The Mighty Odds
The Odds series, Book 1
Amy Ignatow
Amulet Books
Fiction, CH? Action/Humor/Sci-Fi
Themes: Country Tales, Cross-Genre, Diversity, Girl Power, Heroes, Mind Powers, Schools
****
Description
Nick's always been something of a nerd. Martina hides behind her sketchbook, unnoticed by everyone. Farshad had hoped that middle school would be a chance for new friends and a new start until the popular kids branded him "Terror Boy", an unkind reference to his Middle Eastern heritage. Cookie, the only Black girl in Deborah Reed Middle School, has clawed her way to the top of the social ladder and does not intend to slip so much as a single rung. They were four ordinary middle school students, on their way back to rural Muellersville from a field trip to Philadelphia... before the accident. Now, they all have super powers - sort of. Nick can transport himself, but only four inches to the left. Martina can change her eye color. Farshad's thumbs have super strength. And Cookie can hear people's thoughts if they're thinking about directions. None of these powers are the sort of things to write a movie franchise about, but they're all signs that something extraordinary happened - and, unimpressive as these new gifts are, someone is trying very, very hard to get their hands on the kids.
Review
I'll admit I came close to docking this book a half-point for a cliffhanger ending (and for poor formatting on the audiobook version I borrowed; inexplicably, the last fifteen or so minutes of the file are just the first part of the book replaying). Aside from that, it's exactly what it looks like from the description: a light, fun tale of mismatched kids bonded by new powers and new enemies. (Well, kids and a few others, but that risks spoilers.) The fact that the major employer in Muellersville is a chemical company should be a hint that something sinister is afoot, and the accident lands the hapless kids squarely in the middle of it. Light as the overall concept is, the characters are generally more than simple sketches, each having a decently interesting backstory that helps explain where they are when they start out and how they react once they become involved in something as unusual as developing strange powers seemingly out of nowhere. They are not natural friends, separated by racial, social, and economic divides that even mysterious abilities and shared trauma can't easily bridge. By the end, they're still not completely at ease with teamwork, but they're working on it, and none of them are so stupidly stubborn as to keep rejecting the need to band together against a common enemy (though it does take some convincing). I ultimately decided to give it the benefit of the doubt on that cliffhanger and round it up.