DESCRIPTION
He was always so normal!
Todd Farrel attends tiny St. Luke's Episcopal School in rural New England. Each year the sixth graders finish winter term with their big social studies reports. Wanting to make his report something special this year, Todd finally decides to write about mystical experiences -- something definitely
not normal. After doing some research, Todd determines that he needs to have his own mystical experience.
While practicing soccer with his best friend, Nitro, listening to an unusual teacher who encourages original thinking, and giving in to his curiosity about Leda, the intelligent but unusual (in Todd's opinion) girl from California, Todd discovers some pretty extraordinary aspects to life in his ordinary world.
Not Exactly Normal is a book about being different and about fitting in, about accepting the differences of others and seeing ways that everyone is alike. It will challenge readers' assumptions and help them look at the world and their lives in new ways.
AWARDS and RECOGNITIONS
Children's Book Council, Notable Social Studies
REVIEWS
The Horn Book Guide
"Brown manages to inject plenty of classroom quirks, soccer antics, and even budding romance to keep the book rooted in reality. Recommended."
VOYA
"Todd Farrel is a normal sixth grader, and it frustrates him. He is average at swimming, piano, soccer, and writing, but he wants to be extraordinary. When his homeroom teacher, Mr. Phillips, assigns the end-of-term paper, Todd chooses mystical experiences as his topic, and he is determined to have one of his own. But no one can force a mystical experience to happen, not even Todd, and it takes a traumatic event in the life of his best friend Nitro for Todd to be able to see the extraordinary in the ordinary."
Booklist
"A quiet, meaningful first novel."
Publishers Weekly
"Brown's debut novel serves up some dynamic kid characters . . . and stirs up some thought-provoking issues for them to consider."