Odd(ly) Enough: Standing Out When the World Begs You To Fit In by Carolanne Miljavac
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book isn't always easy to read but it relates a story that is sadly more prevalent than we know. Author Carolanne Miljavac is very open about the trauma that she suffered as a child and she is honest in the ways that she chose to overcome these abuses. I was so moved by the sexual advances that she was forced to endure and I grieved for the young girl who thought of herself as a victim. She suffered an identity crisis and at nine years old, she thought that she was weird and different; she felt guilty and ashamed. She even considered herself "unworthy of joy because joy had always been stolen from me" (p. 30). These feelings led her to experiment with alcohol and drugs when she was older. She also experienced embarrassment because of her family's financial situation. Her father left the family and only appeared sporadically and her mother struggled to care for Carolanne and her two siblings. She relates times when her mother was forced to remove food from the shopping cart, one item at a time, item by item, because she didn't have the money to buy it all.

Yes, this is a sad story but it is also a story of redemption and of Miljavac finally finding herself worthy of joy. She now knows that God made her to be just who she is and that he had a purpose for her. Odd(ly) Enough is meant to encourage, uplift and motivate and Carolanne Miljavac uses humor and humility to to achieve her goal.

I would certainly recommend this book because the mindset of today's society is so centered on people fitting in. The enemy (Satan) wants to steal away our knowledge of who we really are. This book proves that it is okay to be odd and Odd(ly) Enough, this is what God intended!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review.

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