Here’s to my second read of the Reading Rush. It was also an audiobook, but with a very different plot than Monday’s Not Coming. Here’s someone else’s artsy picture of Odd One Out.

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“Life is a journey without a map, and as such, we'll all encounter twists and turns that force us to correct our course or change directions entirely.” —Nic Stone 🌈 – The last of my #PrideMonth reads was Odd One Out, which I’ve been waiting to read since it came out. There was so much good stuff in there about labels, especially labels in the LGBTQ+ community, that I think is so important for students to think about and gain an understanding for. I also LOVED the author’s note at the end. It helped me realize how my perception of people isn’t always correct. I hope this book can do the same for students. 🙌🏽

A post shared by Trisha Wallington (@teachliketrish) on Jun 29, 2019 at 5:39pm PDT

Goodreads Synopsis

Courtney “Coop” Cooper
Dumped. Again. And normally I wouldn’t mind. But right now, my best friend and source of solace, Jupiter Sanchez, is ignoring me to text some girl. 

Rae Evelyn Chin
I assumed “new girl” would be synonymous with “pariah,” but Jupiter and Courtney make me feel like I’m right where I belong. I also want to kiss him. And her. Which is . . . perplexing.

Jupiter Charity-Sanchez
The only thing worse than losing the girl you love to a boy is losing her to your boy. That means losing him, too. I have to make a move. . . .

One story.
Three sides.
No easy answers.

The Good

The confusion I felt while reading Odd One Out actually worked in the story’s favor. It helped me connect to the confusion our main characters faced, especially those grappling with their sexuality. The author’s note summed it up so well.

The timeline was reasonable, I think it was pretty well paced for the most part. Character development was evident. I loved Golly, I would love to read a spin-off with just him and his sisters.

The conversations that everyone was having felt pretty real. I could definitely see myself talking with my friends like this back in high school.

This was a fascinating book. It’s another one of those stories where it’s better to know a little less going into it. It’s also okay to be confused for the vast majority of it. It’s just part of the story and I respect that.

The author’s note was lovely. Nic Stone put a lot of what many of us are feeling into words.

The Not so Good

I listened to this on the CloudLibrary app and I don’t know if it was the reader or the story or a combination of them both, but I couldn’t stand Rae’s part. I sped it up because I just wanted to get through it. I couldn’t connect to her at all. Once we got through her part, I was back into the story.

It’s especially sad considering our shared name.

All in All

This book was soooo weird, but I liked it. Rae wasn’t a character I cared for much but she was integral to the story. I loved Jupiter and Courtney, their parts were hilarious and relatable and had me feeling so many feelings at once.

Have you read Odd One Out?

What are your bookish recommendations?

Let me know in the comments, let’s chat!