Graphic Novel Review: Oddly Normal by Otis Frampton

So about two weeks ago,  Otis Frampton was here for a Guest Post, and now finally here's my review of Book One.  A big thank you to Otis for the images he provided for me to include with my review! 

It's Oddly Normal's Birthday and her parents have a special party planned, except Oddly's parents haven't clued into the fact that Oddly is seen as well, Oddly in school.  She gets teased about having pointed ears, green hair and being a half-witch, all the kind of things that don't help you to make friends that will show up to your birthday party.   Frustrated with her parents, Oddly blows out the candles on her birthday cake and makes a wish that her parents would disappear.  A wish that Oddlly instantly regrets, but  one that is already to late and poof they're gone.  When Oddly's aunt arrives late to the party, Oddly explains what happened, and her Aunt takes her back to Fignation.  Together they hope to figure out a way to get Oddly's parents back.  

  One of the first things that  made me love Oddly Normal's story is the lovely illustrations.  One's like this one from the very beginning, shortly after Oddly made her wish.   She looks so sad  sitting on the tree swing and the lack of bright colors, really sets the mood.  You can really relate to how she feels about not having any friends and how her parents don't seem to understand her. 

Then in this scene, where Oddly is running from a 

pack of werewolves, there is this added creepiness that I really enjoyed. 

Yet my favorite parts of the novel are when Oddly arrives in Fignation, a place where she thinks she will finally fit in.  I really like the vivid and bright colors Frampton uses to highlight Fignation and its various inhabitants.   

And there is just the right amount of humor too, like with this one of the bus Oddly takes to school.  Overall, this is a really cute story with a nice blend of illustrations and dialogue.  It's about 128 pages, so a fairly quick read, and Book 2  will be releasing on November 5th.  Plus there are plans for a third book after that.  I'll leave you with these two finally images.  If you're interested in the process of how Otis Frampton creates the artwork for Oddly Normal here's a great  Guest Post @alibrarymama.com on the process. 

Disclaimer, I received a review copy of Oddly Normal from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.  Oddly Normal has also been nominated for the Cybils award and my review reflects my personal opinion, not the opinion of the Cybils committee.  

  

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Author Bio

"Otis Frampton is a comic book writer/artist and animator. He is the creator of Oddly Normal, published by Image Comics. He is one of the two artists on the popular animated web series How It Should Have Ended. He is also the creator of ABCDEFGeek, a geek-alphabet cartoon series that can bee seen at otisframpton.com, the How It Should Have Ended YouTube channel and on TeeFury."