When I picked this book up, my first thought was "This is a very non-traditional O'Reilly book". I dare say, this is O'Reilly's first technology book published in comic book form. But it absolutely makes sense as to why they did it. Take your typical teenager. How many of them would willingly pick up a "traditional" computer book to read up on open-source, linux, and internet crimes? Unless they're über-geeky, I'd say pretty much none of them would do that. This is what is so absolutely perfect about this book: it's exactly what I would have picked up as a teen--both for fun and as a way to learn more about technology.
The story is about Yago, a young assistant teacher at "Hackerteen", an elite school for gifted computer students. While trying to get some money to help his family out of a tough situation, he writes a program he shouldn't have. Shortly after, he must race to undo the damage his actions have done.
This is a graphic novel, which is a lot of fun to read. It shows teens examples of risky internet behavior and what some of the serious consequences of that behavior can be. I'd highly recommend this book for teens who want to learn more about internet technologies and ways to protect themselves online. It's a fun read and I loved the drawings. I can't wait for volume 2!
"I wish that HackerTeen had been around when I was in middle school; this is exactly the kind of story and subject matter I would have devoured, and probably would have given me a better head start on my own computer career"
--Carrie Arnold, Computer Science Graduate Student
