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Odmieniec
Kanadyjski pisarz, miłośnik ptaków i przyjaciel Indian, snuje opowieść o ptasim odmieńcu i o miłości pochodzących z różnych środowisk dwojga młodych: Indianki i białego, dla których ten ptak stał się symbolem, albowiem jego losy nierozerwalnie splotły się z losami ich miłości.
365 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1959
4 people are currently reading
179 people want to read
About the author
Fred Bodsworth
23 books12 followersFred Bodsworth was born in Port Burwell, Ontario. He has worked in tobacco fields and on tow tugs. He now lives in Toronto. He was a reporter for the St. Thomas Times-Journal from 1940-43; reporter and editor for The Toronto Star from 1943-47; staff writer for Maclean's from 1947-55, and a freelance magazine writer, nature writer, and novelist since then. He was president of the Federation of Ontario Naturalists from 1964-67. He was also an organizer and leader of numerous worldwide ornithology tours and has contributed to numerous anthologies.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
March 9, 2016
Saw this book at a flea market- just sitting by itself, face up, kinda winking at me saying "hey girl, check me out". I read the jacket cover and thought it looked interesting enough to take with me on vacation.
I absolutely loved it! It's such a beautiful and haunting story about love and consequences and discovery about who you are and where you came from. Apparently, this is a classic Canadian story. I happen to have a "thing" for all things Canadian and this book is further proof that Canadians are awesome.
If you come across this book or any other books by Fred Bodsworth, I recommend you check them out. I'm going to read Last of the Curlews next. Hope it's as good as the Strange One!
I absolutely loved it! It's such a beautiful and haunting story about love and consequences and discovery about who you are and where you came from. Apparently, this is a classic Canadian story. I happen to have a "thing" for all things Canadian and this book is further proof that Canadians are awesome.
If you come across this book or any other books by Fred Bodsworth, I recommend you check them out. I'm going to read Last of the Curlews next. Hope it's as good as the Strange One!
July 23, 2022
This out-of-print book was published in 1959 and my mom tells me it was her Dad's favorite story. She has his old copy and re-reads it regularly. It's one of her favorites too. I'm so happy to have finally read it for myself.
This story has a straight-forward plot and the sensible writing style that you might expect from a Canadian naturalist. I would observe that the writing was slanted more toward scientific observation than prose. That said; it remains emotionally engaging throughout.
It focuses on two concurrent love stories; one of a young biologist who falls in love with a Native American girl and the other of a pair of mis-matched geese. There are expected dangers and issues that befall each pair in their quests to find each other.
Physical copy borrowed from Mom
I liked that the geese remained geese. The sections that dealt with them did so from a narrator's point of view. They were not anthropomorphized for the most part. I also thought the treatment of race relations between the Native Americans and the white people was intelligently done. There seems to be a roughness yet a sensitivity that feels authentic to the time period in which it was written. I feel that the two racial groups were mostly treated with objectivity and fairness.
This story has a straight-forward plot and the sensible writing style that you might expect from a Canadian naturalist. I would observe that the writing was slanted more toward scientific observation than prose. That said; it remains emotionally engaging throughout.
It focuses on two concurrent love stories; one of a young biologist who falls in love with a Native American girl and the other of a pair of mis-matched geese. There are expected dangers and issues that befall each pair in their quests to find each other.
Physical copy borrowed from Mom
I liked that the geese remained geese. The sections that dealt with them did so from a narrator's point of view. They were not anthropomorphized for the most part. I also thought the treatment of race relations between the Native Americans and the white people was intelligently done. There seems to be a roughness yet a sensitivity that feels authentic to the time period in which it was written. I feel that the two racial groups were mostly treated with objectivity and fairness.
August 20, 2021
THE STRANGE ONE was a thought-provoking story. It was hard to imagine a journey to the 1950s would elicit a plethora of emotions. It left me unsettled. Even though I wanted to set the book aside for a bit, I was compelled to keep reading. I needed to find out what happened to Kanina, Rory, Mary Macdonald and, yes, the two geese.
Caught in the backlash of a hurricane, a wild barnacle goose was blown off course from the Scottish island of Barra. He landed in northern Canada. Eventually, instincts kicked in. He required two things: food and a mate.
”Geese are remarkable birds, but two species especially- the Canada you have here and the barnacle goose we have in the old world. They have all the qualities man admires in fellow men- industry, strength, intelligence and, most pronounced of all, the capacity to fall in love. Geese mate for life and once pairing has occurred only death can separate them. They have a family life, too.” ~Rory Macdonald
Rory was a young Scottish transplant who arrived in Canada after working on a ship. His hobby as a bird watcher fortuitously caused a
friendship with the very peculiar Dr. Thomas, an ornithologist at the University of Toronto. The professor encouraged Rory to further his education and become a biologist.
