Jordan Banks is the new kid at one of the best private schools in the state that offers a wealth of academic and extra-curricular opportunities and experiences for its students and while its prestige is praiseworthy, it is woefully lacking in diversity. Jordan is one of a small number of students of color at the school but just like every other twelve-year-old middle school student has to navigate making new friends, avoiding awkward crushes, getting good grades, and making time to do what he loves most-drawing cartoons. His art is embedded throughout the text and gives the reader an inside look at Jordan’s thoughts on well, just about everything. His drawings are informative, oftentimes laugh-out-loud hilarious, and honest.
There’s a gaping void as it concerns the representation of African American youths in books in general across all genres but especially in graphic novels. Jerry Craft expertly enters into this space and gifts us with New Kid. It is a relevant read. A cool, down-to-earth middle school story for everyone. I want to hug this book! I want to read it over and over and then wrap it up and give a copy to every child I know. No doubt that Jerry Craft upholds his mission to “write the books he wishes he had when he was a kid” because this is the sort of book I wish I’d had as a child. No offense to The Baby-Sitters Club series from back in my day, but what about books with characters that look like me and share in my experiences? I would have loved a book like this!
I would recommend this book for intermediate elementary students (4th-5th grade), middle school and high school too. I honestly think it will have a wide range of interest much like books like Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet, Sisters, and Drama that are read from elementary school straight through high school.
New Kid Paperback – Unabridged, 5 February 2019
by
Jerry Craft
(Author, Illustrator)
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Product details
- Language : English
- Paperback : 256 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0062691198
- ISBN-13 : 978-0062691194
- Reading age : 8 - 12 years
- Best Sellers Rank: 7,370 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- Customer reviews:
Product description
Review
“Funny, sharp, and totally real! Jordan Banks is the kid everyone will be talking about!” -- Jeff Kinney, Author of Diary of a Wimpy Kid
★“Possibly one of the most important graphic novels of the year.” -- Booklist (starred review)
★“An engrossing, humorous, and vitally important graphic novel that should be required reading in every middle school in America.” -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
★“This is more than a story about being the new kid―it’s a complex examination of the micro- and macroaggressions that Jordan endures from classmates and teachers. Highly recommended for all middle grade shelves.” -- School Library Journal (starred review)
★“This engaging story offers an authentic secondary cast and captures the high jinks of middle schoolers and the tensions that come with being a person of color in a traditionally white space.” -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)
★ “Award-winning author/illustrator Jerry Craft confronts elitism, microaggression, racism, socioeconomic disparity and white privilege in a familiar setting. His preteen audiences will undoubtedly recognize and empathize with Craft’s memorable cast.” -- Shelf Awareness, (starred review)
“Craft’s full-color comics art is dynamic and expressive. This school story stands out as a robust, contemporary depiction of a preteen navigating sometimes hostile spaces yet staying true to himself thanks to friends, family, and art.” -- Horn Book Magazine
“New Kid is at once tender and tough, funny and heartbreaking. Hand this to the middle-grade reader in your life right away.” -- The New York Times Book Review
"This story captures the tensions that come with being a person of color in a traditionally white space." -- Publishers Weekly
“Genuine characters propel this funny, warm, biting, fearless story. Entertaining and insightful, it will surely offer affirmation for some readers, revelation for others.” -- Cooperative Children’s Book Center
★“Possibly one of the most important graphic novels of the year.” -- Booklist (starred review)
★“An engrossing, humorous, and vitally important graphic novel that should be required reading in every middle school in America.” -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
★“This is more than a story about being the new kid―it’s a complex examination of the micro- and macroaggressions that Jordan endures from classmates and teachers. Highly recommended for all middle grade shelves.” -- School Library Journal (starred review)
★“This engaging story offers an authentic secondary cast and captures the high jinks of middle schoolers and the tensions that come with being a person of color in a traditionally white space.” -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)
★ “Award-winning author/illustrator Jerry Craft confronts elitism, microaggression, racism, socioeconomic disparity and white privilege in a familiar setting. His preteen audiences will undoubtedly recognize and empathize with Craft’s memorable cast.” -- Shelf Awareness, (starred review)
“Craft’s full-color comics art is dynamic and expressive. This school story stands out as a robust, contemporary depiction of a preteen navigating sometimes hostile spaces yet staying true to himself thanks to friends, family, and art.” -- Horn Book Magazine
“New Kid is at once tender and tough, funny and heartbreaking. Hand this to the middle-grade reader in your life right away.” -- The New York Times Book Review
"This story captures the tensions that come with being a person of color in a traditionally white space." -- Publishers Weekly
“Genuine characters propel this funny, warm, biting, fearless story. Entertaining and insightful, it will surely offer affirmation for some readers, revelation for others.” -- Cooperative Children’s Book Center
About the Author
Jerry Craft is an author and illustrator who has worked on numerous picture books, graphic novels, and middle grade novels, including The Zero Degree Zombie Zone by Patrik Henry Bass. Jerry is the creator of Mama’s Boyz, an award-winning syndicated comic strip. He has won five African American Literary Awards, and he is a cofounder of the Schomburg Center’s Annual Black Comic Book Festival. He received his BFA from the School of Visual Arts and now lives in Connecticut. Visit him online at www.jerrycraft.net.
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Most helpful customer reviews on Amazon.com
Amazon.com:
4.7 out of 5 stars
298 reviews

