Otter and Odder: A Love Story

by James Howe, Chris Raschka (Illustrator)

Overview

When an otter falls in love with a fish, can he dare to follow his heart? A delicious ode to nonconformity from a stellar picture-book pair.

The day Otter found love, he wasn’t looking for it. He was looking for dinner. But then he gazed into the round, sweet, glistening eyes of Myrtle the fish, and he knew. "Impossible," he said. "I am in love with my food source." As for Myrtle, her first desire was: Please don’t eat me. But soon her heart awakened to a future she could never have imagined. The inseparable duo played hide-and-seek and told each other stories, but everyone said that was not the way of the otter. Could their love (and Myrtle) possibly survive? Aided by Chris Raschka’s illustrations in a fresh faux-naïf style, James Howe tells a warm, witty tale about finding kindred spirits in the oddest of places-and having the good sense to keep them.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780763641740
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	10/09/2012
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 8.70(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	AD650L (what's this?)
Age Range:	7 - 10 Years

About the Author

James Howe is the acclaimed and beloved author of scores of books for young readers, including Brontorina, illustrated by Randy Cecil; the E. B. White Read Aloud Award–winning Houndsley and Catina and its sequels, illustrated by Marie-Louise Gay; and The Misfits, the book that inspired national No Name-Calling Week. James Howe lives in New York State.

Chris Raschka, winner of the 2012 Caldecott Medal for A Ball for Daisy, is the acclaimed illustrator of many books for children, including I Pledge Allegiance by Bill Martin Jr. and Michael Sampson; Dylan Thomas’s A Child’s Christmas in Wales; The Grasshopper’s Song by Nikki Giovanni; and A Poke in the I, A Kick in the Head, and A Foot in the Mouth, all edited by Paul B. Janeczko. Chris Raschka lives in New York City.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

The love between a fish and an otter is given the thoughtful treatment such an unexpected attraction deserves... Howe explores the pleasure and pain of loving someone who is different from one’s self in a manner that is both sophisticated and accessible to children... Raschka’s childlike renderings of creatures in thick, penciled outlines create the innocence, mirror the hope and provide the universality that contributes to the title’s ascent above its purely message-driven counterparts. Ever-changing watercolor washes and primordial shapes depict a wondrous, liquid world in which the star-crossed lovers learn to trust their hearts.
—Kirkus Reviews

Howe’s story reaches beyond its target audience and presents a lovely, unpreachy allegory for relationships that fall outside the mainstream.
—Publishers Weekly

Together, Howe and Raschka movingly explore the complexities of who and how we love, where love found and where it takes us.
—New York Times online

Editorial Reviews

Chris Raschka's illustrations are delightfully childlike, an apt depiction of the early, innocent throes of first love: full of life, emotion-driven, often more than a little bit silly…Together, Howe and Raschka movingly explore the complexities of who and how we love, where love is found and where it takes us.
—Pamela Paul

The New York Times

Love at first sight befalls a hungry otter and the fish he intends to eat for dinner. Soul-searching ensues. “I am in love with my food source,” the dismayed otter admits, gazing into Myrtle’s “round, sweet, glistening eyes.” Otter’s carnivorous friends mutter, “It isn’t natural,” and Otter has no answer when Myrtle asks, “But must you eat my friends? My family?” Rather than receive an automatic “happily ever after,” Otter has to explore alternative menu options to keep his true love by his side. While Howe (Brontorina) speaks to younger readers with this “odder” romance, the important questions it raises wouldn’t be out of place in his middle-grade fiction. To be fair, the male meat-eater holds the cards in this relationship, although Myrtle returns Otter’s affections after an initial flight instinct. Raschka, who also merged the existential and the piscine in Arlene Sardine, provides abstract and wonderfully childlike crayon-and-watercolor images of a serpentine brook, rippling and meandering as the otter and fish cavort. Howe’s story reaches beyond its target audience and presents a lovely, unpreachy allegory for relationships that fall outside the mainstream. Ages 6–10. Illustrator’s agent: Brenda Bowen, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

The love between a fish and an otter is given the thoughtful treatment such an unexpected attraction deserves... Howe explores the pleasure and pain of loving someone who is different from one’s self in a manner that is both sophisticated and accessible to children... Raschka’s childlike renderings of creatures in thick, penciled outlines create the innocence, mirror the hope and provide the universality that contributes to the title’s ascent above its purely message-driven counterparts. Ever-changing watercolor washes and primordial shapes depict a wondrous, liquid world in which the star-crossed lovers learn to trust their hearts.
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Howe’s story reaches beyond its target audience and presents a lovely, unpreachy allegory for relationships that fall outside the mainstream.
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