Rory was an extremely handsome young man with the exception of his nose. It ”stood out like a polished door knob, intercepting the sun…and was perpetually sunburned and peeling”. This in no way deterred women from coming on to him.
While searching for geese in the harsh back country of James Bay, Rory met a young Cree woman, Kanina. She was returning home to rejoin her native family after being rejected by the white community as a teacher. She was bitter; she knew her people suffered and led primitive lives; she was unprepared for this.
~~~~~
The atmosphere of the 1950s was sadly realistic. At times I wanted to shake Rory. I found Kanina the most interesting character. She was raised and educated by white missionaries, but her culture was pushed on her. I learned the Cree Native Americans were a proud people, but extremely poor. Kanina struggled to overcome mounting prejudice and poverty.
It was interesting to read how the animals’ lives were intertwined with Rory and Kanina. At 400 pages, quite a few things happened. It is difficult to say more without giving everything away.
Caught in the backlash of a hurricane, a wild barnacle goose was blown off course from the Scottish island of Barra. He landed in northern Canada. Eventually, instincts kicked in. He required two things: food and a mate.
”Geese are remarkable birds, but two species especially- the Canada you have here and the barnacle goose we have in the old world. They have all the qualities man admires in fellow men- industry, strength, intelligence and, most pronounced of all, the capacity to fall in love. Geese mate for life and once pairing has occurred only death can separate them. They have a family life, too.” ~Rory Macdonald
Rory was a young Scottish transplant who arrived in Canada after working on a ship. His hobby as a bird watcher fortuitously caused a
friendship with the very peculiar Dr. Thomas, an ornithologist at the University of Toronto. The professor encouraged Rory to further his education and become a biologist.
Rory was an extremely handsome young man with the exception of his nose. It ”stood out like a polished door knob, intercepting the sun…and was perpetually sunburned and peeling”. This in no way deterred women from coming on to him.
While searching for geese in the harsh back country of James Bay, Rory met a young Cree woman, Kanina. She was returning home to rejoin her native family after being rejected by the white community as a teacher. She was bitter; she knew her people suffered and led primitive lives; she was unprepared for this.
~~~~~
The atmosphere of the 1950s was sadly realistic. At times I wanted to shake Rory. I found Kanina the most interesting character. She was raised and educated by white missionaries, but her culture was pushed on her. I learned the Cree Native Americans were a proud people, but extremely poor. Kanina struggled to overcome mounting prejudice and poverty.
It was interesting to read how the animals’ lives were intertwined with Rory and Kanina. At 400 pages, quite a few things happened. It is difficult to say more without giving everything away.
December 9, 2012
Written several decades ago, this beautifully written story still delivers a very relevant message today. It delivers a strong message about the environment and environmental issues we still face today; and, about the lives, rights and perceptions of native Americans. The story is brilliantly tied together by the story of a wayward Barnacle Goose and its relationship with a Canada goose, paralleling the relationship of a Scottish-Canadian biologist and a Cree girl. Bodsworth's ornithilogical background comes through with excellent descriptions of the habits and lives of the Barnacles and Canadian geese.
April 13, 2014
Amazing book! I couldn't stop reading it, though I found the beginning a little bit slow and boring, as I am not too much into nature and science. I was amazed not only by the unusual love story, but also by the author's ability to combine the excellent historical facts (about the racial discrimination; descriptions of what the world looked like back then) and create the great imaginary visual sceneries. I could almost feel I was a part of the nature, while reading this book.
I would definitely recommend to read "The Strange One" to not only fall into the great lovestory (at the moments it was difficult to close the book and continue doing other things in real life), but also to understand how our lives are actually similair to the lives of other animals, that we actually think and do the same things and how all the things in the world are connected. And that you have to change yourself first in order to change the world.
I would definitely recommend to read "The Strange One" to not only fall into the great lovestory (at the moments it was difficult to close the book and continue doing other things in real life), but also to understand how our lives are actually similair to the lives of other animals, that we actually think and do the same things and how all the things in the world are connected. And that you have to change yourself first in order to change the world.
Read
April 5, 2010this is a wonderfully woven story of three lives...that of a native woman/teacher, a naturalist and a pair of geese. I learned so much about the behavior of geese....and how this behavior affects the life of a woman and a man..........great read.
February 18, 2011
One of my favorite books of all time. 2 love stories, a goose and a man. The book was my Dad's and I have it. The jacket is almost worn out. I have read it at least twice and will probably read it again.
June 2, 2013
Es lasīju un ar grūtībām piespiedos pievērsties citiem, svarīgākiem, darbiem. Uzzināju daudz par dzīvi Ziemeļamerikas apkaimē, par krijiešu cilts paražām. Neticami, bet pat aprakstīto zosu migrēšana un ligzdošana bija interesanta. Un protams- m ī l e s t ī b a !
