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Common Strange Behavior
For as long as there have been Strange People, there have been those who are afraid of us.Callum Chessman has finally reached his last year at Wildbrush Academy for Strange People. Between telekinesis, bipolar disorder, and being hopelessly in love with his best friend Nick, he has a lot on his plate.
Then students with anomalous strange behaviors begin to vanish.
Through a nationwide network of kids Callum met during his stint in the mental ward, he soon discovers that Anomalous kids haven't just been going missing from Wildbrush. They've been going missing from every Strange school in the United States.
Callum has never been good at staying in his lane.
He will find out what is happening to his friends.
There's just one thing to keep in
Don't let them catch you.
Then students with anomalous strange behaviors begin to vanish.
Through a nationwide network of kids Callum met during his stint in the mental ward, he soon discovers that Anomalous kids haven't just been going missing from Wildbrush. They've been going missing from every Strange school in the United States.
Callum has never been good at staying in his lane.
He will find out what is happening to his friends.
There's just one thing to keep in
Don't let them catch you.
- GenresYoung Adult
375 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 20, 2023
1 person is currently reading
34 people want to read
About the author
Scarlett Barnhill
9 books22 followersScarlett is actually a raccoon feeding on fictional garbage in a fictional dumpster. She refuses to leave, because at least dumpsters are cozy. Her accolades include a GED, five psychiatric medication prescriptions, and excellent taste in clothing.
That's what my books say. The longer story is this: I'm a neurodivergent queer woman who was written off as a "bad kid." I write books for little me, and for every kid who was never given a chance.
That's what my books say. The longer story is this: I'm a neurodivergent queer woman who was written off as a "bad kid." I write books for little me, and for every kid who was never given a chance.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 9, 2024
Callum may be my favorite narrator ever! His humor was off the charts. And it was so refreshing to read in the headspace as someone just about as ✨mentally stable✨ as me. This book has heart and humor, and the characters felt so real they nearly leapt off the pages. (Not literally I don’t have Andy’s power sadly). This book is going to stick with me a while, and the quote “It would be everything and nothing like I pictured the future being, because for a long, long time, I never pictured a future at all. It was a void and then it was gray and now what lay ahead stared back at me in towering streaks of technicolor.” Will be echoing around my head for a while. I’ve never felt more seen by a book. I’m not sure how to wrap this up, but this book is going to be a top read of the year for sure.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 21, 2023
Yes, I’m giving my own book five stars again. It has everything that I wanted to see in a book: queer kids with superpowers, a bipolar protagonist, a secluded school for said kids with superpowers on a cool mountain with a cool mascot (Go Jackalopes!), and a celebration of the fun parts of America, while acknowledging the bad ones. I hope readers get even half as much out of reading it as I have writing it.
Plus…the story might not even be over.
Plus…the story might not even be over.
August 30, 2023
The author was kind enough to send a physical ARC to me after she saw how ferral i went for her first book. (Train Track Princes, go read it now!) So thank you again, so much!
What can I say about this book, except that I loved it. Callum Chessman is our MC and is one the wildest characters I've read about. He's always doing the most and "Scooby-Doin" when he needs to take several seats. Lol but honestly I wish I knew more ppl like Callum in real life. Ppl who are not afraid to be themselves, look how they wanna look and show their grittiest parts.
The book did start off a little slow to get to the juicy bits however once the action comes and the students start missing and disaster prom nights happen and mysterious dark figures appear, things get wild and I couldn't finish the book fast enough. I honestly kept thinking to myself how much i wish this was a movie or a TV series and how cool that would be. So so good!
What can I say about this book, except that I loved it. Callum Chessman is our MC and is one the wildest characters I've read about. He's always doing the most and "Scooby-Doin" when he needs to take several seats. Lol but honestly I wish I knew more ppl like Callum in real life. Ppl who are not afraid to be themselves, look how they wanna look and show their grittiest parts.
The book did start off a little slow to get to the juicy bits however once the action comes and the students start missing and disaster prom nights happen and mysterious dark figures appear, things get wild and I couldn't finish the book fast enough. I honestly kept thinking to myself how much i wish this was a movie or a TV series and how cool that would be. So so good!
September 2, 2023
4.25
This was fun, tightly paced, and super exciting. Beyond the action, the teenage punk shenanigans, the superpowers - beyond the sex, drugs, and ska covers lies something that I found really comforting. Somewhere beneath this book is laced with kindness and understanding towards people, and that's the thing I appreciated the most about it.
Now for my personal taste, I would've liked it to slow down a little bit and maybe spend a little bit more time with some of the side characters which is why it didn't get the full 5 stars from me, but to someone who prefers their plots plotty, this will be perfect.
This was fun, tightly paced, and super exciting. Beyond the action, the teenage punk shenanigans, the superpowers - beyond the sex, drugs, and ska covers lies something that I found really comforting. Somewhere beneath this book is laced with kindness and understanding towards people, and that's the thing I appreciated the most about it.
Now for my personal taste, I would've liked it to slow down a little bit and maybe spend a little bit more time with some of the side characters which is why it didn't get the full 5 stars from me, but to someone who prefers their plots plotty, this will be perfect.
January 5, 2024
FUCK YEAH. A queer book that talks on so many important topics AND has playlists for each character, AND merch... The dedication is unreal.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews