"Watchmen" by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons

"The Watchmen" started as a comic and has recently been reprinted into a graphic novel. It has recently inspired a movie to made based off of the original comic, but nevertheless has always been a superior piece of literature. In this novel, Moore has created an alternate universe where superhero's emerge in the United States, thus making the U.S. a fearless and seemingly indestructible force. However, over time the "watchmen" or superheroes receive scrutiny, and are eventually disbanded.

The imagery throughout the novel is very graphic (go figure) and entails quite a bit of fight scenes. The illustrations are typical of the DC universe comic book genre, thus imagery is similar to other graphic novels/comic books such as V for Vendetta, etc. Aside from some violent imagery, the storyline helps build the dark tone in this alternate universe. Many of the themes throughout the novel may not be appropriate or understood by young teens - as much of this book relies on some previous knowledge of American history in the 80s. Overall, I think this book is ideal for mature students in high-school and above.