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Responding to concerns that engineering is a poorly understood occupation and that young people are exposed to stereotyped images of scientists and engineers at an early age, this investigation sought to identify how science and engineering is portrayed in contemporary junior fiction (ages 8–12) and to what extent. An examination of 4,800 junior fiction titles in one region in New South Wales, Australia, identified as few as 71 titles that addressed themes related to engineering and the sciences. While the crazy, nerdy, scientific stereotype exists in these stories, mostly in humorous vein, we found that fictional characters were split between the nerdy, eccentric, and the more serious and professional types who were depicted as more popular. The emphasis was on male characters, but not exclusively so. There were limited details that could be associated with engineering. Where building, making, and …