• Age Range:  All ages
  • Formats:  E-Book, Paperback, Hardcover
  • Approx. Length:  29,210 Words, 281 Pages
  • Interior: Black & White
  • Dimensions: 8″ x 10″
  • Trade Paperback ISBN: 9781644750049
  • Hardcover Case Laminate ISBN: 9781644750056

A book the whole family can read together!

This is a story about being Odd.  A monster named Oddzilla, to be precise, who dreams of being normal.  Even worse, he crawled from a pot of Anything Soup.  It’s his first day of being monstrous, and he has been rejected both by people and the other monsters.  He converses with the Moon and a Library, who further reject him.  While trying to find his place in the world, he gets kicked out of Welcome for being too weird.  Then things really get odd!

A gang of pirates nab Oddzilla for their traveling Monster Carnival.  He thought he had problems, but that’s where his troubles truly begin . . . with the evil Captain Snydely Wick and Morris Crudd, as well as his fellow oddballs and oddities who compete to be the oddest.  Until he meets his Number One Fan.

Lori R. Lopez — author of The Dark Mister Snark, The Fairy Fly, An Ill Wind Blows and more — has created an “oddyssey” of wordplay and wit for all ages.  The Strange Tail Of Oddzilla presents an absurd fable bursting with whimsy and melancholy and puns.  In fact, the main character is practically a pun, isn’t he?  There probably isn’t a sensible word in it either, so it wouldn’t make a lot of sense to read this book.

If you feel you must, you can enjoy the very unusual artwork by the author!

The Strange Tail Of Oddzilla received First Places for Young Adult Fiction and Humor from Royal Dragonfly Book Awards 2018 (2nd Edition); Honorable Mentions for Best Cover, Best Illustrations, Best Humor from the 2017 Purple Dragonfly Book Awards (1st Edition).

Samples

“Oddzilla didn’t mean to upset the Moon. He hadn’t realized that anyone else could have it more difficult than he did. The lesson taught him to take nothing for granted.”

A book’s voice is softer than a whisper.  It can also resonate in your head, bouncing around, converted into thoughts and word paintings.  It might even sculpt monumental ideas in your mind, engraving the grandest of quotes or etching cute phrases you cherish.  It can stomp inside your brain and stamp a deep set of tracks, embedding the footprints of indelible pictures and notions.

~ from The Strange Tail Of Oddzilla

The fiends dubbed him Brothy and Stewy, Chowder and Gumbo.  Their taunting made him simmer, being of a sensitive nature, and he sloshed away in a lachrymose trail of despair.  Drop by drop, his sorrowful gait solidified.

~ from The Strange Tail Of Oddzilla

Oddzilla didn’t mean to upset the Moon.  He hadn’t realized that anyone else could have it more difficult than he did.  The lesson taught him to take nothing for granted.  And there were always lessons to be learned.  And some things happened for a reason.  And there weren’t silver linings behind every cloud; it might be the Moon.  And he wasn’t special, even if he stood out and was one of a kind.

~ from The Strange Tail Of Oddzilla

Some fables are told for the very young, while other tales are for the tall in age, and then there are stories that shoot for the years between, but this is for large and small and all the rest, as long as you have two ears.  Well, even one will do, or how about a pair of eyes?  A single orb would be fine, in fact.  Or at least a mind.  Everyone has a brain, right?  Unless you’re a scarecrow, I guess.  You’re not, are you?  I have nothing against scarecrows, regardless if you are or you aren’t one.  It’s hunky-dory and okey-dokey if strawfolks follow the best they can:  skipping and tripping.  But try not to rustle, it could distract.

Where was I?

Some stories are so short they fit neatly in your pocket like lint and spare buttons, or the mysterious white packets you should never consume.  They’re called pocketbooks.  This isn’t one of those.  Others develop teeth and nails and tails and flounce away to eat Pittsburgh!  This is that one — the story with an appetite.  We just don’t know for what . . . (It isn’t Pittsburgh.)

