Le nouveau
by Jerry Craft
Au début de sa septième année, Jordan Banks intègre une prestigieuse école privée d’un quartier riche de New York. Il ne se sent pas vraiment à sa place dans ce nouvel environnement. Non seulement il est nouveau, mais il est aussi l’un des seuls élèves noirs de tous les septième année. Jordan comprend vite que sa nouvelle vie sera semée d’embûches. Il va devoir être résilient pour rester fidèle à lui-même, à sa famille et à son quartier. Sera-t-il capable de jongler entre ces deux mondes très différents? Cette bande dessinée poignante explore des thèmes liés au racisme et à la classe sociale, mais aussi à la découverte de nouvelles expériences.
Published: 2021
Originally written in English
Number of pages: 256
Recommended FSL Programs and Grades
Grade 10 Core French
Grade 11/12 Core French
Grade 9/10 French Immersion
Race/Ethnic/Geographic Information
Author: Black
Characters: Black
Setting: Unknown - North America, probably USA
Notes from a teacher-reader
Graphic novel, easy to read
The English translation is loved by kids!
Grade 9/10 - A2
Francophone school board was doing it in grade 7
Writing includes present tense, passé composé
Very funny and witty
Well-paced, lots of little segments
No page numbers, but there are chapters
Beautiful graphics, broken up by sketches from the main character's notebook
Summary:
Main character is starting a new school
He acts certain ways in Black versus White neighbourhoods
Most of the students at his new school are athletes whereas he is an artist
Character befriends the only other Black students there, and they commiserate in the daily microagressions they face
Talks about Christmas and Kwanzaa
Overall positive
Students are enjoying the novel - depends on how you’re teaching it: not as groups, in table groups and class-wide discussions
Teaching moment: There's a diagram about handshakes in the book - talking about how to show respects, differences between cultures, pairs with the imperative
The English copy is available, students might consult it, but no issues of students reading it already
Potential for extension activity: Every chapter find a song that relates to the themes in the novel
It may contain explicit language or discriminatory views.
Feel free to contact the teacher-reader, Amanda Cloutier at amanda.cloutier@peelsb.com or Laura Ouellette at laura.ouellette@peelsb.com if you have questions about this novel.