Odd One Out

by Nic Stone

Overview

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Dear Martin comes an honest and touching depiction of friendship, first love, and everything in between. Perfect for fans of Love, Simon and What If It's Us.

Courtney Cooper and Jupiter Sanchez (Coop & Jupe!) have been next-door neighbors and best friends since they were seven-years-old. She's his partner-in-crime and other half. But lately, Cooper can't ignore he might want something more than friendship from Jupiter.

When Rae Chin moves to town she can't believe how lucky she is to find Coop and Jupe. Being the new kid is usually synonymous with pariah, but around these two, she finally feels like she belongs. She's so grateful she wants to kiss him...and her.

Jupiter has always liked girls. But when Rae starts dating Cooper, Jupe realizes that the only girl she ever really imagined by his side was her.

One story. Three sides. No easy answers.

AN NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
A BOSTON GLOBE BEST CHILDREN'S BOOK OF 2018

"Fans of Nic and new readers will find themselves engrossed." -Teen Vogue

"Declaring yourself—how you would like to be represented and whom you want to love and connect with—is treated with real tenderness." -The New York Times

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781101939536
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	10/09/2018
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	291,885
Product dimensions:	5.94(w) x 8.56(h) x 1.03(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Atlanta native Nic Stone is the author of the New York Times bestselling Dear Martin, which Booklist called "vivid and powerful." Odd One Out is Nic's second novel and the book she wishes she'd had back when she was trying to figure out who it's okay to love.

You can find Nic fangirling over her husband and sons on Twitter and Instagram at @getnicced or on her website, nicstone.info.

Read an Excerpt

I, Courtney Aloysius Cooper IV, Should Be a Very Sad Dude
(Continues…)

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Excerpted from "Odd One Out"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Nic Stone.
Excerpted by permission of Random House Children's Books.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Editorial Reviews

The passages narrated by [Rae and Jupiter] are where Stone's writing soars, as each girl struggles to understand her sexual identity and whether it's as etched in stone as she once thought. The novel concludes, satisfyingly, with Jupiter's perspective, and readers finally get a sense of this flesh-and-blood teenager—not just a manic pixie girl sex object. In these chapters, declaring yourself—how you would like to be represented and whom you want to love and connect with—is treated with real tenderness.

The New York Times Book Review - Shelley Diaz

08/13/2018
In Decatur, Ga., three teens in a complex love triangle navigate a fine line between friendship and romantic love. High-school junior Courtney (“Coop”) can’t deny his physical attraction to his neighbor and female best friend, Jupiter, whom he’s loved for years. She identifies as gay, but she begins to wonder about her feelings for Coop, leading to mixed messages between them. Meanwhile, new student Rae dramatically changes Courtney and Jupiter’s dynamic after befriending them, and she finds herself infatuated with them both. Divided into three sections, each narrated distinctively by one of the three protagonists, the book effectively conveys teen dynamics, early sexual exploration, and feeling left out. Stone (Dear Martin) challenges stereotypical notions of what it means to be straight, bisexual, or gay, showing how sexual identities and desires can be as complicated as the individual human brain. Ages 14–up. Agent: Katherine Dunn, InkWell Management. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

08/01/2018
Gr 9 Up—This sophomore novel by the author of Dear Martin is something completely different. Coop has been in love with his best friend, Jupiter, for as long as he can remember. He knows his love will never be returned because Jupiter is only attracted to girls. Rae is new in town and fits into "Jupe & Coop's" orbit very comfortably. Slowly, Rae begins to recognize that she is attracted to them both. This is the setup for the love triangle book that teen fiction has needed for a long time. While ethnicity and race are built into the intersectional storytelling, this title has more of a focus on the LGBTQ+ experience. Many young readers will identify with the feelings explored: the differences between romantic love and physical love, the difficulties associated with testing the boundaries of one's own sexuality with someone who is sure of theirs, and love beyond the binary. The subject matter is handled sensitively and thoughtfully. The novel's three perspectives are provided consecutively rather than the traditional alternating structure. The consequence of this is that one loses the access to the interior monologues of characters as the story progresses, which creates gaps in the telling. Nevertheless, this is an excellent choice. VERDICT An important and necessary love story for YA that will fill a gap in collections.—Kristin Lee Anderson, Jackson County Library Services, OR

School Library Journal

2018-07-30

Not your usual love triangle.

Decatur, Georgia, teen Courtney "Coop" Cooper lives next door to his best friend, Jupiter "Jupe" Charity-Sanchez, a girl he'd be (even more) in love with if she weren't gay—and crushing on new girl Rae (half white and half Chinese-Jamaican), who may or may not be straight. Coop agrees that Rae is pretty cute, and the three become close friends as they navigate difficult, mercurial feelings about crushes, sexuality, and friendship. Biracial (black/Latinx) Jupe has two dads: Cuban-American Papi and African-American Dad. Coop, who is black, has a single mother (his father died in a car crash) and regards Jupe's dads as father figures. Rae feels like an interloper in the midst of this intimate friendship—Coop and Jupe have been snuggling at sleepovers for years. Just to make things more complicated, Rae is unsure if she has a crush on Courtney or Jupiter. Maybe both? In this novel that is divided into three parts and narrated first by Coop, then Rae, then Jupe, Stone (Dear Martin, 2017) has created well-rounded characters whose voices are distinct. The story's authentic and honest depictions of sex, parent-free social interactions, and Gen Z's highly critical take on gender roles and sexuality hit the mark.

A he said, she said story that stands out. (Fiction. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews

Praise for Odd One Out:
An NPR Best Book of 2018!
“For fans of authors who dig complex relationships, like Shannon M. Parker, Ashley Woodfolk and Misa Sugiura.” –Paste Magazine

"Essential reading." –Booklist, Starred Review

"An important and necessary love story." –SLJ

"Stone challenges stereotypical notions of what it means to be straight, bisexual, or gay, showing how sexual identities and desires can be as complicated as the individual human brain." –PW

Praise for Dear Martin:
A 2018 BookExpo Editors' Buzz Selection!
An Indies Introduce Selection!
A Kids' Indie Next List pick!

"Powerful, wrenching." –John Green, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Turtles All the Way Down

"Absolutely incredible, honest, gut-wrenching. A must read!" –Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Hate U Give

"Painfully timely and deeply moving." –Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author

"Raw and gripping." –Jason Reynolds, bestselling coauthor of All American Boys

"Teens, librarians and teachers alike will find this book a godsend. . . . Vivid and powerful." –Booklist, Starred

"A visceral portrait of a young man reckoning with the ugly, persistent violence of social injustice." –Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

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