N.E.R.D.S. National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society

Nerds, dweebs, and dorks turn into secret agents in this irreverent take on elementary school outsiders. When Jackson, a formerly popular and athletic student, gets braces, his friends ditch him and he’s drafted into the National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society (N.E.R.D.S.). Now he’s mixing it up with kids he used to pick on. They’re kids, in fact, whose weaknesses (asthma inhalers, glue-eating) are turned into strengths by science. Jackson’s braces are fitted with cutting-edge nano technology, so now he has superpowers. Worth the trade-off? Johnny Heller is a whiz at bringing out the funny, especially when it comes to kid characters. But the plot holes in this story distract from the enjoyment of listening to Heller turn the mean principal into a Richard Nixon sound-alike. How does someone talk clearly with braces popping out of his mouth? How can a kid plunge into ice water at the North Pole and not even get a cold? Forget logic. Concentrate on Heller’s reading, and N.E.R.D.S. transforms into pleasure. M.M.C. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine [Published: JULY 2010]