The 9/11 Report: A Graphic Adaptation by Sid Jacobson and Ernie Colon

The 9/11 Report by Sid Jacobson and Ernie Colon was not what I expected. First of all, I have had very little exposure to graphic novels and was not aware of what this reading experience would be like. Before I go into my review of the novel, I would like to let you know how I feel about graphic novels. I think they are hard to read, and they are not the type of book I would select for myself or recommend to most others. I would only do so if I thought it would truly be beneficial to a student. I found myself going out of order and getting distracted because the text was not in the conventional form so that made me uncomfortable, and I would imagine others feel the same way. Anyways, now that I have said my personal opinion of graphic novels, I will segue into the book.

If someone enjoyed this style of novel, this book would be a great read. From the title, The 9/11 Report, you can gather that this novel explores the events of September 11, 2001. It was very, very informative. I learned a lot from reading this book, and I didn't feel as though information was being forced upon me. It was interesting. Although I would have been able to learn more if it was in a different style (my personal preference), this would be a great way for students who like graphic novels to learn about such an important event. This book covered the events of September 11, 2001 and also focused on the events leading up to it in the decade before and some of the aftermath. It was great. I had no idea about most of the information that was covered ever even happened. The authors explored the government administration of President Clinton as well as President Bush and their methods of relating to terrorism. It was eye-opening. The way the text was presented was in a way that upper elementary students could understand. Clearly, the events of September 11th are emotional, and the book covered this well. The graphics were not overly graphic (violent), but they did not sugar coat it.

The graphics in this novel were found everywhere and there were numerous per page. At times, I found this overwhelming, but I can understand that individuals reading this type of literature may really like that many graphics.

Even though this type of literature is not one I would typically pick for myself, I can see the benefits of it. This book was so informative and appropriate for upper elementary students and up. I learned a lot of new things, and it was done in a way that seemed like it was not pushing information at me. I really appreciated this, and I would recommend this book to others.