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September 8, 2021Laikam viens no tiem gadījumiem, kad atsauksmju dēļ no grāmatas gaidīju par daudz. No diviem paralēlajiem stāstiem – par cilvēku un par zosu pāri – vairāk noticēju zosu mīlestībai (?). Bet vismaz beigas bija gana dramatiskas.
June 3, 2013
After reading his magnificent first book Last of the Curlews in a Dutch translation somewhere in 1985 I never came across Bodsworth again. Until the news of his death at age 93 last September. Its then that I learned about The Strange One. Its his second novel. Out of sale, but my relative Sharon MacFarlane found me a hardbound copy in Vancouver. Will let you know what the barnacle goose will mean to me.The illustration on the dustjacket by Alan Moulding is beautiful. Unlike Last of the Curlew, which is beautifully illustrated by T.M. Short, The Strange One has no illutrations. (The barnacle goose on the dust cover of my edition flies eastward, as here the bird flies westward. Funny, coincidence or marketing? The bird flying westward is coherent with the story, but the eastward flying one points to the opening side of the book, urging you on to flip to the first page.)
From Toronto to Barra to Glasgow, migration is vivid at the beginning of the story.
Blown back by a hurricane force wind and now dwelling on the beaches of James Bay. I meet Cree people, North Ontarian Canadians and a boy from the Hebrides in a fascinating group in this ever surprising novel. Many a strange one has crossed the readers word path and trail in the book so far.
Great book see review http://bit.ly/18Ipkhx
From Toronto to Barra to Glasgow, migration is vivid at the beginning of the story.
Blown back by a hurricane force wind and now dwelling on the beaches of James Bay. I meet Cree people, North Ontarian Canadians and a boy from the Hebrides in a fascinating group in this ever surprising novel. Many a strange one has crossed the readers word path and trail in the book so far.
Great book see review http://bit.ly/18Ipkhx
April 28, 2022
it has been a couple years since i’ve read a book where the plot is driven by the actions of a bird. and i’m confused to say that this one was considerably worse. it was a romance ? but so unfulfilling. it was supposed to be cute ? i guess but it’s really rape-y and racist, which makes sense because this book is about an interracial relationship in the 50s. anyways. i wouldn’t read it again but it was mildly entertaining. might update this if i have more to say later
(hello, it is later, by a couple of days now, everything after this is from me now which is later by the standards of this review. you get the point) i found this book in a cardboard box in my late great-grandparents’ garage as we (myself and various family members) were cleaning it out, i picked up a couple more books from there as well just out of curiosity, if i end up reading them any time soon i think i plan on making a shelf to collect them into one category.
best regards (from now and later), rowan
(hello, it is later, by a couple of days now, everything after this is from me now which is later by the standards of this review. you get the point) i found this book in a cardboard box in my late great-grandparents’ garage as we (myself and various family members) were cleaning it out, i picked up a couple more books from there as well just out of curiosity, if i end up reading them any time soon i think i plan on making a shelf to collect them into one category.
best regards (from now and later), rowan
September 6, 2016
Read this many years ago and loved it.
April 9, 2012
I wish this book would come back in print. It's a classic Canadian story. I learned so much about geese. Just a beautiful love story, too. This is my favorite book of all time.
March 26, 2020
I read this book many years ago (30+) and I loved it. I will have to re-read it, as I cannot recall any great detail, other than when I did my 'big overseas adventure' in the mid-1980's, the small Scottish island at the bottom of the Outer Hebrides, was on my 'must see' list. I did get there, but would love to return (not carrying a back pack and being able to afford more than a youth hostel bunk bed!).
April 9, 2023
A mixture of lovely, lyrical nature writing... and rampant racism. I'm sure the author felt he was being very broad-minded, writing a star-crossed love story of a white man and a native Canadian woman, but we are expected to be outraged that whites are prejudiced against Kanina because she was raised by good, clean, educated white people. She is not dirty, ignorant, and backward like her own native people are. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh.
Even without the disturbing racism I would not be happy with this book. The last 100 pages contain a whole lot of melodrama Also, all that waiting for Rory and Kanina to get together, and the book ends before it happens. A shared look, the book ends, and I guess we are supposed to assume that love conquers all. Do NOT recommend.
Even without the disturbing racism I would not be happy with this book. The last 100 pages contain a whole lot of melodrama Also, all that waiting for Rory and Kanina to get together, and the book ends before it happens. A shared look, the book ends, and I guess we are supposed to assume that love conquers all. Do NOT recommend.
April 6, 2014
Tās pīles, lai gan ir tik ļoti pie stāsta, tomēr nosit lasīšanas prieku.
