New Kid

“Awww, honey, I know how much you wanted to go to art school, but you’re so smart! Tell him, Chuck.”

“You are smart, Jordan.”

“It would be such a waste. This is one of the best schools in the entire state! It looks like Harvard or something. Tell him, Chuck.”

“Yeah, it’s nice…but it still doesn’t seem to have much, you know…diversity, Ellice.”

“How is that helping?”

“I’m just sayin’!”

“They offer five languages, AP classes, the Harkness method, lacrosse, crew…”

“What’s crew?”

“What’s the Harkness method?”

“I have no idea, but they sound wonderful!”

“Why do they call him Maury-O?”

“I heard ‘cause it rhymes with ‘Oreo.’ But I still don’t get it.”

“Oh…I do…unfortunately.”

White on the inside.

Black on the outside.

“So who’s this? One of Grayson’s middle school friends?”

“No, this is Jordan. He’s in first form. Like us.”

“You’re in the first form?!! Wow, Gordon, you’re really small!!”

“It’s Jordan.”

“I’m Andy. Andy Peterson. So what sport do you play, Gordon? And what are you, anyway?”

“Huh?!”

“So what do you think of RAD?”

“It’s a bit overwhelming.”

“Yeah…do you play Xbox?”

“Definitely! I’ll give you my gamer tag.”

“Is that kid Andy always like that?”

“No, most times he’s worse!”

[…]

“Hey, Jordan!”

“Oh, hey, Kirk!”

“Your dad said you’d be home around now. So what’s been up?”

“Just bummed about my new school.”

“Yeah, I figured. I know th—oh… I’ll catch you later, Jordan.”

Fitting in on the ride to school is hard work! I have to be like a chameleon. For example, in Washington Heights, I try to look tough.

Inwood is a little different, so I can lose the hood. No one ever smiles in the morning, so you won’t catch me doing that either!

Kingsbridge is where all of the public school kids get off, so it’s okay to take off my shades. I can even draw!

Last comes Riverdale, where I do my best not to look cool AT ALL! No shades, and definitely no hood. I don’t even like to draw ‘cause people might think I’m going to use my markers to “tag the bus”!

[…]

Man! By the time I get to school, I’m exhausted!

“That new kid is kinda cool.”

“Yet so nonthreatening!”

“Are there any other questions? Especially from you new students? DeAndre? Jordan? Alexandra?”

“My name is Drew.”

“I’m sorry, Drew. DeAndre is one my former students. He was a real handful.”

[bell rings]

“I can’t believe she called him DeAndre.”

“Some kid called me Maury yesterday.”

“What are you, an Eskimo? Is that racist? I’m sorry if anyone found that offensive. It’s only October! C’mon, shirt and shorts only.”

“But it’s freezing!”

“By the way, you’re starting at forward, do you know what that means?”

“Not really.”

“Well, then just get out there and run fast. I know you can do that! I mean, because you look athletic! Not because…you know…we’re all created equal, Jordan. I really believe that.”

“If we weren’t smart, we couldn’t have gotten into this school in the first place, right?”

“Right.”

“Then why do they make it so tough for us? We don’t dress weird. We don’t use a whole lot of slang they can’t understand. We’re not aggressive.”

“I think you just described Andy.”

“Ha! I did, didn’t I?”

“Well, Jerome, we’d better break this up before they think we’re starting a gang or something.”

“You got it, Demetrius. I’m glad we finally got a chance to talk.”

“Later, dawg!”

“DeAndre?”

“Drew.”

“I really don’t think it’s nice to call Jordan a dog.”

“I didn’t really, it was just a joke.”

“He’s a human being, not a dog. And I think it would be nice if you apologized.”

“And I think it would be nice if you apologized for always calling me DeAndre.”

“Excuse me, young man?!”

“Besides, Andy calls people dawg all the time. Why don’t you ever say something to him?! And I’m not sorry, ‘cause Jordan knows I was just playin’! But I’ll tell you what I am sorry for…I’m sorry I ever came to this stupid school.”

“Ms. Rawle says that you and Drew don’t associate with the other kids. You stay inside while the rest of the class is outside. What’s going on? Are kids picking on you?”

“No, that’s not why. Besides, that just happened today for the first time!”

“Then why, Jordan? You can tell me, son.”

“It’s winter, Dad! It’s COLD out!!! Who wants to sit in the grass when it’s freezing outside?”

