ORVILLE ORBIT: The Mooey Pooey Science Fair — Lynn Rowe Reed

Orville Orbit concocts third grade's most galactically awesome science project ever! Along with best friend Myron, and Myron's gassy but pleasant cow, Mooey, Team Orville builds the Mooey Pooey Machine, a poo converter that makes methane gas for the spaceship they build. But bully Raunchy Ralphie sabotages the project, while giving science-obsessed Orville the dreaded “hanging wedgie” at every turn. Teacher Mrs. Finklhoffer, and Principal Snodgrass test Orville's fierce determination to win the shiny, first place science fair trophy. Beyond all the silliness, this chapter book provides a simple explanation of scientific principles. The dreaded “hanging wedgie,” for example, is best understood as the result of the forces of gravity and elasticity (stretching of the tighty-whities' waistband) applied in equal proportions. Orville and Myron's antics compare to those of Harold and George in Captain Underpants, equally hilarious, yet offering a unique educational component that some parents and teachers may find at least a bit redeeming. Never underestimate the determination of a nerdy, super-smart third-grader, his farm-boy sidekick and a gassy, brussels sprouts-loving cow!