Graphic novels do not fall into my usual genre of reading….but memoirs do! Hey, Kiddo is the perfect format for an author/illustrator’s memoir. Of course, adult readers can also enjoy memorable graphic novels!

I think teens who love graphic novels, teens who live with complicated families, or teens who love to draw might be the perfect audience for Hey, Kiddo. Jarrett Krosoczka’s TED Talk My Thoughts: As a teenager, Jarrett gains a deeper understanding of his complicated family and embraces his love of art as a lifeline. Jarret’s grandparents rescue, adopt, and raise him. His mom is an addict and unreliable his father is absent in every way and Jarrett doesn’t even know his father’s name. Jarrett Krosoczka knows from a very young age that his family is complicated.

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links. Genre/Categories: Nonfiction, Memoir, MG/YA Graphic Novel Hey, Kiddo was a finalist in the 2018 National Book Award for Young People's Literature, and it won the 2019 Harvey Award for Book of the Year.Hey, Kiddo: How I Lost My Mother, Found My Father, and Dealt With Family Addiction by Jarrett J. Weston Woods produced an animated adaptation of Krosoczka’s Peanut Butter and Jellyfish.

Additional film and television options for Krosoczka’s work have been with DreamWorks Animation, Walden Media, and MGM. A Universal Studios movie based on Krosoczka's Lunch Lady series was in development with Amy Poehler in the lead role. In 2003, Krosoczka was chosen by Print as one of their 20 Top New Visual Artists Under 30. Krosoczka was also an instructor at Montserrat College of Art for four years. (He had been submitting for two years at that point.) His first book, Good Night, Monkey Boy, was published on June 12, 2001, by Random House. Krosoczka later went on to graduate from Rhode Island School of Design, and received his first book contract six months after graduation. The scholarships provide tuition to underprivileged children who are in unique familial situations. He also established the Joseph and Shirley Krosoczka Memorial Youth Scholarships at the Worcester Art Museum in tribute to his grandparents. The 'J' in his professional name is in tribute to his late grandfather.

He saw his mother only sporadically throughout his childhood, and didn't learn the truth about her addiction until he was in the fourth grade. Krosoczka was raised entirely by his maternal grandparents, Joseph and Shirley Krosoczka, who took legal custody of him when he was three because of his mother's drug addiction. Krosoczka ( / k r ʌ ˈ z ɒ s k ʌ/ krə- ZOSS-kə) (born December 22, 1977, in Worcester, Massachusetts) is the author and illustrator of a several graphic novels and picture books, most famously his Lunch Lady series. National Book Award finalist ( Hey, Kiddo) Krosoczka at the 2015 National Book Festival

Jarrett hey kiddo