Imposter by Cait Levin was such a fun read. Sure it was a bit cliche, with a predictable plot and not super complex characters, but the heart of the story remained true and entertaining: women belong in STEM. I look forward to reading more Cait Levin in the future! Thanks for the ARC @netgalley.

Imposter is like the perfect rom-com with a twist of mystery, and I adored it! Cait Levin delivers a story full of quirky characters, awkward moments, and swoon-worthy romance that had me grinning from ear to ear.

Our main character, pretending to be someone she’s not (hello, imposter vibes!), had me both cringing and cheering as she navigates the chaos of trying to fit into a world that’s not quite hers. But as things get more complicated, and her feelings start to get real, it’s impossible not to root for her—and for the swoony romance that’s blossoming right along with the drama.

It’s a sweet, funny, and heartwarming ride full of surprises, laughs, and of course, a little bit of “uh-oh” as the truth starts to unravel. The kind of book you cozy up with when you want a happy, feel-good story with a dash of drama.

Cameron Goldberg is a sophomore in high school, and is really interested in tech fabrication; her latest project is taking the chip out of her school I.D. and putting it into a ring. She chooses a coding class for an elective, even though she'd rather be with her friend Vivian, who's taking pottery. Mr. Lenox teaches the class, and he and the boys in the class all look askance at her and ask if she's in the right place. This isn't a great start, and she has to partner with Jackson, who rarely looks up from his computer, for the class project. She and Viv decide to participate on the RoboSub team, since Viv likes the marketing aspect of it (she's involved in DECA), and Cam wants to see how coding and fabrication work together in a project. Again, they meet resistance from the all male team. The leader, Jeremy, is particularly horrible, and Mr. Lenox is the mostly absent team advisor. Viv proceeds to make herself invaluable, getting corporate sponsorships that had been handled last year by one of the boys' mothers, and Cam joins the electrical team, since the head of that, Liam, is at least reasonable. For her coding project, she talks to Jackson about the problem of women in tech industries, and how they have to deal with men who don't accept them. After talking to his sister in college, Jackson realizes that Cam has a point, and suggests they gamify the experience to raise awareness of the problem and use the profits to fund a Girls Who Code chapter at their school. Cam has the support of her parents, especially after her mother struggles with similar issues with a male supervisor at work. When Cam and Jackson's project is considered "offensive", and Jeremy files a complaint, Cam finally goes above Mr. Lenox's head to address the problems in her school..
Strengths: Cam doesn't really feel that anything is stopping her from tech fabrication and coding at first, mainly because her parents are so supportive. They are Jewish, and her mother is Panamanian, and they clearly care so much about her, wanting to give her all of the opportunities, but also wanting her to be safe. This is hard enough to find in middle grade books with this type of parents, and it's even rarer in young adult books. Viv is a fantastic friend, and her DECA experience makes her a valuable asset to the RoboSub team. She and Cam are both interested in boys, and flirt with the idea of dating some of their teammates, which is a fun addition. The big draw of this story is the treatment of women in STEM fields and in gaming. Cam is rather shocked that this goes on, and then gets angry, and learns to stand up for herself and not put up with the nonsense. This is a realistic way for her experiences to evolve. I especially loved how she and Viv ended up saving the day at the RoboSub competition!
Weaknesses: There's a lot of dropping of the f word. I might buy this for a high school, but even though I enjoyed this book, will pass on purchasing it for middle school. This covers an important topic, and would be interesting to middle school readers interested in technology and women's issues, but if my students can be disciplined for using bad language, it doesn't seem right to buy books that have that language in them.
What I really think: It would be great to see more books involving girls on robotics teams or involved in gaming. There are some excellent books for elementary readers, like Pearce,'s Ellie, Engineer Derting, Johannes, and Murray Vivi Loves Science, and middle grade titles like Deutsch's Girls Who Code or Stone Click'd, but it would be nice to have books for older middle grade readers involve Future Cities competitions or coding projects.

This was such an empowering read. As a female with interest in engineering, this book really resonated with me. I really connected with our main character and overall just really related to the events and issues discussed in this book. Overall this was a really quick read. The only criticism I have is that I wish it was a bit longer so I could spend even more time learning these characters!