Very helpfully, she is given a 'phonic ear' which has a microphone for teachers to use, and this is a remarkable help to her in lessons. However, when the family moves from a large city to a small town, Cece is faced with going to an ordinary primary school, and this becomes a challenge. Ultimately, she goes to kindergarten at a special school where all the other children are like her and she learns lots about lip reading. She gets a hearing aid, which helps, but she sometimes doesn't hear things quite right, which can result in garbled messages. We then see the family attending a clinic where she is diagnosed - lots of detail about that too. Why are the other children getting ice cream when she isn't? And why is everything so quiet? It is only when she gets home that she and her family know that she has become deaf due to her illness. There is lots of detail about the time she is there, but she begins to realise that all is not well. We learn all about her normal childhood up to the age of four when she develops meningitis and has to be rushed to hospital. The Guardian called the animated series: 'Sweet, funny, poignant and definitely not just for kids.This is an amazing book! A brilliant graphic novel full of colour, it is the autobiography of Cece Bell, the author, and what an adventure her growing up has been. Can Cece channel her powers into finding the thing she wants most, a true friend?Įl Deafo is now streaming on Apple TV+. But the funny thing about being a superhero is that it’s just another way of feeling different. Maybe even superpower! Cece is on her way to becoming El Deafo, Listener for All. With the Phonic Ear she can hear her teacher not just in the classroom but anywhere her teacher is in the school-in the hallway. Too bad it also seems certain to repel potential friends. She’s sure the kids are staring at the Phonic Ear, the powerful aid that will help her hear her teacher. Starting at a new school is scary, especially with a giant hearing aid strapped to your chest! At her old school, everyone in Cece’s class was deaf.

The beloved #1 New York Times bestselling and Newbery Honor winning graphic novel memoir from Cece Bell

El deafo full book