The Weirdo

Theodore Taylor, an award-winning author of young adult fiction, published his environmental mystery novel The Weirdo in 1991. Written for a middle-grade audience, the book tackles themes of ostracism and difference versus tolerance, land conservation versus humans’ impact on nature, and accepting the status quo versus finding the courage to stand up against incorrect beliefs. The Weirdo wraps its central mystery in the coming-of-age genre, as two teenagers who are each wrestling with their identities come together to discover their inner strength, solve a terrible crime, and save the land that they love in the process.

The novel is set in the Powhatan Swamp, a real-life National Wildlife Refuge located in several states, including North Carolina. Throughout the text, long and detailed descriptions of the swamp and its surprising beauty paint a vivid and realistic backdrop to the plot. Throughout the novel, the swamp is at the center of an increasingly complex and heated debate between environmentalists who want to protect the fragile habitat from human influence and local hunters who want to have as much access to the wildlife as possible. This conflict is coming to a head as a five-year-long, federally-imposed hunting ban on the swampland is about to expire, putting the habitat’s endangered black bear population at risk of being hunted to extinction.

The novel’s protagonist is Samantha Sanders, a 16-year-old girl who has grown up on a farm near the swamp. All her life, she has thought of nothing but being able to leave the area when she is old enough. Not only is she unhappy with the limitations of country life, but she has always been terrified of the swamp—ever since the day she stumbled on the dead body of Alvin Howell there when she was nine years old. Sam’s dad, Stewart Sanders, is an avid hunter who has tried to be supportive of Sam’s attempts to overcome her fears, but his advice to just forget what she saw hasn’t really cut it.

Finding herself lost in the swamp after trying to find her aunt’s dog, Sam seeks shelter in an almost hidden away house. There she meets Chip Clewt, a 17-year-old who has burn scars on his face from a plane crash he barely survived and that killed his mother and sister. Ever since the accident, for the last four years, Chip has lived in a remote cabin with his artist father. Worried about the reaction his appearance will have on the townspeople, Chip almost never ventures out—because of this, he has been nicknamed “The Weirdo” by everyone else.

As Sam and Chip get to know each other, they find themselves comforting each other’s deep-seated fears. It also becomes clear that Chip’s vast knowledge of the swamp can be useful to Sam as she realizes that she wants to protect the swamp and its wildlife from harm. As Sam starts facing her fear about the dead body she encountered, she realizes that this crime has gone unsolved and starts wondering about the victim, Alvin Howell. Why would someone have murdered this man?

Sam and Chip meet Tom Telford, a PhD biology student who has been studying the habitats of bears in the area where the five-year hunting ban has been in effect. His research will be key evidence for those who argue that the ban should be extended. Tom sees Chip’s potential, despite Chip’s fear about how others perceive his appearance, and hires Chip to count the bear population.

The trio continues their fight to extend the ban on bear hunting. Suddenly, one day, Tom disappears without a trace. Worried about what might have happened to him, Sam wonders whether Tom’s disappearance could be connected to the murder of Alvin Howell.

As she and Chip try to unravel the mystery of the murder and disappearance, their friendship and feelings for each other develop, along with their environmental mission to extend the federal hunting ban. In tangent with the town detective, Sam and Chip find evidence that points to Alvin’s murderer: Buddy Bailey, a housepainter and poacher. It’s revealed that Buddy Bailey killed Alvin after a gambling dispute and then hid the body in the swamp to avoid being found out. It also turns out that Buddy has been illegally killing bears in the swamp during the hunting ban and is most likely responsible for Tom’s disappearance.

The novel ends with the hunting ban being extended, Buddy in jail for his many crimes, and Sam and Chip looking forward to starting a relationship built on trust.