A Nation Challenged: A Visual History of 9/11 and its Aftermath (Young Reader's Edition)

From the pages of The New York Times, A Nation Challenged: A Young Reader's Edition is a moving record of events and reactions from the attacks on 9/11 through the closing of the WTC recovery site.

In an intimate and moving portrait of the occurrences of September 11, 2001 and its aftermath, A Nation Challenged is a tragic, yet ultimately reassuring record of the most pivotal event in modern American history. After witnessing such monumental acts of destruction and violence, America's children were inundated with new fears. Some of them grieve for lost loved ones, some of them grieve out of sheer confusion and anxiety, and some of them cannot grieve at all, unable to comprehend the enormity of what happened. This book will answer their questions about how and why these acts occurred in

Grade 4-9-Howell Raines, Executive Editor of the New York Times, introduces this book whose contents were culled from the Pulitzer prize-winning section of the paper, A Nation Challenged. The challenge, of course, was how to share a record of terrifying events and images in a responsible, age-appropriate manner. The editors have succeeded admirably. Through the generous use of white space; the carefully selected, climactic spreads contrasting with smaller, more personal scenes; and a clean design, including boxed tidbits of information, they give viewers a chance to breathe. Coverage of the three crash sites and the ensuing war is interspersed with snapshots of strong leaders, caring citizens, a global community united in grief, letters and art from peers, and scenes of Afghan children. Sometimes there is just one sentence per page, but the well-chosen words are packed with meaning and substance. The organization and content anticipate children's questions, e.g., detailed diagrams explain the physics of the towers' collapse or depict the interior of an Al Qaeda mountain bunker. The presentation, pacing, and progression are all orchestrated to make this resource informative and palatable for youngsters, without diminishing the overall impact. In moving from the May 30th photo of the ceremony accompanying the removal of the World Trade Center's last steel girder to the section on how children can help and the list of Web sites, this title signals a type of closure and a call to continue to think and to act.
Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

As September approaches, a crop of titles reaches out to young readers. A Nation Challenged: A Visual History of 9/11 and Its Aftermath, Young Readers Edition, edited by Mitchel Levitas, photos edited by Nancy Lee and Lonnie Schlein, with an introduction by New York Times executive editor Howell Raines, presents an intimate account of one of America's darkest days, adapted from the stories that ran in the Times. Text pulled directly from the paper's pages plus Pulitzer Prize-winning photos create a sense of immediacy while helping readers make sense of the war in Afghanistan, the tragedy's impact on the global community and new security measures at home and abroad. A "How to Help" section and comprehensive resource listings put the focus on the future. Ages 9-14.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 6-12. Compiled by editors at the New York Times, this combines photographs and text excerpts from the paper's section, "A Nation Challenged," which was devoted to the shock waves following the 9/11 tragedy. An introduction from the paper's executive editor leads into four chapters that follow the day's events; the immediate aftermath of grieving, loss, and international support; the Afghan conflict; and finally, how life has changed at home--including rebuilding and tightened security. Each spread shows a different side of the events and their effects, and the accompanying brief text, lifted straight from articles, may often be too sophisticated for younger children. Diagrams of the Twin Towers and an al-Qaeda bunker are interesting but may also lose some readers. It's the Pulitzer Prize-winning photographs that make this book so valuable. The editors have left out the harshest scenes of human suffering without shying away from the devastating story: the planes' impact, the imploding buildings, heroic escape and rescue efforts; the smoking rubble and multidenominational shrines; the army of relief workers; U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. Young people (and adults) struggling to understand the enormity of 9/11 events will want to start here, with the highest-quality images--"the record of our changed world"--that will encourage readers to confront their feelings. Short suggestions in the final chapter offer ways to begin healing. Gillian Engberg
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