Tales of a Seventh-Grade Lizard Boy

by Jonathan Hill (Author) Jonathan Hill (Illustrator)

Reading Level: 4th − 5th Grade

Drawing on the experiences of his Vietnamese American family and his love of '80s sci-fi shows, Jonathan Hill crafts a funny, insightful graphic novel about the immigrant experience and the perils of middle school. Threatened with diminishing resources, Booger Lizk't and his family flee their lizard community deep below Earth's crust to survive above among humans. The Lizk't family of Elberon now passes as the Tomkins family of Eagle Valley. "Tommy Tomkins" wears a human face to school but can't seem to fit in no matter how he looks. The basketball team becomes a pipe dream when bullies label him a bug eater, and only Dung Tran, an immigrant from Vietnam and fellow outsider, sees Tommy for who he is inside, which is nothing like the outer-space lizard invaders on TV's hottest series. Can their friendship survive the truth?

In his first solo middle-grade book, award-winning creator Jonathan Hill perfectly captures the sometimes dystopian drama of middle school while reminding readers of the universal need for belonging.

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Kirkus

Engaging and thought-provoking.

Publishers Weekly

In this spirited graphic novel by Hill (Odessa), 12-year-old Booger Lizk't and his lizard family have fled the underground city of Elberon for the human town of Eagle Valley amid resource scarcity. Now donning a fake human mask to cover his scaly green skin and going by the name Tommy Tomkins, he struggles to adjust to human life and finds it difficult to make friends, especially after getting caught eating a bug at school. When Vietnamese new student Dung Tran is harassed for his name and manner of speaking English, he and Tommy become fast friends. Even as Tommy becomes more comfortable in the human world, however, he internalizes harmful reptilian pop culture representation, which portrays lizard people as invaders (they're not trying to invade, they're "trying to survive," he argues) as well as implies that they're covering up their presence in the media. Employing a bright and energetic palette, uncomplicated paneling, and a cast comprising varying skin tones and body types, Hill keenly portrays the effects this othering has on Tommy and Dung, and how connection, mutual support, and earnest understanding can bridge even significant differences. An author's note contextualizes Hill's Vietnamese American upbringing. Ages 8-12. Agent: Alex Slater, Sanford J. Greenburger Assoc. (Sept.)

Copyright 2022 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

This clever and subtly deep graphic novel explores immigrant identity via lizard beings in a respectful and thoughtful way. . . offering readers a chance to view outsider status through the lens of something that challenges all ideas of casual tolerance. . . .Vivid colors, wry humor, and playful ignoring of traditional panel structure lighten the heaviest moments, firmly focusing this story on working toward better things.
—The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

A captivating graphic novel about identity with suspense, humor, twists and turns, and plenty of heart. I absolutely loved this book.
—Aron Nels Steinke, Eisner Award-winning author of the Mr. Wolf's Class series

This book will make you squirm and warm your heart. Beautiful art and a compelling story of self-acceptance.
—Nidhi Chanani, author of Pashmina

Starting at a new school is hard—especially if your last school was located in Earth's core! This is a gripping and ultimately very moving story about a boy seeking to gain acceptance for who he is when blending in is no longer an option. It's also a story with great lashings of drama, mystery, adventure, and just a pinch of X-Files weirdness. I loved it.
—Ross MacDonald, author of Henry's Hand
Jonathan Hill
Jonathan Hill is the creator of Odessa and the cocreator of Americus and Science Comics: Wild Weather: Storms, Meteorology, and Climate. An Ignatz Award-nominated graphic novelist, illustrator, and educator, he lives in Portland, Oregon.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781536216509
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Walker Books Us
Publication date
September 27, 2022
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV019000 - Juvenile Fiction | Humorous Stories
JUV039250 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Emigration & Immigration
JUV008110 - Juvenile Fiction | Comics & Graphic Novels | Humorous
Library of Congress categories
-

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