Strange Birds: A Field Guide to Ruffling Feathers

 

  • Perez, Celia. Strange Birds: A Field Guide to Ruffling Feathers. Kokila, 2019. Ages 9-12.

  • When Lane DiSanti is sent away to live with her wealthy grandmother in Sabal Palms, Florida for the summer, she decides to form a club and places invitations around town for the “Meeting of the Ostentation of Others and Outsiders”. She is joined by Cat Garcia, a girl who loves birds; Aster Douglass, a girl who loves cooking; and Ofelia Castillo, a girl who loves to write. Together, they form a touching friendship and team up to stop the town's traditional girls' club, The Floras, from continuing to use a ceremonial hat that was unethically made from birds. The girls band together and engage in social activism and acts of resistance, such as posting stickers, plastic flamingos, and even trying to steal the hat.  

    This novel is told from a 3rd person narrator, alternating focus to different girls in each chapter. The author, Celia C. Perez uses accessible language and creates a realistic picture of evolving friendship, filled with awkwardness, love, and misunderstandings. Perez captures young friendships in a very real and raw way, captivating readers to also feel like a part of the friend group. The girls are not just racially diverse, but also socioeconomically so. Some other themes addressed in this book include discussions on privilege, activism, defining your beliefs, and friendship. The novel moves at a good pace and the alternating chapters allow the reader to get to know well-rounded characters. 


    The author also includes The Ostentation’s Appended handbook with additional tips on the girls' favorite activities, which includes recipes, birding tips, writing tips, and a beginner's guide to crystals. The author brings a freshness to their work, providing a gem of a book for young readers from 8-12 who are starting to form their own ideas and identities. This work belongs on all young readers' shelves and is a great introduction to activism.  

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