A note to children:

Unless an encyclopedia is your choice of a bedtime story, you probably won’t be able to read all of these words yet.  My advice is to keep trying until you can, like riding a bike.  Ask someone older and more experienced for help when you stumble or don’t understand.  Never give up!  It takes a lot of practice to read this well.  I will do my best to simplify and summarize it for you here and there, interpreting the gist.

For the youngest, listen as someone bigger tells you Oddzilla’s incredibly quirky “tail” (which is, in truth, the most normal thing about him) and enjoy what you may.  That is how stories were told before there were books — in other words and aloud.  Fairytales are still told by many different tongues.

Honors & Praise

First Place for Young Adult Fiction from Royal Dragonfly Book Awards 2018 (2nd Edition)
First Place for Humor from Royal Dragonfly Book Awards 2018 (2nd Edition)
Honorable Mention for Best Cover from Purple Dragonfly Book Award 2017 (1st Edition)
Honorable Mention for Best Cover from Purple Dragonfly Book Award 2017 (1st Edition)
Honorable Mention for Best Illustrations from Purple Dragonfly Book Award 2017 (1st Edition)
Honorable Mention for Best Illustrations from Purple Dragonfly Book Award 2017 (1st Edition)
Honorable Mention for Humor from Purple Dragonfly Book Award 2017 (1st Edition)
Honorable Mention for Humor from Purple Dragonfly Book Award 2017 (1st Edition)

“This is absolutely hilarious — and I haven’t even started it yet. I am just on the title page.”

“THE STRANGE TAIL OF ODDZILLA: Something for Everyone by Lori R. Lopez is such an imaginative story! The idea of Oddzilla is fascinating and I believe that many young readers will relate to him and his adventures and situations that he gets into. The author shows the reader how to deal with the fact that everyone is a little different in many ways. The writing was solid and I liked the humor that the author added in throughout the pages, however, I do worry of the tone of the story is too adult and mature for younger readers. There were moments where I felt the author was aiming more toward the adult reader rather than focusing on trying to attract the middle grade reader. I loved the illustrations throughout the book and would stop to really enjoy them and look at every detail. . . . Overall, funny writing. Fun concept. Great art.”

Judge, 25th Annual Writer's Digest Self-Published Book Awards

“Lori Lopez brings zany humor with a bit of spook to her novels. She gets the balance right. It is a wonderful story with a great message for all ages to hear. Read it and enjoy her illustrations! She is one of those rare writers with a great literary voice that we will one day all hear about.”

Diana DeJesus, Kindle Nook & Book Club
Amazon Review

“This is absolutely hilarious — and I haven’t even started it yet. I am just on the title page. Love your humor! . . . Sometimes I just laughed at the sound and thought of all the words put together in the poetry. You have a magical, marvelous gift. . . . I could go on an on! Excellent, excellent work! Your imagination soars!”

Judge, 24th Annual San Diego Book Awards

“Unique and imaginative: Excellent imagination and writing!”

A. Keith Eaton III
Amazon Review

“The strange tail of Oddzilla is a “tail” about a monster who is so odd that no human being would get near him nor a monster because he was not odd enough. He was so odd that the moon and library rejected him. Oddzilla, Odd for short was trying to find himself and be a monster that everyone would accept and he goes through so many trials and problems to soon realize that being odd is okay that people at one point will accept you for who you are, so in any case you be who you are no matter how weird or odd you are. This book is a book with words that (you) probably won't understand and some words are a bit of a tongue twister but that’s really the whole point . . . to not be afraid and look them up and learn new words.”

Emily
Goodreads Review

Learn about Author & Artist Lori R. Lopez.

Purchase / Review / Spread The Word

E-Book

And More . . . Merch Madness!

*Affiliate Link:  Thanks for supporting us!

You might also enjoy . . .