Dr. Evil, the Early Years

I Am a Genius of Unspeakable Evil and I Want To Be Your Class President has a funny title and premise. Anti-hero Oliver Watson looks like the dumbest, nerdiest kid in class, but it’s all a cover for his true identity: He’s a young genius in the Dr. Evil style, with a lair, henchmen, bodyguards, and all. Give him a wedgie and you’ll pay in ways only a head writer for The Daily Show could imagine. It’s clever and the first chapters are unquestionably page-turners, but like a bad Saturday Night Live skit, it tries too hard and goes on too long. Not content to stop at parody, author Josh Lieb tries to give the story just the right amount of heart. But his attempts at giving believable motivation to his character (Oliver wants to be class president to prove himself to his disappointed father) come close to popping the bubble of suspended disbelief that’s necessary to enjoy the story. Lieb’s editors did him no favors by skipping the final round of revisions that I Am a Genius needed. The result is uneven, and while Lieb’s fans may enjoy it, there are more solid offerings for middle-graders out there.

Fear Factor: (There are, actually, explosions and battles among special forces, but none are scary or meant to be so.)
Heart: (In fact, the attempt to give this book heart is where its troubles begin.)
Attitude: (That said, what would the fifth-grade Dr. Evil be without attitude? A 4 here would be a failure.)
Psst: You’d buy this because it was blurbed by Jon Stewart and Judd Apatow, but your fifth grader won’t.
If you like this: Try My Rotten Life for consistent gross-out humor and a more kid-centric style.