Oddrey and the new kid

When a new girl, Maybelline, joins her class, optimistic Oddrey plans to be friends, but Maybelline has other ideas. The illustrations depicting Maybelline's interactions parallel Oddrey's, but with one exception: unlike Oddrey, Maybelline is bossy and full of tall tales. On a class trip to the zoo, Oddrey has had enough, and both girls end up in the monkey enclosure at the zoo. Their zany escape up a kangaroo's back, through the hippo pool, and via a zip line gives cartoonist Whammond lots of creative opportunities that will delight readers, especially the girls' encounter with warthogs! Young readers can easily decipher Oddrey's feelings throughout, and her expression at story's end reminds readers that she is a patient and understanding friend. Even the delightful endpapers reveal Oddrey as a unique character, never at rest.--Ching, Edie Copyright 2014 Booklist

In Whamond's Oddrey's return, she must contend with a little touch of competition for the limelight. Oddrey is not so much a fruitcake as an original. She takes the path less traveled. Sometimes it feels a bit like attention-seeking behavior, though, to her credit, she seeks attention for all her friends and classmates, too. In this story, she comes up against not exactly a nemesis, but a serious rival: Maybelline. Maybelline has lots of wild tales--she and her father traveled the four corners to find ancient artifacts in dangerous situations--to wow her classmates. She has so many wild tales that Oddrey gets suspicious, and she isn't happy with Maybelline's bossy ways on the playground. Then comes a school visit to the zoo, and Oddrey is able to reassert her not only strange, but now heroic character. Although Whamond's artwork is a pleasing welter of colorful dabs and active lines, his story is achingly black and white. Readers know from the outset that poor Maybelline's comeuppance is a done deal--she is too snooty by half--so there will be no surprises here. And Oddrey is too self-conscious about being the maverick, which doesn't make her much of one; she is not a bohemian, she is a prima donna. For Oddrey to remain odd, she is going to have to hear the beat of a far different drummer. (Picture book. 4-7)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.