Very well done. Gives great descriptive work. 9/11 is something no one should ever forget. This is a good book for the next generation.

For me September 11 is something I'll always remember. Reading this was a very interesting read. It was good to see another teens perspective and how people viewed what the political climate was like. I didn't really learn anything I didn't already know. But I think this would be a great book for my kids. It's a graphic novel and talks about a rough time in our country. Perfect for beginners

An interesting look at the events of 9/11, something that is seared into my own memory.

Parts of the book felt a bit disjointed, telling the same action over and over again from different perspectives. This graphic novel won't give you any information that any adult won't know, but it is still worth a reading! Loved the artwork.

Thank You NetGalley and Europe Comics for this ARC!

I wasn't sure I was going to finish this but it wasn't terrible so I felt like I owed it to the author to try and push through. Overall it was really good and the information was good. I liked the point of view it was told from and appreciated the outside looking in aspect. The art was simple but decent and clearly depicted what was happening. It wasn't necessarily for me, but I know people who would really enjoy it!

I think this was an interesting perspective on 9/11, but ultimately not the most interesting one. I was constantly asking myself, "Why should I care about what this person experienced?" While their perspective is undoubtedly valid and important to them, I didn't really get that for me.

I really enjoyed the art, however. It's a beautiful book to look at.

I decided to read this comic because the 9/11 attacks are something I know a lot about but I've never really been interested in and I wanted to change that. Obviously, you can't know everything from one comic book but it gives a good overview.
We experience the event through the eyes of a young woman who tells us her memories as a teenager of when the attacks took place. Overall, I found the story very moving and well written. It alternates between her perception of the events, and the point of view of people at the scene who got away with it, or not always. It is a good story to start with.
I would recommend it to anyone looking to know a little more about what happened that day.
3.5/5

I wasn't sure I was going to finish this but it wasn't terrible so I felt like I owed it to the author to try and push through. Overall it was really good and the information was good. I liked the point of view it was told from and appreciated the outside looking in aspect. The art was simple but decent and clearly depicted what was happening. It wasn't necessarily for me, but I know people who would really enjoy it!

I am always trying to better educate myself on the past and this was a great way to do this. Not only did it cover the 9/11 attacks but also showed the aftermath and the consequent war; something that I have never really known much about. On top of this, it was also interesting to learn about the laws that were put in place in 2001 and how these are still affecting life today. It also mentions the attacks that have happened after 9/11 up until very recently.

I was only six years old when 9/11 happened so I don't remember anything about it and only know what I was told by school, family or what I've read elsewhere. This is a horrific topic to learn about but it is so important to learn about. This also briefly covers the 2005 London attacks, which I remember a bit more since I was about nine or ten years old. These attacks scared the sh*t out of me because it was the first time I was fully aware of terrorist attacks and they were close to home. I can still remember the news and the images of the underground and the buses and the feeling of pure terror of living near to another big city in the UK and not knowing if we were next or what this would mean was to come.

Probably not the most clever thing to read right now because of my anxiety and the way the world is nowadays but this was interesting and eye-opening none the less.

I don’t think it will ever stop feeling surreal to me that we have now reached a point where kids don’t know what happened on 9/11. Having it done in graphic format felt even stranger. That being said, it’s a good way to teach the younger generations. It’s more accessible to a wider audience and the work is well-done. I recommend it.

I need to say that I haven't read such a well written, informative and fantastic illustrated graphic book about a world trauma in my life.
I recommended this book to my friends over and over and I will not stop doing so!
Such a descriptive retelling of the events of 9/11/01 and its traumatizing aftermath, told from the perspective of a teenage girl living in France.
The book is focusing on the events and how it actually happened to what other people thought were, in this book the French people’s opinions of the terrorist attacks and the US’s military responses.

The graphic illustrations were magically drawn to capture the full agonising turned out lives after such an attack

I recommend this book to children since its the perfect intake of illustrations with knowledge they need ro know about.

Fantastic retelling of the events of 9/11/01 and its aftermath in graphic novel format, as told from the point of view of a teenage girl living in France. As a New Yorker, none of this was new or a surprise to me, but what I found very interesting was the French people’s opinions of the terrorist attacks and the US’s military responses. Some very supportive of the US, and other’s not so much. I hope on this 20th anniversary of that terrible day, people will read this book and remember. We must never forget.

As always, with non-fiction works I will not be rating this one. As I’ve explained in the past it feels wrong to rate a non-fiction book when this is someones actually story! So instead this review will focus on the writing, my experience reading it & the illustrations.

