Hey Kiddo by Jarrett J. Krosoczka

I've written before about how my eighth graders are currently working on a literary nonfiction unit in my class right now. The curriculum my school has adopted allows kids to pick their own books for each unit, so I have kids reading lots of different YA titles right now. Hands down, the most popular novel in my room so far is Jarrett J. Krosoczka's Hey, Kiddo. I have two copies that are becoming increasing more tattered as kid after kid picks them up. Part of its popularity is that it is a graphic novel, which a lot of my students prefer over traditional novels, but the amount of kids that told me I should read this suggests that their fondness for it is based on more than its format. When a kid is actually excited enough about a book to recommend it to me, I always try to read it, so I gave it a shot this month.

Hey, Kiddo is Krosoczka's memoir about growing up with a parent struggling with addiction. The novel begins with a few chapters detailing his family's background, then the action shifts to him. His childhood was difficult from the start. His mother was quite young when she became pregnant with him, and was addicted to heroin. His father chose not to be involved in his life at all. Jarrett lived with his mom for a time when he was a baby, but as it became apparent that she was unable to care for him properly, he was sent to live with his grandparents. As he grew from a child to a teenager, his mother was a spotty presence in his life. She was constantly in and out of prison and halfway houses, getting sober and then relapsing over and over again. Jarrett came to regard her with distrust and suspicion, although they did keep in contact from time to time via letters. He found solace with his grandparents, who treated him just like their own son, and with his art, which he worked on all throughout his childhood and teenage years. Eventually, the opportunity to meet his father arises, and Jarrett must decide whether he wants to open his heart to another parent who has disappointed him and risk being hurt again.

Hey, Kiddo is an excellent graphic novel, and it was very clear to me from the start why my students liked it so much. It's an incredibly genuine and relatable reading experience. Krosoczka doesn't hold back when describing the things in his life that have been difficult. The language he hears, the behavior he witnesses, and the emotions he feels are all shown plainly through his words and illustrations. No one in his story is perfect, and he doesn't disguise the more objectionable things that happen to him under his grandparents' care. The realities of living with an imperfect family leap out at you from every page. Many of my students are dealing with similar situations in their own lives, and I'm sure that they could see themselves in Krosoczka's story.

Another nice element of the novel was the inclusion of real letters, drawings, and other documents from Krosoczka's life. It added depth to the story to see actual pictures of his correspondence with his mother and some of his early drawings mixed in with the regular illustrations. It functioned as a powerful reminder that this story is real--that a real kid went through all the pain depicted on the novel's pages. It's amazing that Krosoczka was able to hang onto so many old documents and mementos from his childhood. He puts them to excellent use here.

The overall theme of the novel concerns what makes a family. While Krosoczka spends much of his childhood being continually disappointed by those who were supposed to care for him the most, he eventually comes to the understanding that being a parent is decided by actions more than blood. He develops a deep love and appreciation for his grandparents, who became his true mother and father. Watching him grow throughout the novel is both heartbreaking and heartwarming in turns, and his story is well worth the few hours it takes to read.

Addiction is a terrible disease that has torn many families apart. Hey, Kiddo is an excellent look at one kid's experience in one of these families, in all its messy and imperfect glory. Young adult readers like this novel because it doesn't skirt around tough issues or talk down to them. It shows them an example of someone who survived a difficult home life and turned out okay, a feat that many of them are currently struggling to achieve. Even readers who are older or who can't relate to the difficult subject matter will still enjoy Krosoczka's heartfelt story. I can definitely see why so many of my students recommended this novel to me, and I'm happy to have experienced it.

On a side note, this novel is another bonus entry onto my True Books 2020 Challenge List. At this rate, I'm going to end up reading quite a bit more nonfiction than I planned for!


Challenge Tally
True Books 2020: 5/14
Total Books Read in 2020: 13