The Science Project

For Middle Grade readers. Eleven year old New York City boy, Nestor, is usually the one causing the problems, but ask him, and you'd get a different story. He's always in the spotlight for the wrong reasons. Nestor learns boundaries when he exhausts the patience of his friends and classmates with his incessant teasing, until they exact a plan to reinstate the relationships with a new set of rules.

Nestor's best friend, Phil, doesn't want to know him. During the class science project presentations, Kwan Min, Nestor's most recent victim, sics his toad on Nestor's pet and science project, little Hector, the cockroach. Nestor never sees this coming.

Nestor's insecurity and lack of popularity result in poor choices. He's always in the spotlight for the wrong reasons. At first, Nestor doesn't see his part in this negative reaction. In time, Nestor notices the scratches on the surface of the science table as he realizes that his wise-cracking attempts to be "cool" make his classmates grumble - not at all the reaction he expects.

Nestor discovers many science facts with his online research: DNA, amber, resin and cockroaches. His classmates share facts about parakeets, snakes, hamsters and toads. Information is presented in an entertaining way, making it interesting and easy to learn. Nestor and the other students in the science class provide information in an entertaining way, making it interesting and easy to learn.

You'll laugh your way through Nestor's antics. You see, Nestor really doesn't have a clue.