An unusual, inspiring tale of star-crossed lovers and nonconformity.
—Booklist

Howe’s narrative incorporates humor, earnest emotion, and a likable protagonist to convey important truths about following one’s heart and looking beyond the expectations of others. The text is lyrical and rhythmically cadenced, unfurling gracefully like a blossoming flower to reveal its wisdom. Resplendent in sparkling sun-warmed hues, Raschka’s watercolor-and-pencil illustrations use stick-figure-style characters and unembellished shapes to strike the perfect balance of simplicity and eloquence. Like Leo Lionni’s wonder-filled fables, this tale entertains while it inspires.–
—School Library Journal

This is a strong story of independence and choosing your own road in life.
—Library Media Connection

This strange and optimistic little fable is kin to Raschka’s Arlene Sardine (BCCB 9/98) and Willis’ Tadpole’s Promise (BCCB 7/05) in its cheerful, humorous weirdness, and the writing is prettily polished.
—Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Their love is so pure, I had tears in my eyes by the end. It's beautiful—a story, a lesson of love that every child needs.
—The Atlantic Wire

James Howe expertly crafts this modern fable to be read on many levels. Although adults may read more into the muddied relationship, even young children will recognize the strength of staying true to oneself. Otter’s reflective tale gives hope and validity to love everywhere.
—BookPage

Together, Howe and Raschka movingly explore the complexities of who and how we love, where love found and where it takes us.
—New York Times online

From the Publisher

Gr 1–3—Swimming through a river in search of a meal, Otter comes face-to-face with a doe-eyed fish and finds love instead. The fish wants only to escape, but gazing into her captor's eyes, she sees "a tender and lonely heart revealed," and her own "tremulous/fish-not-wishing-to-be-dinner/heart" awakens to the possibility of affection. Alas, the course of true love never does run smooth, particularly when meandering through the links of the food chain, and the couple's idyllic happiness is short-lived. Tongues wag ("'It isn't right.'/'It isn't natural.'/'It isn't the way of the otter'"), causing him doubts, while his beloved wonders how she can love someone who feeds upon her family and friends. However, this romance is not destined to end in tragedy: inspired by Beaver's astute words ("…there is/the way of the otter/and there is/the way of the heart./It is up to you to decide which to follow"), Otter makes his choice-and a change in diet (apples and aspen bark can be very tasty)-paving the way for a happily-ever-after conclusion. Howe's narrative incorporates humor, earnest emotion, and a likable protagonist to convey important truths about following one's heart and looking beyond the expectations of others. The text is lyrical and rhythmically cadenced, unfurling gracefully like a blossoming flower to reveal its wisdom. Resplendent in sparkling sun-warmed hues, Raschka's watercolor-and-pencil illustrations use stick-figure-style characters and unembellished shapes to strike the perfect balance of simplicity and eloquence. Like Leo Lionni's wonder-filled fables, this tale entertains while it inspires.—Joy Fleishhacker, School Library Journal

School Library Journal

The love between a fish and an otter is given the thoughtful treatment such an unexpected attraction deserves. The homophonous title arouses curiosity while intimating troubled waters. Although it is love at first sight in the opening spread, the central conflict--that fish fall beneath otters in the food chain--is present as well. Howe explores the pleasure and pain of loving someone who is different from one's self in a manner that is both sophisticated and accessible to children. His rhapsodic language recalls William Steig's in The Amazing Bone (1976). Myrtle (really Gurgle, the fish) ponders "…the stirrings of her own / heart-- / her own tremulous / fish-not-wishing-to-be-dinner / heart-- / awakened to… / not only love but a future / she could never have imagined." The author builds suspense and credibility by twice speculating on the outcome. He first imagines what would happen "in a perfect world," then "in a tragic tale." Ultimately, Beaver's wisdom helps Otter overcome his instincts and the gossipers' ill will (a reality magnified by their tightly-knit circle, viewed from below). Raschka's childlike renderings of creatures in thick, penciled outlines create the innocence, mirror the hope and provide the universality that contributes to the title's ascent above its purely message-driven counterparts. Ever-changing watercolor washes and primordial shapes depict a wondrous, liquid world in which the star-crossed lovers learn to trust their hearts. (Picture book. 5-9)

Kirkus Reviews