While I loved the concept of the book, the execution was not there. I love the idea of a graphic novel that walks you through the rights you have under the first amendment and I think it is important for people to learn that. However this book is far too text heavy for a graphic novel. From what I can tell this book is based on a longer nonfiction text. I appreciate the attempt, but there needs to be far far less writing on the page. Not only was that amount of words, plus images extremely overwhelming. I found the often very small font hard to read. I read a lot and have no problem with small font but this was too much. It also took me a long time to get through one chapter because of how dense the subject matter was. This book needs to be revised and cut down dramatically if it wants to be a successful graphic novel.

A interesting look at Free speech and how it is part of our society and why it is important. Important if you like this subject.

How much do you know about free speech? The First Amendment? What speech is actually free and what is not? In 2021, Ian Rosenberg wrote The Fight for Free Speech: Ten Cases That Define Our First Amendment Freedoms which as been adapted into a graphic format by First Second Books as the first volume in a series about the US Constitution.

In both The Fight for Free Speech and Free Speech Handbook, Ian Rosenberg takes up current events to use as a lens on particular aspects of free speech. Chapter one opens with the Women's March of 2017 and focuses on the marketplace of ideas. Chapter two takes kneeling during the Pledge of Allegiance and the history of the Pledge of Allegiance in First Amendment case law. Chapter three covers the concept of libel vs actual malice and the role this played in the Civil Rights Movement. Chapter four walks out of school with student speech from the Vietnam War until now. Chapter five talks Stormy Daniels, prior restraint and the Pentagon Papers. Chapter six has a flipped-off President and the Draft. Chapter seven brings up the role of the FCC with Samantha Bee, seven dirty words, and indecency. Chapter eight powers up parody, Saturday Night Live, and Hustler. Chapter nine listens to speakers we dislike or hate, the freedom of assembly, and funeral protests. Chapter ten dives into social media, public parks, and "the Vast Democratic Forums of the Internet."

In these ten chapters, the Afterword, and list of sources, Ian Rosenberg provides a very understandable summary of First Amendment right that we all, I hope, hold dear. Take a look, pay attention, and practice your free speech rights!

I found the chunks of text off-putting and a struggle to read. I had hoped for more integration between the words and images. The format should make the material more approachable to readers, but it's not a great comic. I found it difficult to interact with the material and wound up flipping pages.

This is my first World Citizen Comics graphic novel, and I'm here for it!! Overall, I enjoyed this graphic novel. I was familiar with many of the cases from my high school journalism days. One of our pre-reqs dealt heavily with understanding free of speech precendent in schools.

I would recommend this book primarily to adults, and I will order it for the library as part of our adult graphic novel collection. I feel journalists, tech industry people, writers, law students, & activists will be especially interested in this title.

As a teen services librarian, I hoped this book would be more palatable for high school students. Unfortunately, I believe many of the students I serve will be bogged down by the level of complexity of the cases and the amount of detail provided. However, I will still recommend it to teens who writing or producing for school media outlets, engaged in activism, or have interest in law.

Overall, this book is a great addition to available nonfiction graphic novels, and the topic is extremely relevant, especially given Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. case. However, it was very dense in some parts, which lead to confusion and needing to reread. I understand that when discussing legal precedents that accuracy & completeness outweigh brevity, but I worry it might lead to readers not finishing.

I would love to see another book in this series that focuses on students' rights on campus! Just putting it out there!

I can't wait to share this with my students when they do the constitution and the bill of rights unit. I think this is an engaging informational text with clear text and descriptive illustrations.