New Kid
Jerry Craft (2019)
“A seventh-grader learns to survive a mostly-white private school without losing who he is — and draws his way through it.”
Why This Book Matters
New Kid is the first graphic novel to win the Newbery Medal (2020) — one of the most prestigious awards in children's literature, whose selection committee has historically favored text-only prose. The award was a formal acknowledgment that visual storytelling is literature, and that the graphic novel form can carry serious thematic weight. The win changed the conversation about what counts as a 'real book' in school curricula.
Firsts & Innovations
First graphic novel to win the Newbery Medal
One of the first widely-read middle-grade books to explicitly name and analyze microaggressions from a child's perspective
Used the graphic novel form to show code-switching visually — something text alone cannot accomplish with the same immediacy
Cultural Impact
Sparked widespread middle-school curriculum adoption — now taught in hundreds of school districts nationwide
Prompted discussions in education circles about what 'belonging' means at elite schools beyond enrollment numbers
The Newbery win legitimized graphic novels as serious literature for school librarians and curriculum designers
Inspired a companion novel (Class Act, 2020) and a sequel (School Trip, 2023)
Frequently challenged by parents who object to its discussion of race, microaggressions, and class — which rather confirms its central argument
Banned & Challenged
One of the most frequently challenged books in American schools since 2020. Common objections include that it makes white children feel guilty about race, that it presents a negative view of private schools, and that it's 'divisive.' It has been removed from school libraries in multiple districts. The challenges almost always come from adults, not students — students, including white students, report that the book helps them understand experiences they didn't previously have language for.