Odd Man Out

Kip is spending the summer with his grandmother and his five eccentric girl cousins, including Emily, who thinks she’s a dog. Gran’s house is about to be demolished, so anything goes, whether it’s drawing maps on the wall or sawing off the banister for a smoother ride. When Kip bashes through an old closet, he discovers the binder his late father kept as a teenager. He’s bewildered by what he finds: puzzling lists, hair samples, old newspaper clippings, and business cards — all accompanying a confidential report written by a mysterious young operative who is carrying out a secret plan to infect teenagers with a cell-altering virus. When the cousins tell Kip he needs to think up something to do for Talent Night, he panics — until he remembers the binder. But Kip's literary reading has frightening consequences that reveal even more strange secrets about his beloved father. This wonderful new novel has all the Sarah Ellis hallmarks — quirky characters, insight, wit — underpinned by resonant themes of family, memory, and the creative imagination.