Firstly, this one is a documentary style graphic novel which I think is an interesting concept. The combination of fact & illustration was a win because if this had been a standard book I probably wouldn’t of even looked at it. Reading text books is just not where my enjoyment lies when it comes to learning as I’m a visual person. So this was perfect for me in that respect.

I did expect to feel more emotional, than I did, reading this one. There were a couple pages that were harder but for the most part it was an easy read. Obviously I’m Australian so it’s not as close to home for me as it is for others but I was left in a sobbing mess after watching @embrenn365 ‘s TikTok series talking about her experience. So it’s not that I wasn’t emotional because of the detachment. Seriously go check those videos out! There is 4 & she is just looking at the camera not in full glam in the preview. So it was a little disappointing that this one fell flat in the emotional category but it is a documentary, so I suppose that’s expected.

As for the actual writing I honestly struggled to follow at times as it was swapping back & forward in the timeline pretty often. This made it a bit difficult to get into as I was at times left lost with certain sections of the book. If I was to rate the writing alone I would probably give it a 3. It would have been a lot easier & impactful if everything just went chronologically… The Illustrations though were really well done.

So overall this wasn’t the best but I would be VERY curious to read more like this but in a less documentary type style. I’d rather read it as a story than the overload of facts. If you have graphic novel recommendations please let me know!

Book 44 of my 2021 Reading Challenge

September 11, 2001: The Day the World Changed Forever
by Baptiste Bouthier

Summary (via Goodreads)
published 2021

What do younger generations know about the terrible tragedy that shook America and the world on September 11, 2001? In this gripping documentary work by journalist Baptiste Bouthier and illustrator Heloïse Chochois, we first learn about the historic day from several inside perspectives. In the second half, the authors take stock of 9/11 in the days, weeks, and years that followed, from traumatized America to George W. Bush's crusade against the "axis of evil."
A not-be-missed piece of graphic non-fiction, published 20 years after the events in question.

First Impressions/Judging a Book by Its Cover
I chose this book while browsing on NetGalley (full disclaimer below). Using a graphic novel format to share nonfiction stories is something relatively new to me so it catches my eye every time I see it. When combined with the subject of 9/11 and the inclusion of not just the day's events but also the aftermath/reflection, I didn't have any hesitation downloading it.

Illustrations on an e-reader can be dicey sometimes so I hope everything comes through clearly.

My Opinion
3 stars

**I received an electronic copy of this book via NetGalley and would like to thank the author and/or publisher for the opportunity to read and honestly review it**

My first note is that my concerns prior to reading about illustrations on an e-reader did not apply. I feel I got the full experience of the book even though it was an electronic version on my computer.

Beginning with the viewpoint of a student in France and how 9/11 and the aftermath of the wars and the Patriot Act were viewed internationally was an unique perspective (it included how the student learned about it in real time and then what they felt years later traveling to New York for themselves).

I was a college student and remember everyone gathered together to huddle around the tv. This book made a good point about how the Internet and cell phones would shape the tragedy now...there would be more connection because it would become known more quickly but there would also be less connection because the act of gathering together in person to process things is no longer as common.

The following is not a critique even though it will read that way - let me explain!
I may be overstepping in my interpretation but to me, the illustrations felt intentionally unpolished. It added to the feeling of how it felt experiencing everything at the time. There was no time to analyze or "pretty things up", things were just presented as they happened and we were all learning at the same time.
Again, I'm not knocking the illustrations at all. They were really good! Maybe "stark" is a better word? I don't know...they accomplished what they were trying to convey but weren't overly produced or edited. It felt like someone was standing on the scene with a sketchbook and these are the moments they captured.

I learned statistics I didn't know and the real photos at the end were a nice touch.

It was a bright and sunny morning 20 years ago, when tragedy struck and shook the world. At the time, I was in high school back home and had relatives living and working in New York.

It was chaos everywhere as people tried to contact their loved ones to make sure they were alright. I remember watching the news and my parents desperately calling the States only to receive a busy signal. Then there was the plea through news channels to keep telephone lines clear while they access the turmoil.

Everyone living at that moment were touched by these events one way or the other. This book recounts some of the moments of various people, both in the towers and outside the country. Its pages delve into the history of what unfolded during the tragedy and as an aftermath.

Thank you #NetGalley and #EuropeComics for giving me the opportunity to read this.

A profoundly moving, respectfully told graphic novel that delves into the how, when and why of the September 11th attacks, beautifully illustrated in a way that hits a balance between visual appeal and the emotional impact needed for a topic such as this. I think this is a really fantastic resource for learning more about 9/11 and its aftermath, and the impact on individuals, Americans, and the world as a whole. The narrative following Juliette as she travels to visit her cousin in New York in 2021, reflecting on and thinking back to her personal experiences at the time intermingled with the knowledge she, and we as a society, have gained since, really brought to life the events and humanised them, putting you right there with those experiencing the attacks at the time, and those watching across the world. I'm really glad I read this graphic novel, I can't recommend it enough.

Thanks to the publisher for approving me to read this book on NetGalley. Unfortunately this book wasn't for me. I found it was a little hard to follow and I wasn't sure what it was trying to achieve - there were too many strands covered in a short book and I didn't know if it was meant to be a history book or a personal story of what happened that day. It also made me a little uncomfortable to read and I wasn't sure about some of the images used in the book. I do appreciate the chance to read this one but it just wasn't to my taste in the end.

I tried to read this comic on September 11th this year, the 20th anniversary of the attack. I couldn't get past the first page. Of course I was affected by 9/11-- the entire world was, ultimately. But on that day I was nine years old, living on the West coast, and I didn't know anyone who died. So I'm surprised at what a deeply affecting read this was for me.

September 11, 2001: The Day the World Changed Forever is a French comic depicting 9/11 and the past 20 years of its aftermath through the eyes of a fictional French girl named Juliette. Constructed like a memoir, it begins as Juliette boards a flight to New York for the first time and begins to think back to her memories of the 9/11 attacks which occurred when she was thirteen years old. The narrative follows her experiences in France over the next twenty years with intermittent breaks to focus on a particular related topic or incident. For example, the story of a survivor employee of the World Trade Center, a journalist whose photos became famous depictions of the event, George W. Bush's movements on 9/11, etc. But also historical information about what happened in the wake of that day: the war in Afghanistan, the invasion of Iraq, France's Vigipirate, subsequent terrorist attacks around Europe, the killing of Osama Bin Laden in 2011, the Patriot Act and Edward Snowden's whistleblowing of the NSA, etc. It ends with Juliette landing in New York, experiencing a U.S. Customs search, and visiting Ground Zero.

I really appreciate that this comic gives a non-American perspective of this devastating day and its aftermath, though it also very clearly a French take rather than an objective one (if such a thing were possible). It is a Western, European, and non-Muslim perspective, which is worth remembering while reading. While the doomed nature of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are covered, there is otherwise not much focus on the impact of 9/11 on citizens of those countries, nor Muslim or Middle Eastern people living in the West. Guantanamo receives a quick mention, but widespread Islamophobia (particularly in France considering this book's origin) does not. While no single book, especially a short comic, can possibly cover 20 years worth of everything 9/11-related, these seem like glaring omissions.

Overall, it seems like the authors couldn't quite decide what they wanted their focus to be. A memoir-style look at one particular French citizen? Vignettes of the experiences of specific people who experienced the event? A historical account of the attacks and their global fallout? While certainly not a bad read, and rather interesting throughout, I think this book could have been a lot stronger with a narrower focus and a commitment to either an intimate, subjective perspective or a better attempt at a wider, universal perspective. My favorite aspect was the short, individual stories of survivors of the attacks, like World Trade Center employees, journalists, and first responders.

TW: 9/11, Islamophobic comments, death, fire, plane crash

I really appreciated reading this take on September 11, 2001 and how it affected the world on a global perspective. I think as Americans we really hone in on how it changed us as Americans and less on how it changed the world as a whole. We also don't hear about or realize how our country's actions after 9/11 affected the world. This book really challenged me in that area.

I will agree with a lot of other reviewers and say that the timeline of the book was very wonky. It wasn't cohesive at all and often you had to spend time trying to figure out where in the timeline you were. I also with there wasn't as much swearing in the book. I know that's a personal thing, but if it wasn't for the swearing it could see this being a book I would encourage my kids to pick up just to expand their perspective on 9/11.

Overall a great graphic novel..

Very hard to read because of strange font, poor art work - rather amateurish , good message but I won't use it in my classes. Students demand quality art work.

I’m in the minority here because I did not enjoy this graphic novel. The graphics were not good to me, and I didn’t like the dialogue. I feel like this could have been done better.