July 20, 2019
A book from my past, picked out for me by a family friend who was a librarian. It has just been published, 1959, and was my first 'adult' novel. It's a love story, with an allegory running alongside. Two for the price of one. It's about difference, and how it is of no consequence. The message has stayed with me all my life; we're all the same. There are other thought provoking factors in the story, especially where the obligation to parents ends.
It builds slowly, to a climax that you will realise is coming. You will dread the outcome, but you'll have to read on.
It's well written. A reader will be enticed by the descriptions on the country and wildlife, both of which, I think, Bodsworth loves. Don't look for action as this book is gentle and persuasive.
I've since read A Sparrow's Fall and Last of the Curlews, but The Strange One, for me, sticks in the mind, possibly because it was my first. That the author was a journalist will come as no surprise to anyone who has read any of his books, but that's no criticism.
In a world that seems increasingly bent of focusing on differences, what brings us all together is, perhaps, the best message of all to discover.
It builds slowly, to a climax that you will realise is coming. You will dread the outcome, but you'll have to read on.
It's well written. A reader will be enticed by the descriptions on the country and wildlife, both of which, I think, Bodsworth loves. Don't look for action as this book is gentle and persuasive.
I've since read A Sparrow's Fall and Last of the Curlews, but The Strange One, for me, sticks in the mind, possibly because it was my first. That the author was a journalist will come as no surprise to anyone who has read any of his books, but that's no criticism.
In a world that seems increasingly bent of focusing on differences, what brings us all together is, perhaps, the best message of all to discover.
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January 5, 2021The Strange One was given to me to read in the early 70’s by my dear elderly neighbor. It became one of those favourite books that I recommended to everyone who would listen. Ten, fifteen years ago I lent it to a friend who apparently lost it. I had tried finding another but no luck until a few years ago. It sat on my shelf until this past November. I was reluctant to reread as I was afraid after all these years changes in myself and the sentiment attached from my neighbor would affect my original reaction to the book. But it did not. This is a wonderful book. The juxtaposition of the main characters coming together in such a way remains beautifully done. In spite of its age, it remains topical in it’s approach to racism, environment and one on one personal relationships and growth. I highly recommend this for teens to adults.
January 14, 2021
My elderly neighbour lent me this book. It was a book her late husband bought when they wer courting and she loved it for the bird descriptions.
Its a really quirky book and loved that it starts through the voice of the bird. you can feel the cold of the sea.
It is a sad at times and sometimes a little slow.
The tension between the different races is very interesting and now feels a little outdated.
I found it a little slow at times but the book has stuck with me and bits of it pop into my head regularly. (I read it over a year ago).
A rich novel of two different worlds linked by migration and a love for nature.
Its a really quirky book and loved that it starts through the voice of the bird. you can feel the cold of the sea.
It is a sad at times and sometimes a little slow.
The tension between the different races is very interesting and now feels a little outdated.
I found it a little slow at times but the book has stuck with me and bits of it pop into my head regularly. (I read it over a year ago).
A rich novel of two different worlds linked by migration and a love for nature.
August 13, 2024
A lovely story. A lot of it is from the barnacle goose’s point of view and I really felt how torn he was by his conflicting instinct and his mate. A love story like no other. The other love story, between the biologist and the native woman, was also compelling but at times somewhat cringe-inducing. Overall I thought that the book did a good job of showing how different the two worlds were and the prejudices standing in their way.
January 20, 2024
Nekad nebūtu domājusi, ka ar tādu aizrautību sekošu līdzi baltvaigu zosu migrācijas un pārošanās paradumiem. Ar tiem cieši saistīts arī galveno varoņu liktenis. Līdz pat pēdējām lappusēm lasītājs tiek turēts neziņā, vai skotu puša un indiāņu meitenes mīlasstāstam būs laimīgas beigas.
October 30, 2018
one of my Favorite books
June 27, 2020
Brīnišķīga, ļoti vērtīga grāmata! Daudz pārdomu pēc izlasīšanas. Noteikti iesaku!
September 10, 2020
Most excellent read
December 2, 2021
Brought this book from a second hand shop and would have to be my favourite read of the year.
December 29, 2021
ļoti aizkustunoša un tai pat laikā izzinoša grāmata. Iesaku
December 28, 2022
Jedna z lepszych książek, które czytałam. Ponadczasowa! Polecam, polecam,polecam!
February 8, 2024
I love this book. A beautiful story
February 26, 2025
A triumphant story for humans and geese everywhere. Rivals every great book I've ever read.
June 11, 2025
Probably deserves only one star but gave it an extra in consideration of the fact that it was written in the late 1950s. A purported anti- racism story full of unacknowledged racism.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews