Timid: A Graphic Novel

by Jonathan Todd, Jonathan Todd (Illustrator)

Overview

A semiautobiographical middle-grade graphic novel about frenemies, fitting in, and finding your voice.

Cecil Hall and his family have just moved from Florida to Massachusetts, near Boston. Cecil is anxious about making friends because he doesn't know where he'll fit in. His older sister, Leah, thinks he should befriend the other black kids at his new school, but Cecil isn't sure how he'd go about doing that. He wants to be known for his comics-making talent, anyway. But the few kids who are impressed by Cecil's art aren't always nice to him. When one of his drawings is misused and gets him into serious trouble, can Cecil stand up for himself and figure out who his real friends are?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781338305739
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	04/02/2024
Sold by:	Scholastic, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	568,898
File size:	80 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Jonathan Todd is a cofounder of the Boston Kids Comics Fest and former second-grade teacher. He was a Jacqueline Woodson Fellow in the Solstice MFA in Creative Writing program at Lasell University, where he studied writing for children and young adults. A frequent comics teacher in children’s and young adult departments in libraries and schools, Jonathan was the 2015 Graphic Novelist-in-Residence at the Morse Institute and Bacon Free libraries near Boston. Before writing and drawing graphic novels for kids, Jonathan studied journalism and illustration at Syracuse University and English and history at Emory University. He was also an education reporter and political cartoonist. His cartoons have appeared in dozens of newspapers, including the Boston Globe, the Tennessean, and the Cincinnati Enquirer. He lives near Boston with his wife, two children, and an irresistible lemon beagle named Cariño.

Editorial Reviews

02/05/2024

Debut creator Todd reminisces about growing up in the 1980s through the eyes of people-pleasing middle schooler Cecil Hall in this upbeat, semi-autobiographical tale. After moving from Florida to Massachusetts to accommodate his father’s new job, aspiring cartoonist Cecil flounders under the weight of having to start all over again. His college-bound sister criticizes the lack of Black characters in his comics and advises him to befriend other Black kids at school to not be seen as an “Oreo.” Simultaneously, his overworked father wants him to develop other interests besides his art and to “toughen up” and stand up for himself. To appease his father, Cecil takes an architecture class and hopes that his art will help him befriend classmates. But he finds it difficult to penetrate the predetermined social circles. Anxiety threatens to overwhelm him until he meets trickster Chris, a white student who uses his talents to make a profit— and often gets Cecil in trouble. Todd’s bold inks and vibrant, moody palette capture the nostalgia and inner dialogue of old-school comic strips, resulting in a refreshing take on classic newspaper illustrations that paints a lively graphic novel portrait of Cecil’s trial-and-error approach to building authentic friendships and navigating pre-teen growing pains. Ages 8–12. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Timid:

"Todd’s bold inks and vibrant, moody palette capture the nostalgia and inner dialogue of old-school comic strips, resulting in a refreshing take on classic newspaper illustrations that paints a lively graphic novel portrait of Cecil’s trial-and-error approach to building authentic friendships and navigating pre-teen growing pains." — Publishers Weekly

"An inspiring coming-of-age story." — Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

2024-02-03
An aspiring cartoonist details his struggles with fitting into a new environment.

Cecil, a 12-year-old Black boy who’s only known life in Florida, learns that his family will be moving to Boston for his father’s new job. Before his older sister embarks on her own college adventure, she gives him plenty of advice. Most importantly, she says, “Don’t be no Oreo!” Cecil feels pressure to meet and impress the Black kids at his new, mostly white, school and to not be so timid; according to his father, he draws too much and needs to toughen up. But what Cecil truly cares about is drawing and finding people who share his interests. Before long, word begins to spread among his classmates that Cecil is a great artist, and they ask him to draw all kinds of things. Despite the effort it takes, Cecil hopes he’ll become popular for his talents. He experiences racial microaggressions and betrayal, however, and realizes that these supposed friends don’t truly value him. Cecil pushes himself to make new friends, and along the way, he learns how to advocate for himself as he makes strides in becoming a great cartoonist. The warm, nostalgic color palette complements the thick, fluid black lines. This well-paced story will appeal to readers who are struggling to claim their places in a world that tells them where they should fit in.

An inspiring coming-of-age story. (additional comic, author’s note) (Graphic fiction. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews