El Deafo

Cece’s family moves from a small house in the city to a large home in the countryside. Cece tries to bond with the children in the neighborhood, but they are only interested in the radio, which Cece can’t understand. She feels deeply lonely. Cece starts the first grade in a “normal” classroom, with a new piece of assistive technology—the Phonic Ear. It allows her teacher to speak into a microphone and directly into her hearing aid. A drawing depicts the heavy, complex device, which Cece wears under her clothes, including funny captions like: “Underpants! Avert your eyes” (39). Soon, Cece realizes that she can hear her teacher, Mrs. Lufton, all over the school—even in the bathroom. Cece compares herself to Batman, who uses technology as a superpower, and imagines herself in a cape: “I can use my own crazy technology—the Phonic Ear—to turn myself into a superhero, too!” (44). However, the other children still question her. She wonders if she is really a superhero if she can’t hear at all in some moments and has super-hearing in others.