Hey, Kiddo (National Book Awards Finalist)

Hey, Kiddo (圖文書) 獲2018年美國國家圖書獎青年文學類獎項。是作者Jarrett Krosoczka自身的故事，因為母親吸毒成癮進出勒戒所、父親失蹤甚至連名字他都不知道，還好還有祖父母扶養他長大。

在幼兒園，Jarrett Krosoczka 的老師讓他畫出他的家人，有媽媽和爸爸。但他的家庭比這複雜得多。他和祖父母住在一起，兩個非常吵鬧、非常有愛心、非常固執的人。他試圖讓他童年的非正常生活盡可能正常，發現透過繪畫來表達自己，即使他對一切所知不多。直到十幾歲的時候，他才能開始拼湊家庭的種種。

作者透過圖像記述了自己的不一樣的成長過程，他找到讓自己克服難題的方法，希望也能對成長中的青少年帶來啟發。

In kindergarten, Jarrett Krosoczka's teacher asks him to draw his family, with a mommy and a daddy. But Jarrett's family is much more complicated than that. His mom is an addict, in and out of rehab, and in and out of Jarrett's life. His father is a mystery -- Jarrett doesn't know where to find him, or even what his name is. Jarrett lives with his grandparents -- two very loud, very loving, very opinionated people who had thought they were through with raising children until Jarrett came along.

Jarrett goes through his childhood trying to make his non-normal life as normal as possible, finding a way to express himself through drawing even as so little is being said to him about what's going on. Only as a teenager can Jarrett begin to piece together the truth of his family, reckoning with his mother and tracking down his father.

Hey, Kiddo is a profoundly important memoir about growing up in a family grappling with addiction, and finding the art that helps you survive.

Jarrett J. Krosoczka is a New York Times bestselling author, a two-time winner of the Children’s Choice Book Award for the Third to Fourth Grade Book of the Year, an Eisner award nominee, and the author and/or illustrator of more than 30 books for young readers. His work includes several picture books, select volumes of Star Wars: Jedi Academy, the Lunch Lady graphic novels, and the Platypus Police Squad novel series. Jarrett has given two TED Talks, both of which have been curated to the main page of TED.com and have collectively accrued more than two million views online. He is also the host of The Book Report with JJK on SiriusXM’s Kids Place Live, a weekly segment celebrating books, authors, and reading. Jarrett lives in Western Massachusetts with his wife and children, and their pugs, Ralph and Frank.