Bully-be-gone

Millicent is an inventor who knows her formulas inside out, yet a string of flops has worn down her confidence. Her gum pellet turned out far too juicy, and her retractable ponytail holder became a tangled mess. Even her closest friends in The Wunderkind Club are losing faith in her creations.

Her newest invention, Bully-Be-Gone, is supposed to be her comeback. Its formula is designed to stop bullies from targeting overachievers, and she is sure it is nearly flawless. Before long, though, a enormous catastrophe erupts, and she has only a few days to create an antidote. Her friendships and her future as an inventor now depend on it.

This debut novel by Brian Tacang is set in Masonville, a quirky town full of eccentric scientists, brawny librarians, circus performers who vanished long ago, and bullies. It is a place where science and miracles occasionally overlap.