The Buoyancy Project: Putney Hicks Inventor Adventures–Book 2

Book Synopsis: 2023 Firebird Book Awards - WINNER2023 Global Book Awards - Gold Medal WINNER2023 BookFest Book Awards – Silver Medal WINNER2023 Gertrude Warner Middle Grade Awards - Long List

A perplexing task. A mystery to solve. Can a scientist-in-the-making find the answers hiding in plain sight?

Putney Hicks is itching to take on her next challenge. Preparing for her school’s cardboard-boat regatta, the twelve-year-old inventor hunts down ways to stop the flimsy craft from sinking into a soggy mess. But after she rescues her neighbor’s dog from a rip current, the curious girl can’t shake the thought that the solution is right in front of her eyes…

Joined by her new canine companion and using her magical tablet as she explores an alligator-infested lagoon, Putney is dismayed when she’s paired on the project with her arch-nemesis. And as they reluctantly put their heads together, she suddenly realizes that the scaly swamp predators could hold the secret to their experiment’s success.

Can these stubborn rivals overcome their differences and construct a winning waterproof design?

The Buoyancy Project is the ingenious second book in the Putney Hicks Inventor Adventures middle-grade series. If you like scientifically empowered young women, entertaining escapades, and real-life mathematical motivation, then you’ll love Marsha Tuft’s MacGyver-like enterprise.

Buy The Buoyancy Project to sail full STEM ahead today!

Reviewed By Tammy Ruggles for Readers’ Favorite

★★★★★ The Buoyancy Project: Putney Hicks Inventor Adventures–Book 2 by Marsha Tufft is a young reader's dream. The author has created a work of entertaining fiction with STEM in mind. It's education wrapped in a fantastic story, and you can't get much better than that--way tastier than medicine disguised in sugar. This is book 2 of 3 in a series and has characters, situations, and themes children grades 4 through 6 can relate to. Let's start with math phobia. Putney is tasked with designing a cardboard boat for a school project, but is paired with Sue, her biggest adversary. How will that work out? Then we can mix in physics, science, engineering, creativity, art, and magic, of course. This offering is chock-full of ideas, projects, and practical solutions. If you're a young reader challenged by certain subjects or even an adult, or just want a good adventure, this book is for you.

Tufft is gifted at spinning information into a captivating story. As you read, you'll realize right away that the author's heart (and brain) are in the right place--centered on children, the concepts they can learn, and how they can learn it. As Tufft shows, learning should be about more than facts and figures--it should be an amazing adventure. This is the beauty of the book. Besides being educational, this book is also a guide for thoughtful behavior, good choices, and better interpersonal communication. The academics can be used in the classroom, and life lessons can be used in real-world situations. Overall, the book teaches children to think for themselves and figure things out. The illustrations add an even better understanding of the story. The plot is fresh, the characters are resourceful, and the dialogue is energetic--a perfect combination of all the elements you'd want in a children's book. Don't pass up the opportunity to read or gift The Buoyancy Project by Marsha Tufft.