out what has happened. But the science fair project is ruined, he thinks. When he confesses his private "experiment," both his friend and his mother confess to overfeeding the tadpoles. Still, Owen and Joseph turn the project into a success on science fair day. This fifth book in the "Owen Foote" series can stand alone and is a tight, well-written story, with a zinging conclusion, and a minimum amount of attention paid to Owen's annoying older sister—a plus for boy readers. Cat Bowman Smith's line and wash illustrations add personality to the characters and help readers see the errant lizard pet clearly, a real plus for this winner. 2004, Clarion, Ages 7 to 9.
Editorials
Children's Literature
Third-grader Owen takes charge of the science project, railroading his best and a bit squeamish friend Joseph into working with a lizard. Oops, make that tadpoles, when the lizard poops on Owen's hand. With two bowls of frog eggs, Owen decides to put "a little bit" of pesticide into the experimental group when he reads about malformed frogs as a result of fertilizer run-off. When he does not tell Joseph and tadpoles in the control dish die, Owen cannot figure out what has happened. But the science fair project is ruined, he thinks. When he confesses his private "experiment," both his friend and his mother confess to overfeeding the tadpoles. Still, Owen and Joseph turn the project into a success on science fair day. This fifth book in the "Owen Foote" series can stand alone and is a tight, well-written story, with a zinging conclusion, and a minimum amount of attention paid to Owen's annoying older sister—a plus for boy readers. Cat Bowman Smith's line and wash illustrations add personality to the characters and help readers see the errant lizard pet clearly, a real plus for this winner. 2004, Clarion, Ages 7 to 9.—Susan Hepler, Ph.D.