Oddbird arrives at the water hole. None of the other fancy birds have entered the water even though it is a very, very hot day. They are way too concerned about their appearance. The water might ruin their fabulous feathers.
But Oddbird is different. He is grey. His feathers are dull. He is hot after his long flight. He dips his toes into the cool pool and immediately all the other birds begin to verbally attack him. Oddbird bursts into tears and flies away.
In the surrounding jungle, Oddbird notices all the colour in nature. He picks up various colourful pieces and transforms himself into a fabulous bird. His little swimming suit is especially cute. Back at the pool none of the other birds recognise him - well not until he climbs up the tall ladder and dives into the pool. All of his colourful accessories fall off and of course now the other birds can see the fancy bird, they had admired just minutes ago, is just Oddbird. If you read this book to a group of older students I would stop at this point and try to predict what could happen next.
Make sure you spread out the covers so your class or library group of young reading companion can enjoy the full spread. The vibrant birds, each with their distinct personality, is a fabulous image. You can see the whole spread at the top of this post.
The obvious companion read to go with Oddbird would be Scary Bird although I do think Scary Bird has a deeper message.
Here is the trailer for Oddbird. Here is an interview with The School Library Journal where derek talks about Oddbird. Take a look at this interview with Let's Talk Picture Books. This is the first picture book Canadian animator Derek Desierto has made where he is both the author and illustrator. His previous book was:
You might also like to compare this book with:
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