New Kid
by Jerry Craft · New Kid #1
A Newbery Medal-winning graphic novel about finding your voice in spaces where you feel invisible
The story
Seventh-grader Jordan Banks would rather draw cartoons than attend a prestigious private school, but his parents believe Riverdale Academy will open doors. As one of the few students of color in his grade, Jordan navigates daily assumptions, learns to code-switch between his home and school selves, and discovers that authenticity and community can coexist with the challenges of being different.
Age verdict
Best for ages 9-12. The graphic format makes it accessible to confident readers as young as 8, while the social themes engage readers through age 14. Younger readers enjoy the humor and relatable school situations; older readers catch the deeper commentary on systemic issues.
Our take
A parent-and-teacher powerhouse that earns its literary accolades through social depth and visual craft, while remaining genuinely engaging for kids through humor, relatable school dynamics, and an immediately accessible graphic novel format.
What stands out
Each audience's top 3 dimensions. Out of 30 scored per book.
Kids love
- Mental movie Exceptional
Tier 3 — Comparable to Lunch Lady — expressive character art, deliberate color palette shifts (home warm vs school cool), panel layouts mirroring emotional states create vivid visual storytelling. Graphic novel visual language earns lasting mental images.
- First-chapter grab Strong
Tier 3 — Comparable to Lunch Lady — opening in immediately grounded character space with vulnerability. Jordan's first-page hook combines visual vulnerability with institutional setting (all-white school) that pulls readers within seconds.
Parents love
- Stereotype-breaker Exceptional
Tier 3 — Comparable to Stella Brings the Family — stereotype-breaking is core mission and greatest achievement. Black seventh-grader preferring art/anime to basketball, multi-dimensional characters of color defying every reductive assumption.
- Real-world window Exceptional
Tier 3 — Comparable to The Hate U Give — specific, unflinching window into navigating predominantly white institutions as Black student. Casual hair-touching, academic underestimation grounded in documented real-world patterns.
Teachers love
- Discussion fuel Exceptional
Tier 3 — Comparable to The Hate U Give — students genuinely disagree about whether Jordan should code-switch, classmate culpability, bystander responsibility. Real debate where students bring experience, arrive at different answers.
- Empathy & self-awareness Exceptional
Tier 3 — Comparable to The Hate U Give — code-switching lens makes visible unfamiliar experience. Code-switching readers recognize themselves; others develop understanding of costs to navigate spaces where identity is marked different.
✓ Perfect for
- • Kids navigating new schools or feeling like outsiders
- • Families wanting to start conversations about race, identity, and belonging
- • Reluctant readers drawn to graphic novels and visual humor
- • Classrooms studying diversity, equity, and social dynamics
Not ideal for
Readers seeking action-driven adventure plots or fantasy world-building — this is a character-driven contemporary story grounded in everyday social realities rather than external quests.
⚠ Heads up
At a glance
- Pages
- 256
- Chapters
- 12
- Words
- 15k
- Lexile
- 320L
- Difficulty
- Easy
- POV
- First Person
- Illustration
- Fully Illustrated
- Published
- 2019
- Publisher
- HarperCollins B and Blackstone Audio
- Illustrator
- Jerry Craft
- ISBN
- 9781982609047
Mood & style
You'll know it worked when…
A child who finishes this book will likely want to read the sequel Class Act and may start drawing their own comics or expressing opinions about fairness more vocally.
If your kid loved "New Kid"
Matched across 30 dimensions — interest hooks, character appeal, tone, pacing, emotional core. Not by what other people bought. By what fits the same reader profile.
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