Sometimes I find myself reading a book to the children at bedtime and just falling completely and utterly in love with it. With Odd Dog Out though, not only did I fall in love, but I also found myself shedding a small tear in the process. If only all books could get things as spot on as Rob Biddulph’s managed here and the world would be a far better place in my opinion.
As anyone who knows me in “real life” will know – I’m not exactly someone who always conforms and as a result there can be times when I don’t exactly fit in with those around me. That can make the world a lonely place, especially if you’re not someone that’s super confident in your own skin if you see what I mean. That’s pretty much what happens to Dog in this story.
Dog finds that she always seems to be whistling a different tune to those around her; dancing to a different beat. She thinks she needs to go away and just find other people like her, but once she does that it’s actually finding someone different from her (and the others now around them) that makes her realise that being different is actually not just OK, it’s far better than that. Being different is something to celebrate and embrace.
Odd Dog Out beautifully shows young children the benefits of being different and being confident in themselves. Master C seemed to latch on to the concept very easily and Little Miss C was also listening at this point and immediately burst into a song that they’d taught them at school about everyone being different and how “it’s good to be me, it’s good to be you”. It definitely seemed like the message from Odd Dog Out came across very clearly to my two.
As if the story wasn’t strong enough, Odd Dog Out also is wonderfully illustrated by Rob Biddulph and I completely fell in love with his style. It turns out that he was once the art director for the Observer, but at home he would make up stories for his three daughters and draw pictures to go with them. I’m mighty pleased that he’s given up the day job and now makes a living from children’s books. There’s something in Odd Dog Out that’s incredibly powerful and definitely a force for good. As well as Dog being incredibly cute!
Odd Dog Out by Rob Biddulph is published by Harper Collins on 25th August 2016 and is priced at £12.99 in hardcover. ISBN 9780007594153.
Disclaimer: I was sent a copy of Odd Dog Out for the purposes of this review. All opinions remain my own. This post contains affiliate links.
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