The hilarious first book in an all-new illustrated middle-grade series starring young inventor Rube Goldberg

The hilarious first book in an all-new illustrated middle-grade series starring young inventor Rube Goldberg—now in paperback Grab a wrench, flip a switch, and get ready to spring into this all-new, sidesplitting illustrated series featuring a young master of machines—Rube Goldberg! With summer gone too quickly, Rube must finally face what he’s been dreading all vacation: middle school! He’s not ready for new classes, new people, new everything—and it’s really taking a toll on him. With his anxieties in full gear, all Rube wants to do is do what he does best: invent! When Principal Kim announces that the school is going to throw a Contraption Convention—Con Con—Rube is ready to show off his skills and get out of his funk! But things just can’t seem to go right for Rube: He gets banned from Con Con, his friendships are strained, and weird, ghostly incidents begin to throw the town into total chaos. But Rube has a big solution to every little problem, and he’s ready to get back on track, solve the ghostly mystery, and come up with something brilliant before it’s time to face the judging table!

"Snider accurately conveys feelings of change and growth at a time when tweens are truly still children . . . Steckley’s black-and-white illustrations evoke the cluttered, mad-scientist feel of Rube’s workspace. . ." - Kirkus Reviews

"With middle school ­humor and entertaining ­images, Rube learns to ­navigate strange and difficult situations in this first installment of the “Rube ­Goldberg” series." - School Library Journal

"“This book made my kids laugh and got them off screens. No really. It’s magic."" - Jim Gaffigan, comedian