El Deafo - Cece Bell

El Deafo by Cece Bell is a level X on the Fountas and Pinnell reading level scale. El Deafo is about a rabbit who is deaf and is going through struggles based on dealing with her difficulties. The story begins when she is four years old and is living a normal life, but when she contracts meningitis, the disease leaves her deaf. She has to start wearing a hearing aid and has to attend a special needs kindergarten class with other deaf students. When they move to Virginia, she is hoping to have a somewhat normal life, but has some issues with making friends. Then she has to get an even larger hearing device which makes her feel even more ostracized. To help boost her confidence, she creates a superhero named El Deafo who has super hearing. This helps her find a true friend in Martha, and gives her the courage to talk to her crush Mike who shows everyone in the neighborhood that her hearing aid is super cool. This book could be great to recommend to a student that has a hearing impairment. They can create their own superhero with a super power they wish they had and show them that they too have a “superpower” of their own.