I really like the Mulligan family episodes. Don’t judge me. This past June, I listened to all their episodes.

Their episodes are different from normal episodes. There’s a different “feel” to them. It’s probably because the writer, Bill Myers, only wrote their episodes in his whole AIO career. In addition, the episodes had a different composer, Steve Wick. These two vital changes to the crew really changed the atmosphere.

So, I shouldn’t have been so surprised when I was listening to “Leap of Faith” and my dad walked in (who is no stranger to us listening to AIO) and asked, “What are you listening to?” He was surprised when I said, “Odyssey.”

So yes, the Mulligan family episodes feel a bit detached from the rest of the town of Odyssey. Perhaps because it’s rare when a Whit’s End type character appears in their ‘exclusive’ episodes.

(and of course, I totally didn’t bring them back in a fanfiction of mine with a headcanon of Brianna [from “Chains”] still living with them…)

Yeah.

So I was quite surprised and excited to see this…

I really like this art of Nick! (if it is Nick, anyway)

What?? Surely they didn’t mean THE Mulligans??

I read the preview.

Yes, it’s THE Mulligans.

The summary:

A massive mess, a leopard on the loose, and the arrival of new life—it’s just another day in the life of the Mulligans. From bestselling author Bill Myers comes a hilarious, warmhearted, and action-packed adventure starring the Mulligan family.

Neither Michael nor Traci Mulligan had intended upon a large family, let alone one of such diversity. But God had other plans. After their second child, Lisa, was born blind, they began to see their gift for reaching out, connecting, and laughing with special children with special needs—all while raising their family among the many creatures living at the animal park that they operate.

Are there trials? You bet. There’s no way to keep the boat from rocking with so many children from such diverse backgrounds and in such an incredible environment. But their faith in Christ, commitment to one another, and ability to laugh at themselves keep them digging in to make it work.

Amazon.

So yeah! Bill Myers decided not to let his AIO family go to waste, apparently. Which I appreciate, for reasons I stated above.

Better yet, there was a preview! Go read it!

What we know from the preview:

  • I’m pretty sure the book is not canon with AIO, and would not include Whit’s End or Odyssey.
  • All the kids the Mulligans eventually took in are already present: Janelle, Jessica, Nick, Hector. And Lisa, their daughter.
  • (the summary mentions that Lisa is the Mulligan’s second child. I don’t recall there being a first child in AIO. There are minor differences like that scattered around.)
  • The book is narrated by the chimpanzee, Winona. Though the preview doesn’t say so outright, the monkey in their AIO episodes was named Winona, so I’m pretty sure this is accurate.
  • The style of the book is a slightly toned-down version of the My Life As… series, another series Bill Myers wrote.

The book won’t be releasing until March 7th, 2023. I.e., a very long time from now. But you can be sure that I’ll be reading it when it does come out.