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38 pages 1 hour read

Stuntboy, in the Meantime

Fiction | Graphic Novel/Book | Middle Grade | Published in 2021

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Background

Authorial Context: Jason Reynolds, Raúl the Third, and Elaine Bay

Jason Reynolds is a poet and a celebrated author of middle grade and young adult novels. He aims to write stories that children will find inspiring and entertaining to encourage them to develop a love of reading. Reynolds grew up writing poetry, inspired by the poetry he heard in hip-hop. However, like many young people, he hated reading and found hanging out with friends or watching television more interesting. Reynolds’s hope is that none of his books will ever be considered “boring.” Reynolds also aims to promote understanding and empathy, creating works that deal with difficult subject matter like divorce and mental health and depicting those with flaws as “heroes” in their own way (“Jason Reynolds.” JasonWritesBooks). After publishing a number of award-winning novels, Reynolds marked his return to poetry in Long Way Down, which is written in verse and takes place over the course of a single minute in a teenage boy’s life as he plans revenge against his brother’s murderer.

Raúl the Third and Elaine Bay are an artistic duo who have worked together on several projects, including Stuntboy, in the Meantime and works authored by Raúl. Raúl’s work features Mexican American protagonists and sheds light on the unique circumstances that Mexican American youth experience. Bay is a celebrated colorist who worked on the Spongebob comics and has been working with Raúl since the 1990s. Raúl and Elaine are also married and have a son, Raúl the Fourth. They continue to work on their collaborative ¡Vamos! series together.

Literary-Cultural Context: Middle Grade Literature

Middle grade literature continues to grow in terms of variety, diversity, inclusiveness, and representation. First popularized in the 1950s, early middle grade literature often featured stereotypical depictions and oversimplified plots. As the 21st century began, attitudes toward diversity and inclusion changed, and stereotyping, racism, sexism, and other harmful depictions in literature and all forms of media became less acceptable. Today, middle grade authors are celebrated for their ability to represent people and life circumstances that aren’t always shown in the media.

As a young Black boy struggling with bullying and his parents’ separation, Portico Reeves embodies middle grade fiction’s shift toward telling more diverse stories, helping more readers see themselves in what they read. Portico is an ordinary kid but considers himself a superhero, implying that anyone can be a hero. Portico also has anxiety, the most common mental illness for adolescents in the United States. About one in three youth in America has some form of anxiety disorder (“2017 Children’s Mental Health Report.” Child Mind Institute). Anxiety comes in many forms, including general anxiety, specific phobias of situations or things, and panic disorder. The more that anxiety is discussed openly and honestly, the less it will be stigmatized and the more likely young people are to open up and talk about it. Portico models healthy strategies for managing anxiety, like breathing mindfully and discussing his experiences with friends.

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