What do you think?
Rate this book
Of the Wing #1
An Odd Bird
Hawk or hummingbird, birds find Claire Belle irresistible. In fact, they seek her out as if summoned. The question is why? The eleven-year-old searches for answers with the help of two new friends: Victor, a Native American boy who rides her school bus, and Jerry, an old man who roams the forest with his pet chicken. Through their friendship, Claire awakens to an almost mythical hawk with whom she must communicate to learn the secret of her destiny as a champion for birds.
Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2008
66 people are currently reading
77 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 17, 2022
The cover got my attention and made me curious about the character. I love a middle-grade story and especially one where the main character brings the community together (love Jerry's progression).
Claire is an amazing character. She loves birds and nature. She becomes brave for them. I love her relationship with other characters and the animals. Although she has strange hair and eye color she is very relatable. I love her story and what happens when she wears birds on her clothes. It has a mystery and fairy-magical background and feeling, but she is quite grounded and helpful to the people around her. Awesome relationship with her best friend and great to have Native American representation with the character Victor.
There's more to it. If you love nature and birds, I recommend this and the next volumes.
Claire is an amazing character. She loves birds and nature. She becomes brave for them. I love her relationship with other characters and the animals. Although she has strange hair and eye color she is very relatable. I love her story and what happens when she wears birds on her clothes. It has a mystery and fairy-magical background and feeling, but she is quite grounded and helpful to the people around her. Awesome relationship with her best friend and great to have Native American representation with the character Victor.
There's more to it. If you love nature and birds, I recommend this and the next volumes.
June 20, 2024
disappointing
I wanted to like this book better, being an avid birder and nature lover myself, but I found it too simplistic, somewhat inconsistent regarding the core theme, and lacking any conclusion.
I like Claire and all the time she spent outdoors observing and learning about nature, but I felt her character wasn't well developed. The same was true for Jerry.
This book does contain disturbing animal cruelty, abuse, and killings, as well as some gun violence. Claire's undisciplined dog is allowed to roam freely, harassing wildlife, which seems incongruous with a character who is supposed to love and protect nature.
This book might be okay for early teens, but I think it is too simplistic for young adults. Also, I believe non birders might find all the bird names and specifics meaningless or uninteresting.
Most disappointing is that the mystical experiences are left unexplained and major questions unanswered. Apparently, you have to read the whole series to discover the underlying secrets introduced in this first book. That is something I particularly loathe. The author should either provide a conclusion in each book, not introduce elements until later in the series when they will be addressed, or at least warn readers at the very start that they will have to buy or borrow more books to get any answers.
I wanted to like this book better, being an avid birder and nature lover myself, but I found it too simplistic, somewhat inconsistent regarding the core theme, and lacking any conclusion.
I like Claire and all the time she spent outdoors observing and learning about nature, but I felt her character wasn't well developed. The same was true for Jerry.
This book does contain disturbing animal cruelty, abuse, and killings, as well as some gun violence. Claire's undisciplined dog is allowed to roam freely, harassing wildlife, which seems incongruous with a character who is supposed to love and protect nature.
This book might be okay for early teens, but I think it is too simplistic for young adults. Also, I believe non birders might find all the bird names and specifics meaningless or uninteresting.
Most disappointing is that the mystical experiences are left unexplained and major questions unanswered. Apparently, you have to read the whole series to discover the underlying secrets introduced in this first book. That is something I particularly loathe. The author should either provide a conclusion in each book, not introduce elements until later in the series when they will be addressed, or at least warn readers at the very start that they will have to buy or borrow more books to get any answers.
February 22, 2022
Fascinating! Give this a chance even if you are not a young reader. You may love it just because you are a nature lover or you love a good story, or you want to learn more about birds. There are two themes riding in this story: overcoming differences and being at one with nature, both tightly intertwined and resolved very nicely.
September 29, 2025
A WONDERLAND OF NATURE AND HEARTS
The characters here are well drawn and their woods and its inhabitants come to life in Butler’s World.
A wizard, an alcoholic, and an understanding mother experience three sometimes outcast tweens.
The characters here are well drawn and their woods and its inhabitants come to life in Butler’s World.
A wizard, an alcoholic, and an understanding mother experience three sometimes outcast tweens.
June 5, 2023
Great
A really nice book!!! Sweet and endearing to read. All members in the family can enjoy this book. Enjoy it ,I did.
A really nice book!!! Sweet and endearing to read. All members in the family can enjoy this book. Enjoy it ,I did.
July 30, 2024
An exceptional story, which I highly recommend,for readers of all age groups, offering a suspenseful plot, with a semi-cliffhanger.
December 25, 2024
An engaging tale of a girl with some secrets, her sometime friend, the strange older man who lives in the woods nearby, and the other folks in their community - and the birds.
December 28, 2024
Odd Bird Indeed
I enjoyed this book. The story was great. An Odd Bird is the kind of book I recommend to be read by everyone.
I enjoyed this book. The story was great. An Odd Bird is the kind of book I recommend to be read by everyone.
February 9, 2025
An Odd Story
This was a gentle story, of walking in the woods, of learning to care about birds and forest creatures. It was also about friendships and forgiveness.
This was a gentle story, of walking in the woods, of learning to care about birds and forest creatures. It was also about friendships and forgiveness.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews