Monday, July 30, 2007

Death Note - are your teens reading it?

Death strip
A controversial graphic novel from Japan -- banned in China -- has inspired a hit movie and much fan fiction. Will thrill-starved U.S. readers get hooked?
By Douglas Wolk



Personally...I've found Death Note to be one of the most riveting manga series out there, but it is definitely not for all teens. The premise is somewhat creepy, and heaped with implied violence. Yet at the same time, it is one of the most intriguing explorations of ethics I've seen teens reading. Thoughts?

2 comments:

matt said...

Hello, just wanted to say I liked Death Note as well, especially for the ethical dilemma. Not sure I understand why it was banned in China. It is on the coming year's Evergreen Book Award nominee list.

. said...

i'm a little (uhhhh...actually a LOT) behind the curve on this particular thread, but i love this series. this is, without a doubt, the most sophisticated manga i have yet read. there is real literary quality here, the stanwood manga group has already discussed this and arlington will be discussing it in february - this series is a perfect example of how to get teens engaged with some weighty literary issues. the stanwood group really responded to this series and buzzed in with some really insightful observations.