“The point is, in order to be successful in corporate America, you have to know how to play the game.”

“But not everyone can play that game, Ellice. Nor should they have to! That’s why I left that life. They don’t give you all the pieces or even teach you the rules. […]”

“But if you had stayed, you might be editorial director by now. […] That’s why it’s important that Jordan learns the rules now. And that’s what this school can do for us.”

“If he can handle feeling like an outsider. […]”

“Are we talking about Jordan, or you, Chuck? This will open up new doors. Colleges, networking…opportunities that you and I never had.”

“By ninth grade, if he still wants to go to art school, he should be able to go. It’s Jordan’s life, Ellice. Not ours!”

“Fine!!!”

“I always feel like everyone assumes I play ball…and that kinda bothers me.”

“Oh, I know exactly what you mean. People always assume things about me, too.”

[…]

“I’ve never been good at sports, guys, but I am one of the set designers for the musical.”

“Nice, Alexandra! I’ll bet you’ll be really good.”

“You do?!! Thank you so much!!!”

“The Mean Streets of South Uptown! A Gritty Tale of Survival!”

“You’re really going to identify with DaQuell, the protagonist. He’s suffered so much, growing up in poverty without a father.”

“Umm…thanks, Miss Brickner. But my dad is the CEO of a Fortune 500 company.”

Mainstream book heroes:

-Lives in a magical kingdom!

-Lives in a stable home!

-Wants to live better!

-His father is king!

Reviews: A thrilling magical tale that is sure to inspire readers of all ages to never give up until they have found the treasure they seek. -School Library Journal

African American book heroes:

-Lives in the hood!

-Lives in a broken home!

-Just wants to live!

-His father is gone!

Reviews: A gritty, urban reminder of the grit of today’s urban grittiness. -Jet magazine

“I hope you like all your presents. I worked really hard on them. I baked and decorated all the basketball cookies myself. I know you like basketball because you have a Knicks poster in your locker. I got you a KFC gift certificate because, who doesn’t love KFC, right? We should go one day. My treat! Then I got you a chocolate Santa ‘cause I love chocolate. And this little guy is just sooooo cute. It’ll be a shame to eat him, but, oh well.”

“Yeah, I guess he is kinda cute. Thanks Ashley!”

“C’mon, fellas, we’re playing terrible!”

“Actually, you’re playing terribly.”

“Oooh, Jordan just ripped you guys!”

“No, I didn’t mean it like that…I meant the word is ‘terribly…’ It’s an adverb, so it modifies the—verb.”

“Yeah, Jordan’s talking junk! You guys are garbage!”

I wish I was Batman!

Not just for all the cool reasons.

[…]

Or the fact that he’s rich. Not just rich—sooooooooooo rich!

I wish I was Batman so that I could fit in anywhere! One minute he’s at a board meeting.

And the next, he’s in the most dangerous part of town. Completely fearless!

Although, he never seems to have any friends.

[…]

But luckily that’s not me anymore.

But unlike me, Batman is always in control of EVERYTHING!

[…]

And I really love how Batman always stands up for the little guys.

Because usually that “little guy” is me!

And at that moment, it all became too much!

Too much of kids like me trying to fit in.

Too much of kids who should fit in trying hard not to.

Too much of good kids being blamed for being bad!

Too much of bad kids getting rewarded for their mean behavior!

And wayyyy too much of me feeling like I’m never in control of anything!

“But how can I be attacking the school if all this stuff really happens? I mean, no offense, but you call Drew by the wrong name all the time. And the year is almost over. And some kids DO look down on kids on financial aid. And kids stare. All the time! It’s not always easy being so different!”

“But Jordan, being different is a blessing. It’s what makes you special.”

“I’m tired of being special! Being special stinks!”

“You and Drew should be proud to be here. I know I am. Just embrace the school and allow it to embrace you back. I just want you to be happy, Jordan.”

“Oh, I see…it’s okay that this stuff happens to us…it’s just not okay for us to complain about it. Ms. Rawle, can I ask you a question?”

“Yes, Jordan, you may.”

“Would you teach at a school in my neighborhood? You know, so you could be special?”

“On one hand, I feel like I learned a lot, which is why I came here…but on the other hand, I almost got suspended even though I made honor roll every semester. I’m not sure I can get over that.

“But, Grandma is ol’ skool, so she wants me to tough it out. She says that ‘this is what the world is like.’ So I might be stuck here for the long haul.”