New Kid Character Analysis

Jordan Banks

Jordan is the novel’s 12-year-old protagonist. He’s an aspiring artist who lives with his parents in Washington Heights, Manhattan. For his seventh-grade year, Mom and Dad decide to send Jordan to the prestigious Riverdale Academy… read analysis of Jordan Banks

Drew Ellis

Drew is one of only a couple of Black students in Jordan’s grade at RAD. He lives with his grandmother in the Bronx and attends RAD on a scholarship. Drew initially makes a name… read analysis of Drew Ellis

Liam Landers

Liam becomes one of Jordan’s best friends at RAD. A third-generation RAD student whose family is extremely wealthy, Liam is nevertheless kind and generous, more so than many of his wealthy classmates. He doesn’t… read analysis of Liam Landers

Andy Peterson

Andy is a bully in Jordan’s grade at RAD. He bullies everyone, even those he considers his friends, such as Collin. Much of his bullying consists of calling people names (Ruby is… read analysis of Andy Peterson

Ms. Rawle

Ms. Rawle is a teacher at RAD. Jordan, Drew, Liam, Andy, and several of Jordan’s other friends have her for homeroom. Though she appears kind and openminded at first, Jordan and… read analysis of Ms. Rawle

Alexandra

Alexandra is the socially inept outcast in Jordan’s grade at RAD. She wears a puppet on one hand constantly, and she often makes the puppet speak for her in the third person, something that… read analysis of Alexandra

Maury

Maury is one of the handful of Black kids in Jordan’s grade at RAD. However, Jordan quickly discovers that this doesn’t mean he and Maury are destined to be friends—they have little in common… read analysis of Maury

Mom

Jordan’s mom is a successful Black woman working in a leadership role at an international magazine publishing agency. She pushes hard for Jordan to attend Riverdale Academy Day School, believing that an education there… read analysis of Mom

Dad

Jordan’s dad left his job as a website manager for the same international magazine publishing company where Mom still works some time before the novel begins. In the present, he runs the local community… read analysis of Dad

Gran’pa

Gran’pa is Jordan’s paternal grandfather, Dad’s dad. He recently moved out of Jordan’s neighborhood to an old folks’ home in Yonkers, which he generally likes. Jordan and Gran’pa are very close, so the… read analysis of Gran’pa

Drew’s Grandmother

Drew lives with his grandmother in the Bronx; she never appears in person in the novel. Drew’s grandmother shares many similarities with Mom in that she desperately wants Drew to succeed, and she believes that… read analysis of Drew’s Grandmother

Liam’s Mom/Mrs. Landers

Liam’s mom is a stay-at-home mom. She is married to Mr. Landers. Despite being so wealthy, Jordan finds her kind and a lot like his own mom—for instance, she embarrasses Liam by using… read analysis of Liam’s Mom/Mrs. Landers

Ramon

Ramon is a Latino student in Jordan’s grade at RAD. He’s kind and quiet. He silently puts up with Andy’s constant microaggressions, as Andy often asks Ramon—whom Andy insists is Mexican—about his mom’s… read analysis of Ramon

Collin

Collin is a boy at RAD who is known to many as “Andy’s minion.” He knew Andy before enrolling at RAD, as the two attended a sports camp together. At school, Collin puts… read analysis of Collin

Ashley

Ruby’s best friend Ashley is a gossipy popular girl at RAD. While she isn’t purposefully mean most of the time, Ashley nevertheless suffers from some unexamined racism and bigotry, as when she and Ruby… read analysis of Ashley

Kirk

Kirk is Jordan’s neighborhood friend. The two grow apart once the school year starts, as Kirk feels alienated by Jordan attending such a prestigious (and White) school, while Jordan is too busy studying to… read analysis of Kirk

Mr. Roche

Mr. Roche is Jordan’s biology teacher. In the fall, he coaches Jordan’s soccer team. He’s fun and kind, and particularly when he coaches, his main goal is making sure the players on his team… read analysis of Mr. Roche

Miss Brickner

Miss Brickner is RAD’s librarian. Although well-meaning, she has strong opinions about the merits of what RAD’s students read, and she’s unknowingly racist. She’s derisive of graphic novels and attempts to give Maury The Mean… read analysis of Miss Brickner

Mr. Garner

Mr. Garner is a Black math teacher at RAD. Even though he’s been teaching at RAD for 14 years and has never coached a sport, Headmaster Hansen still mixes Mr. Garner up with a Black… read analysis of Mr. Garner

Ms. Slate

Ms. Slate is the art teacher at RAD. Jordan initially finds Ms. Slate unserious, ridiculous, and untalented due to her abstract paintings and the way she speaks about her work to the class. But thanks… read analysis of Ms. Slate

Minor Characters

Ruby Wu

Ruby Wu is a popular gossip at RAD who’s best friends with Ashley. Despite her popularity, Andy still taunts her, calling her “Ruby Doobie Wu” in a cruel reference to the cartoon Scooby-Doo.

DeAndre

DeAndre is a sophomore at RAD and one of the few Black students at school. He’s a known bully and regularly targets younger students with his cronies, Winston and Eric. Ms. Rawle regularly calls Drew by DeAndre’s name, despite the two boys looking nothing alike.

Alex

Alex is one of Jordan’s classmates at RAD. He and Jordan connect because both boys enjoy comic books, graphic novels, and art more generally. The boys consider writing a graphic novel together.

Mr. Landers

Mr. Landers is Liam’s dad. He’s a businessman who’s always traveling for business or golf. Because he’s constantly absent, Liam is jealous of Jordan, as Dad is home and can thus attend Jordan’s sporting events.

Winston

Winston is one of DeAndre’s sidekicks, along with Eric.

Eric

Along with Winston, Eric is one of DeAndre’s sidekicks.

Mr. Pierre

Mr. Pierre is the Landerses’ Black driver.

Graham

Graham is a boy in Jordan’s class.

Grayson and Kirsten

Grayson and Kirsten are Liam’s younger siblings.

Coach Bumdoody

Coach Bumdoody is the formidable baseball coach at RAD. Few boys go out for baseball out of fear of Coach Bumdoody—legend has it that in 1997, Coach Bumdoody ate a student for making fun of his name.

Headmaster Hansen

Headmaster Hansen is the headmaster of Riverdale Academy Day School.

New Kid Characters