...to make it through "The 9/11 Report," but, alas, I failed to cross the finish line. Granted, I haven't read near as many graphic novels I as I probably should (I readily admit that it's far from my favorite format as I prefer text sans pictures, so as to let my imagination do the rest) yet I have managed to discover some rather stunning ones that even my scattered-brained self could do nothing save appreciate the dual information load approach. "9/11," I'm sorry to say, was so ugly (sorry, I know that's harsh) so visually unappealing (tiny print, bland illustrations, and so much crowded on a page) that made my eyes nearly bug out of my head in the vain attempt to focus. Maybe that's a sign of my age? In any event, it was a no go, which means I'll have to pick something else off our lovely list.
It's been my experience that graphic novels, on the whole, are a wonderful means of encouraging reluctant readers for those students, especially those who process information visually (a means of intelligence that I must say I envy!) but that manga tends to be more popular with teens, and the old school graphic novel approach moreso with adults -- makes me wonder why this is so? (For the life of me, I've never been able to decipher a manga text, despite numerous attempts by teens to teach me as that whole backwards thing is simply too confusing, but again, maybe tht's just a sign of my age?)
I'm also curious as to what kids are learning about 9/11 in the classroom these days--anyone know?
I had a hard time making it through this one, too. I read a lot of graphic novels, so it seems they really missed the mark on this. After a couple weeks to digest the book, I find that I still recall pretty vividly the lead-up to the attacks, so I guess it did its job educating me on what sparked the events and how the terrorists were trained and implemented. The rest of the book, though, is but a hazy memory of lots of confused-looking officials trying to gain control over a chaotic situation. I guess that pretty well sums up what it was like, but everything was so disjointed and confusing that I can't imagine a casual reader bothering to read the book through to the last page. I liked the centerfold timeline thing, and could see tearing that out of the book to use as a tool for explaining the events.
ReplyDeleteIn the book's defense, I suppose it is still a lot easier to follow than the 3000 page report it is summarizing. There is a chance that avid graphic novel readers may be able to get through the book, but I doubt they would take much away from the experience.