The Wild Robot meets Restart when Colorado's unluckiest foster kid battles a rogue AI robot at school. Malcolm Montgomery is the new kid at Shirley Chisholm Charter Middle School. In no time at all, he's been slapped with the weird kid label. Is it because he's a foster kid who's been in nine homes? Or maybe because he burps when he gets nervous...which is often? Malcolm has a plan to finally get adopted by a forever family before it's too late. But then on Visiting Professionals' Day, his school invites Dr. Alphonse Hatch, president of Hatch-ED--one of the fastest-growing artificial intelligence companies in the state--to give a presentation. Dr. Hatch brings his AI-powered robot, and events get set in motion that create...THE INCIDENT. An irresistible MG novel about the role of AI in schools and in our lives...and what it means to be human

"Malcolm Montgomery is Colorado's unluckiest foster kid. He's already been in NINE foster homes. Is it because he's weird? Or unlovable? Or maybe because he burps when he gets nervous---which is unfortunately all too often? Whatever it is, Malcolm has a plan to finally get adopted by a forever family before it's too late. He calls it: THE CHECKLIST. And the plan is working! That is, until Visiting Professionals Day arrives at Malcolm's new school. Legendary tech founder Dr. Alphonse Hatch has been invited to present, and Dr. Hatch has brought his new robot: a super-intelligent being named FRANCIS. He's programmed FRANCIS to help the school raise its test scores...but as Malcolm soon discovers, the robot may have other plans. An novel about the role of AI in schools and in our lives---and what it means to be human---THE AI INCIDENT is THE WILD ROBOT gone rogue and made best friends with RESTART, plus a whole lot more."--Jacket flap