“A nerdy Canadian teen blends real science principles with matchmaking in Seo’s low-key debut...Told via homey-feeling prose, Seo’s story deftly portrays one teen’s struggles to juggle friendship woes, familial trials, and personal truths with fitting in, making for an earnest, low-stakes romp. Zhang’s illustrations, rendered in bold swathes of b&w ink, depict myriad scenes from Emma’s life, including an idyllic moment overlooking the ocean.”

- Publishers Weekly

“A genuine and fun-filled read, The Science of Boys captures many complexities in the lives of preteen girls today while encouraging curiosity and an interest in science—a subject that girls still often lack confidence in and are discouraged from pursuing.”

- BC Bookworld

“A delightful mix of science and relationships.”

- Kirkus Reviews

“Emma will take readers through the gamut of teenaged emotions: embarrassment, loneliness, excitement, deceit, acceptance, and the long difficult journey to self-knowledge. Highly Recommended.”

- CM: Canadian Review of Materials

“If author Emily Seo could pick one scientific concept to describe adolescence, it would be the second law of thermodynamics: the entropy or disorder of the universe will increase over time. In short, there will be chaos–and that’s exactly what ensues in her debut middle-grade novel, The Science of Boys (Tradewind Books), when main character and science nerd Emma Sakamoto tries to help a popular girl catch a boy’s eye.”

- Quill & Quire