Hall Pass, Please

TFK Kid Reporter Nate Rhew read Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody and interviewed Patrick Ness, its author. Read Nate’s thoughts below.

In Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody, author Patrick Ness introduces us to Zeke, an oversized lizard, and his two best lizard friends, Daniel and Alicia. They’re all figuring out how to fit in and survive school. They and the other lizards are bused in from a less wealthy part of town. As lizards, they’re at the bottom of the social hierarchy.

Principal Wombat assigns Zeke, Daniel, and Alicia to be hall monitors. They believe it’s because they’re monitor lizards and hissing at everyone comes naturally to them. The drama begins when Pelicarnassus, the biggest bully in school, starts taunting the three friends. Meanwhile, Zeke struggles with things happening in his home life and an unusual knee problem. He befriends Miel, an insightful hawk. He also learns the importance of friendship and of letting go of his insecurities.

The story has diverse characters. These differences make each character fun and interesting. For instance, Zeke is very large and sensitive about his size. Daniel has ADHD and sometimes says inappropriate things.

Young people have “a real curiosity” about disabilities, Ness told me. “Kids really want to know about the disability, but once they do, they just accept it and make it a normal part of their lives.” Ness says that Daniel’s ADHD is just a part of him: “Like being a lizard is part of him. Like being a small lizard is part of him. That’s what’s interesting to me.”

Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody is an entertaining story with humor, drama, and a message about accepting differences. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading about school life and friendships. I enjoyed it a lot, and hope you do too.