Ode to a Nobody by Caroline Brooks DuBois

 

If Forest was the glue

binding the family 

then I am the heat

weakening the bond.

If Forest was the duct tape,

the button, the magnet, the bungee

holding us together,

then I am the resistance

the yank, the pull.

Quinnie, Quinn, Quinn(ie) 

Mom's ultrasound and intuition
convinced her

I was born to be a boy.

So my parents chose a name

and for nine long months

called me Quinn.

When I turned out a girl,

Mom still liked Quinn.

'It's gender-neutral,'

she insisted.

Dad disagreed

and has always called me

Quinnie. So it's Quinn on paper,

but out loud mostly Quinnie

and sometimes Quinn,

depending on 

who's speaking.

Quinnie's brother is the star of the family, at least according to his sister. Mum and dad keep fighting. Quinnie is sure that is all her fault. And then the tornado hits.

It's been a week

since the tornado struck.

I swear time has crawled.

It could be lack of electricity

in our busted home, or moving to Ivy-

days of doing things I've never done,

and all the time spent offline.

Maybe it's just me,

or maybe it's the truce

between Mom and Dad.

But I've changed a lot in the span

of this 'week-year'.

In class Ms Koval sets an assignment of poetry writing for the whole month. They study famous poems and learn techniques. Reading the poems by Quinnie we gain insights into her family issues, friendship issues, her worries, and the way Quinnie learns how to stands up to her old friends who want her to do dangerous things. 

In one incident Jack and Jade spray paint damaged houses but when the spray tins are left in Quinnie's pack she has a wonderful idea. She writes poems of hope on neighborhood walls as she watches all the people who suffered from the tornado begin to rebuild their lives. 

Stay strong.

We survived!

Hold that vibe.

Hear the song.

Of lives resuming

And hope blooming.

After a month of writing Quinn reads her best poem to the class. Jack kept saying this poetry writing project was a waste of his time but then he slips his poem into her pocket. It has been a year of change but there will be good times to come. You are sure to shed a few tears when you read the final scenes. 

Take a close look at the cover of this book. The town is hit by a tornado - hence the flying objects; Quinn and her mum shelter in the basement but she forgets to rescue her hamster named Pumpkin; Jack was Quinn's best friend and they liked to skate and game but now Jade has arrived and this precious friendship has shifted.

This beautiful novel in verse, a novel all about poetry and the power that comes from writing and discovery, is not to be missed. The message about leaning into and accepting yourself is an important one. School Library Journal

Here is the web page for Caroline Brooks DuBois.

Straight ater I read Ode to Nobody I read Right as Rain (not a verse novel) - these books have very similar themes (parents on the brink of divorce; poetry writing; school life; friendship) so I have found myself mixing up the plot points. I will talk about this book over the coming days.