CeCeLibrarian
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Graphic Novel - An Instant Hit!
6 February 2019 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
78 people found this helpful

waldorf_curric
3.0 out of 5 stars
the plot was quite slow
13 March 2020 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
I am a classroom teacher who always buys the Newbery and Caldecott winners the moment they are announced. I was excited to have a new graphic novel in the classroom. However, this book is not as big of a hit as I had hoped. Here is a review written by one of my students:
This book is a maybe for me. This book did not have any crazy exciting stuff. That's kindof what I look for in a book. The plot was quite slow. I did like the main character. I would probably recommend this book to people who are teenagers; a lot of older people think that books with slow plots are much better than a lot of younger kids think they are. I am 8.
This book is a maybe for me. This book did not have any crazy exciting stuff. That's kindof what I look for in a book. The plot was quite slow. I did like the main character. I would probably recommend this book to people who are teenagers; a lot of older people think that books with slow plots are much better than a lot of younger kids think they are. I am 8.
41 people found this helpful

Mich
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not appropriate for kids
21 July 2020 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
This book was assigned by our school for summer reading and I wish I had looked into it more before purchasing - there is no chance my kid is reading this. While I understand the importance and need for kids to understand diversity, this book outwardly shames certain races and makes people of that race appear horribly.
33 people found this helpful

JR 32180
5.0 out of 5 stars
What a great find!
23 March 2019 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
I bought this book for my 7th grade boy and he could not put it down, reading it in one sitting. The next day his 3rd grader sister took the book and she couldn't stop reading it. I wanted to see what the fuss was about so I took the book next and I ended up staying up late to read the whole thing. My son then brought the book to show his Language Arts teacher and she loved it so much she made New Kid the book of the month for the class. It really is that amazing. I hope that the author writes another book in the series because we all want to know what happens next for Jordan Banks.
31 people found this helpful

Karen
5.0 out of 5 stars
Exceptional graphic novel
10 February 2019 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
The art work, the microaggressions, the freezing sports moments, the "Mean Streets of Uptown" book truth- this story contains so much truth and heart and will stick with me for awhile. This is a must have for middle school shelves!

5.0 out of 5 stars
Exceptional graphic novel
Reviewed in the United States on 10 February 2019
The art work, the microaggressions, the freezing sports moments, the "Mean Streets of Uptown" book truth- this story contains so much truth and heart and will stick with me for awhile. This is a must have for middle school shelves!
Reviewed in the United States on 10 February 2019
Images in this review

29 people found this helpful