Fuzzy

Gr 5–8—Fuzzy, an artificially intelligent robot, is Vanguard One Middle School's newest student. He will be joining the seventh grade as part of the much-publicized Robot Integration Program (RIP). Max is super excited when she is called in to assist the robot with navigating the middle school halls. Max's mother, who lost her job to a robot, however, is less than thrilled. And when Max starts getting in trouble at school and doing poorly on the Constant UpGrade (CUG) tests, her parents are furious. Fuzzy, concerned about his new friend, begins running a Help Max subroutine and accidentally discovers the school's computerized vice principal, Barbara, involved in some sketchy activity. Things really get out of hand when Max learns the true reason Fuzzy has been integrated into the school, and some cyberspies threaten the entire program. With his signature tongue-in-cheek humor, Angleberger, along with adult sci-fi author Dellinger, takes on public education's overtesting, concern with school and teacher ratings, and the increasing reliance on frequently glitchy technology. Although Fuzzy's voice could have sounded a bit more robotic, narrator Erin Moon does well giving voice to a large cast of characters.