Odder: The Novel

I loved the drawings in te his book, and I think that Odder is a great character. I love how she was rescued by humans when she was younger and older, and how she finally takes care of the otter pup in the end. My favorite part was when the otter caretakers were teaching Odder how to be an otter. This was short and very well-written.

“Friends call #156 ‘Odder,’ but humans prefer their numbers…Numbers are aloof, but names are sticky, fusing rescuer to rescued, scientist to subject, human to otter. (And it’s hard not to fall in love with an otter pup.)” “They are, it’s been said, the champions of cute…keystone species–beavers, wolves, prairie dogs, bees, desert tortoises, sea otters–they are nature’s glue, holding habitats together.” “Her mother called her ‘Odder’ from the moment she was born. Something about the way the little pup never settled…her eyes were always full of questions.” “‘Wait’ means prepare to be annoyed…Hope can be exhausting.” “Why simply dive when she could dazzle?” As Odder discovers, “Teaching and loving are the different words for the same thing.” “She was no longer afraid because her teacher didn’t seem to be. She was with someone who had brought her this far, someone who seemed to think she could go even farther.” Odder would “be the doting auntie who teaches the pup all her best moves.” “There is never a perfect time to let go of the ones we love,” and Odder is no exception. This free-verse novel is inspired by true– “and truly impressive–events. All the otters in this story are loosely based on real otters” at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, whose stories have been reimagined, interwoven, and condensed. Odder provides a deep dive glimpse “at the history and hopes surrounding these captivating creatures” and offers hope for healing “the ocean, one otter at a time.”