#365PictureBooks 43. Odd Duck by Cecil Castellucci, illustrated by Sara Varon

Castellucci, C., & Varon, S. (2013). Odd Duck. New York, NY: First Second.

ISBN: 9781596435575
Pages: 96
Age Level: Middle Childhood 7-12
Genre: Picture Storybook / Graphic Novel
Rating: 4 stars

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Theodora is a perfectly normal duck.  She may swim with a teacup balanced on her head and stay north when the rest of the ducks fly south for the winter, but there's nothing so odd about that.

Chad, on the other hand, is one strange bird.  He looks at the stars at night.  He swims in crazy circles instead of straight lines.  His house is a mess.  It's a good thing Chad has a normal friend like 

Theodora to set a good example for him.

With only 6 chapters this is a great graphic novel for younger readers to get into.  It is sized slightly larger than a chapter book, and smaller than a picture book, making it easy to handle.

We follow Theodora as she goes about her day, starting with a healthy exercise routine before she heads off shopping and to the library.  She always gets the same things as all the other ducks, but we can see her individuality showing through as well as the fact that she likes to be alone.  She is happy with who she is and doesn't want anything to change. 

But then one day Chad moves into the empty house next door.  He's a bit of a messy duck, and boy, can he talk ... and talk ... and talk ... and talk.  There is no way they could be friends.  They were just too different, and Chad was just plain Odd!  Theodora was just going to ignore Chad and keep to herself ... just as she preferred!  But slowly Chad begins to grow on Theodora, and before she can help herself they are friends.

Varon's illustrations are gorgeous.  They show Theodora and Chad in all their individual uniqueness.  They are done in muted and paste tones, and although the ducks are pale yellow they stand out from the background images.  The graphic novel scenes are simply done, and the speech bubbles positioned in a way that those new to Graphics can follow along and learn the layout style.  I love how there are little 'extra' bits added to the storyline, kind-of factual information about parts of the scenes you should know about.

Technically this is not a picture book, but I just had to review it.  And really Graphic Novel's are full of illustrations so in a way it is a picture book.  Actually First Second the publishers call it a hybrid picture book-graphic novel format.

A lovely tale of friendship and being a bit different from everyone else.

I got my copy of Odd Duck from the Taradale Primary School library where I work. 

Oops I couldn't find a copy at Napier Libraries.

Check out Goodreads for more reviews of Odd Duck.