I was a little confused at first by your comment because you spoke of Persopolis (and this review was of Maus I & II). It is not just reviewers who appreciate these books, but also academics. Art Spiegelman won the 1992 Pulitzer Prize under the category of Special Awards and Citations – Letters for Maus I & Maus II…so even if you do not think they are worthy, others do.

I have to disagree that because a book gets an amazing review that means it is then introduced into the schools. There are many wonderful, well written books which I love, but which I do not think are necessarily appropriate for younger readers. Should I give those books a bad review just because it is not a book for kids? Of course not! That would just be silly.

But, that said – I do think that we should have discussions about complex topics with our JH and HS age kids…and I think that these kinds of discussions are healthy and important. As far as the government posting comment ratings on books – I could not disagree more! Parents should not need a third party to dictate what books would be appropriate for their children – they should read the books in question and make their own decisions based on their knowledge of their children and whether or not those children are mature enough to handle the material in a given book.

My last thought: we don’t need a moral police in this country. I am so very tired of people in government and special interest groups trying to legislate morality or tell us what is good for us (or our kids). Our rights to make our own personal decisions are being stripped away from us every day in this country…the last thing I want to see are restrictions placed on reading. Disclaimers, content ratings, etc…should not be needed if parents are INVOLVED in their kids’ lives. I am afraid that many people who want these things come to it with an agenda.

What is worse, because professional reviewers have given the thumbs up to these kind of novels they are making their way into grade school and JH classrooms.

I could see addressing the subject matter in HS but not grade school or JH, especially due the graphic or violent nature of the art and words.

I think we’ve gone too far in pushing complex topics to younger grades.

So although the book is done well, and even though I do not appreciate some of the images or words, I think it is an interesting and thought provoking book.

I caution teachers and parents to be careful with exposing this kind of content (I am referring to the graphic depiction both visually and in words) to children under 13. The story/topic may be an important one and one that should be communicated, but I am wondering if literature should come with disclaimers or (should I even say it…) content ratings that provide parents and school administrators a tool to choose books appropriate for their children.