Author: Cece Bell https://cecebell.wordpress.com/
Publisher: Amulet Books
Date of Publication: 2014
Illustrator: David Lasky https://davidlasky.carbonmade.com/
Genre Designation: Fiction
Lexile: N/A
EL DEAFO
Summary:
El Deafo is a story about a girl named Cece Bell who is hearing impaired. The book follows our character through her grade school years. We watch as she tries to fit in being a hearing impaired student. The embarrassment and ridicule she endures as well as the friends she makes. The difficultly she has trying to understand what people are saying to her and working hard to be successful in school. Throughout the many things she has to overcome the main area of growth in how she view herself. She creates a super hero character called El Deafo and that become her alter persona. El Deafo has superpowers that she keeps secret for many years. When she finally shares her superpowers with other students she is catapulted in to a new social scene. However, while that is certainly exciting for our character she spends most of the novel looking for the that one true friend. She ultimately finds her one true friend, a new sense of self and a renewed outlook on her disability.
Target Audience:
The lessons taught in this book are valuable to any child. In my opinion this book is best suited for 3rd grade and above. When children enter 3rd grade your begin to see a huge shift in their socialization and the importance they place on it. Making friends, keeping friends is a theme for students. Following this story not only shows that process, but shows the difficulty when you have a handicap.
Evaluation:
Graphic novels rely heavily upon the illustrations to convey the themes in the novel. The images on the page come to life with the vivid illustrations. The words growing faint as her hearing aid battery dies to the sounds when her hearing aid breaks you can feel. This book is authentic and gives you an honest look at the day to day struggles of a person that is hearing impaired. The author of the book is the character in the story as well. The story is not an exact representation of her life but the strife is real. The character have been altered or combined to create the story, but they are based on people she has encountered. If is a brave novel that grants us true insight.
Reader Response Activity:
At some time in our lives we have all wished to be a super hero and have super powers. While many of us never have to create those powers or persona in the wake of a disability, we all have wished for them. I would have the students think of a super hero name and design their powers around that theme. They would then draw their super hero and write a description of why you chose that name and powers We would then share them with each other having each student present their super hero to the class. You could build a whole theme around this idea. You could study people you look up to. People that have changed your life. Someone you would like to meet if you were given the chance. Ultimately looking at yourself as an unique being.
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