Odd & True is the story of two sisters in the early 1900s. They live with their aunt, and Od, the oldest, tells her younger sister, Tru, stories of their mother's supernatural power to ward off demons and ghosts of all kinds. They have a magical box, a special necklace, and a mirror in their window to keep the bad things away.
Tru is crippled from polio and spends most of her time in a wheelchair. We get flashbacks from Od's point-of-view about their childhood. When Od is 15, she is sent away by Aunt Vik and is never to return. Tru has no idea why but receives letters from her sister indicating that she has a job reading Tarot cards in the circus.
When Tru is about to turn 15, Od returns and convinces Tru that they need to go on an adventure and hunt monsters around the country. Tru convinces Od that they need to go find their mother. So their journey begins. They find many other things along the way.
That is such a bland description for a beautiful book. Od and Tru are such vivid, complete characters whose motivations may be unclear, but their hearts are true. Od is keeping secrets about what really happened when she was away, but all will be revealed. I did find it took a while for Odd & True to really grab me, but it certainly did.
And about that magical power to ward off demons? Has the power passed to the sisters? Well, I'll let you find out.
I've read four other books by Cat Winters and have given three of them a rating of 5/5. The other got a 4/5. Suffice it to say, she's one of my favorite authors. Her books defy categorization. All of her books contain author's notes at the end that suggest further reading on the historical aspects of the story. Odd & True actually contains a full bibliography.
If you haven't read Cat Winters, give Od & Tru (or any other of her books) a try. It's an immersive experience.
Published by Amulet, September 12, 2017
Copy obtained from the library
358 pages
Rating: 4.5/5
I've never read anything by Winters, but I've heard good things about her books. I'll have to give them a go sometime soon.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure this book is for me, but I can see certain teenagers loving it!
ReplyDeleteOne thing you can say for Cat Winters, she is prolific. I think her first book was just published a few years ago and she has cranked out one or two every year since that time. I like the way she weaves in history into her moody, some might say creepy stories.
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