The DO Book Club, Jan. 2025: ‘Hey, Kiddo’

In planning for a recent narrative medicine workshop, the residency program chose this graphic novel for teenagers—a book with pictures and easy to read—as it would be a good fit for busy physicians and trainees. We were rewarded with a remarkable and worthy book in Jarrett J. Krosoczka’s “Hey, Kiddo: How I lost My Mother, Found My Father and Dealt with Family Addiction.” The inspiring graphic memoir is the personal experience of a teenager adopted and raised by his grandparents because his mother was incarcerated and struggling with heroin addiction.

Unfortunately, the book is banned in some states because of its descriptions of sex, drugs, alcohol use, stealing, infidelity and murder, according to the National Library Association Office of Intellectual Freedom. However, the same office also praised the book—arguing that the story could help teenagers cope with life challenges.

This book indeed holds difficult truths for teens and adults. This book offers themes and a reality which can inform reflective practice in the healing arts. Discussion of difficult truths in our lives can positively inform medical practice and outcomes. Stories of resiliency from non-normative experiences can inspire us and help us better understand the human condition.

Family dynamics

“Hey, Kiddo” tells the story of an unconventional upbringing and coming of age, revealing how art can help someone cope. This nonfictional young adult graphic novel offers readers a sincere childhood point of view on familial addiction. The author opens with a narrative on how his childhood was clouded by the absence of his father and his mother’s struggles with drug addiction. Krosoczka’s rough-around-the-edges but loving grandparents step in to raise him.

The author crafts a heart-wrenching image of his longing for a normal family dynamic, underscored by constant uncertainty about his mother’s presence in his life. Despite fulfilling basic needs, his grandparents could not protect him completely from the ugly reality and severity of his mother’s choices. The grandparents also had their own set of issues. Krosoczka often felt torn between his own feelings, his family of origin and his extended family—he ponders the direct consequences of his mother’s addiction and how he was impacted by his tumultuous upbringing.

Krosoczka discovers a sanctuary—his love of art—which becomes an outlet for his feelings and a way to escape his harsh reality. His journey with art from a youthful age, beautifully crafted in the graphic novel, illustrates his development of artistic skill.  Despite his difficulties and hardships, the sketches of different characters and his dabbling in graffiti helped him find an avenue for expression. The protagonist eventually enrolls in the Rhode Island School of Design, revealing how art became his healing element. Artistic expression allowed him a creative avenue for social nonconformity and resiliency; his art instructor and mentor gave him perspective.

Interestingly, Krosoczka’s narrative reveals how his grandparents, endearing yet complicated characters, spill into his art. His grandfather, an extremely nourishing father figure, and his grandmother, a chain-smoking, gossip-loving woman, leap from the pages as memorable and influential artistic subjects.

“Hey, Kiddo” flows into Krosoczka’s high school years, his continued struggles with his unconventional family and his need for friendship. He shares his emotional turmoil when he learns about the identity of his biological father and seeks reconciliation by visiting him, which leads to disappointment and misunderstanding. The pain of this rejection resonated deeply, prompting Krosoczka to reimagine his identity and his concept of family through the lens of truth and forgiveness. The narrative sharpens its focus on Krosoczka’s mother, who unravels her life amid multiple rehab stints and periods of sobriety.

Familial storytelling

Although she shows constant love for him, simultaneously, Krosoczka’s mother exhibits an inability to recognize the feelings of a child; she becomes an absent-minded parent, a bolter, unavailable at major life events for Krosoczka. Although this is not his fault, he blames himself for the constant absence of his mother. The novel serves as a visceral reminder about the consequences of addiction and how it shapes the lives of those embroiled in its clutches, even beyond the person using.

The story is also an overwhelming testament to resiliency and the ability to change—to channel chaos in someone’s life and to build a successful career and character. Despite continued hurt and absence, Krosoczka learns to forgive and accept his mother at an early age. He develops and exhibits the skills to do so.

There are aspects of this book which can inform medical practice and narrative medicine. Themes include death, loss and remembrance; the accuracy of family storytelling and giving of accounts; and the larger impact of addiction on families. There are challenges to cultural assumptions around nuclear and extended families. The graphic novel offers lessons for medical educators on resiliency, the role of a confidante and friend, and the importance of teachers and mentors. “Hey, Kiddo” also emphasizes the therapeutic importance of helping others.

In the end, this is a phenomenal graphic novel, worthy of critical acclaim and multiple awards. “Hey, Kiddo” is a tribute to the power of art as a vehicle of self-expression and healing.

Related reading:

Addiction in ‘The Lord of the Rings’ and the real world: Insights for physicians

The DO Book Club, June 2023: “Long Walk out of the Woods: A Physician’s Story of Addiction, Depression, Hope and Recovery”