On an aesthetic level, the text is upbeat, funny, and conversational. When I first started reading, I struggled a bit with remembering the distinction between each character, but I settled into the text quickly and was soon immersed in the community of Sabal Palms, Florida. Each girl’s storyline weaves together into a mission for change, even if the desired outcome (getting rid of the hat) stands in for something divergent for each. For Cat, the hat is the Floras’s suspension in the past for Lane, the hat is an opportunity to rebel and make friends for Ofelia, the hat is a chance to broaden her journalistic horizons and for Aster, the hat parallels her desires to learn more about her own family history. The hat’s persistence in the lore of the Floras is problematic, but the hat represents different things for each girl.
While the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 outlawed the practices that lead to the creation of hats like those worn by the winner of the Miss Floras contest, it didn’t outlaw the hats that already existed. The hat, however, is a relic of a past that nearly caused the extinction of multiple bird species across the United States. Spurred by Cat’s passion for birds, the girls decide to campaign to change the Floras’s most cherished symbol: the feathered hat worn by the winner of the Miss Floras contest.
For Ofelia, Aster, Cat, and Lane-the desire to change the outdated traditions of the scout troop, the Floras, is bigger than the risks they encounter. Pérez’s sophomore novel, Strange Birds: A Field Guide to Ruffling Feathers, rightly notes, “’ometimes the desire for change is bigger than anything else’” (270). Skin color, gender presentation, age-all of these are contributing factors to who is most at-risk when being a visible activist.
MY TWO CENTS: The stakes of activism are not the same for all who engage.
In their quest for justice, independence, and an unforgettable summer, the girls form their own troop and find something they didn’t know they needed: sisterhood. But they soon bond over a shared mission to get the Floras, their local Scouts, to ditch an outdated tradition. Ofelia Castillo (a budding journalist), Aster Douglas (a bookish foodie), and Cat Garcia (a rule-abiding birdwatcher) meet the kid behind the invite, Lane DiSanti, and it isn’t love at first sight. DESCRIPTION OF THE BOOK: When three very different girls find a mysterious invitation to a lavish mansion, the promise of adventure and mischief is too intriguing to pass up.
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