Nerd Girls: The Rise of the Dorkasaurus

Nerd Girls: 

The Rise of the Dorkasaurus

by Alan Lawrence Sitomer

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When Maureen, 8th grader and self-proclaimed dork, risks her own reputation to protect an allergy prone girl from becoming an involuntary YouTube sensation, she unwittingly makes a couple of friends and begins a plot to take down the ThreePees (Pretty, Popular, and Perfect).

The ThreePees dominate the talent show every year and are determined to win one more time before heading off to high school.  Maureen and her new pals are determined to take them down.

With the help of her prankster brother, a "department store mom", and a robotic dog, they might even be able to win.

Final thoughts:  Full of stereotypes and constant name-calling, this book just isn't fun.  Maureen spends the whole book talking about justice and wanting vengeance and then never really steps up.  She constantly gives up, actually.  If other circumstances didn't arise to push her, she'd have just given up after the first incident.  She has no redeeming qualities, really, and spends most of the time criticizing her friends and calling them names (though the author tries to make it read like the friends are ok with that).  It's a quick read, but Maureen is a horrible protagonist.  I felt sorry for the other girls who thought that she could "lead" them against the popular group.  And as for that group, there's one character who is supposed to be some kind of comic relief, but she just comes off and truly idiotic and annoying.

Avoid.

Rating: 2/5