GoldieBlox Rules the School!

March 15, 2017
GoldieBlox, the internet's favorite girls-and-engineering toy, expands into chapter books. After an unfortunate incident involving launching the second floor of Goldie's old school into orbit--the Blox School, where the white girl's mother teaches a handful of students--results in the school's closure, Goldie's sent to the prestigious Higgs Bozon Prep. Despite the company of her best friend, Li Zhang, a Chinese-American boy who loves physics and skateboarding, HiBo's rigid rules and conventional conformity are no fit for a wild, creative inventor like Goldie. So she rounds up a team of potential allies: those who want to purge her zaniness from the school (black coder and fashionista Ruby Rails; purple-haired, brown-skinned, shy musician Val; and white, snobby Zeek Zander, the mayor's son, who excels at spending money and math). Through working together in the rebuild (and catching the mayor in a net to force him to listen to their arguments about why the Blox School must reopen), Goldie builds strong friendships with Ruby and Val, who decide that the inventive, fun chaos that disorganized, impulsive Goldie brings makes it worth having her around. There isn't much in the way of STEM content in this series opener, a proliferation of gadgets notwithstanding, but that may come in time, and the affirmation of the role of the imagination in tech is a welcome one. Light on actual science but big on creativity. (Fiction. 6-8)

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March 1, 2017

Gr 3-5-When the Blox School is officially closed, Goldie Blox is off to attend Higgs Bozon Prep (HiBo for short) for gifted students. At least her best friend Li will be there. Wearing her signature overalls and T-shirt, Goldie manages to make a big statement on her first day of school, and not because of her big, curly hair, which tends to be filled with such things as markers, hole punchers, and toothbrushes. After a few days at HiBo, Goldie, as well as her new friends, the Gearheads, realize she is not a good fit there. Everyone is expected to make A's (and they do), while Goldie is happy with B's and using her creativity to complete assignments. Wishing to return to Blox School, Goldie enlists her friends to help repair the second story of the school, which she accidentally blew up. Surprisingly, they are able to do it in two days, but they must convince the mayor that it is safe to return. Finally, Goldie is allowed to go back, but decides that maybe HiBo is the place for her after all. She discovers that the best way to make a difference may be by not fitting in. A sequel is sure to follow. VERDICT Light reading for those looking for literature featuring strong characters who think outside the box and are not afraid to make waves.-Martha Rico, El Paso ISD, TX

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2017
Grades 2-5 Goldie Blox wakes up and gets dressed every morning with the help of kooky inventions of her own design, like something out of Inspector Gadget, and that morning ritual sets the tone for this cartoonish story with a lighthearted STEM focus. After accidentally sending the second story of her school into orbit, Goldie is sent to the local math-and-sciences school for gifted students, Higgs Bozon Prep. Her first few days at the new school are one blunder after another, and she earns the ire of a few classmates, who call themselves the Gearheads. At first, the Gearheads agree she should repair the old school so she can go back to where she came from, but gradually, they become real pals. The cartoonish aspect extends to the illustrations, reminiscent of classic Cartoon Network style. With a plucky, smart protagonist struggling with the strictures of a traditional classroom and a diverse cast of characters, this series starter is a great choice for fans of comical antics with a sci-fi flavor.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2017
After child engineer Goldie accidentally blows the roof off the Blox School, she's forced to attend a boring school with too many rules. Can her new friends help her rebuild and reopen the Blox School? Unfortunately, nifty high-tech gadgets can't make up for the underdeveloped characters and uninspired plot in this over-caffeinated commercial tie-in to girl-empowering, STEM-themed toymaker GoldieBlox.

(Copyright 2017 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)