Rating: 
Summary: I wish I had this book 10 years ago
Review: In the movie X-men II, a frustrated Pyro announces "Y'know all the mutants you hear about on tv? Well I'm the worst one!" and lashes out by attacking the police cars with fireballs. This sentiment is easily understood by teenagers, who often feel accused of horrible things, so much so that they may behave horribly, because behaving well doesn't seem to change the way people view them.
There has been an association with media violence and fantasy agression leading to actual violence which has been reinforced time and time again, and I remember being a kid who listened to heavy metal and goth music, played roleplaying games, watched forbidden movies, and read comic books. As an adult I still do all of these things, and now I am a mother myself and have begun to reflect on what to allow and disallow for my child.
The basic thesis of this book is that imaginary aggression releases real angers and fears which are difficult for both adults and children to deal with. Our world is a scary place, and kids know it, and imaginary violence is a safe way of releasing these emotions.
This book does NOT condone actual violence at all. It makes wonderful points which I wish I had been able to articulate so well when I was a teenager. It is about time that we realized the differences between being afraid for our children and being afraid OF our children. The author has put together a solid, logical argument which I think can really benefit teachers and parents who are worrying themselves sick. How do children feel when they are punished for finding a nonharmful outlet for their anger? What are we teaching children when we push our own fears and anixities on them? Is a kid who is playing with a squirtgun a cold blooded murderer, or just having fun on a summer day?
We are becoming more and more scared and loosing track of reality and common sense.
Okay, let's think about this logically for a second. What video games were the Romans playing when they threw the first Christians to the lions? What rap music were the inhabitants of Salem listening too when the burned innocent women at the stake? We are afraid of the wrong things, and we are not making ourselves any safer by being more afraid. Talking to kids about how they feel and why is a much more effective deterrant to violence then forbidding them to play with toy swords. We really need to validate the way children feel to help them deal with their emotions in the exact same way we validate adults feelings in order to communicate, "I know that you are very angry because of...."
If you know someone who has adopted a Zero tolerance policy for children, please by them a copy of this book, even if they disreguard it, it would be good to give add touch of sanity to our insane world.
Rating: 
Summary: A controversial look at a controversial subject
Review: In this book, author Gerard Jones looks at the role of violence in the play world of children and adolescents. Moving from story to story, and study to study, he shows that children use violence to make sense of their world, to help them deal with their own aggressive feelings, and to broaden the range of personality factors by using violence safely in a fantasy realm, rather than in reality. Looking at juvenile violence, he sees that it is societal and (even more so) family factors that produce the violence, and not the mass media.Overall, I did find this book quite interesting. For the first several chapters, the author had me hooked, with his interesting and engaging take on violence in the fantasy world of young people. However, after a while I began to feel that the book was rather weighed down with too many anecdotes, especially (but not limited to) relative to analysis. Also, the author is quite clear that he does not believe that violence in movies, games and music has much of a negative effect, quite the contrary. "Nearly all violent stories that kids love enact powerful lessons about courage, resiliency, and development. It doesn't matter who the good guys and bad guys are, who wins or loses, or what values are espoused by the characters in the course of the action." (Hardcover, P.221) It doesn't matter at all, not even a little bit? So, let me say that this is a fascinating and thoughtful book, if a bit swollen, one that should be looked at when violence in the media is discussed. However, I do think that the author overstates his case, and I do have trouble with his conclusions.
Rating: 
Summary: One never goes broke telling people what they want to hear
Review: In this book, author Gerard Jones takes a long, hard look at the effect of violence on children. To his surprise and delight he finds that the only effects are positive! It seems that children's emotional makeup is such that they only desire what is good for them. Therefore, as parents, we should not be alarmed by anything in the movies, games, songs or books that they are exposed to! Examining the studies that suggest that violence does have a negative effect, Mr. Jones is quick to point out that the authors of the studies have a vested interest in proving this. It should be noted, that Mr. Jones is intimately involved in the production of violent comic books and programs; there are indeed vested interests involved. As a mother of three, I must say that I strongly disagree with the conclusions of this book. Mr. Jones' promotion of his industry comes as no surprise. However, the embracing of this book by adults who should be more thoughtful saddens me. It is said that one never goes broke telling people what they want to hear, and I am sure that Mr. Jones will gather in a fat royalty check from this book. If you want an excuse to not be positively involved in your children's world, then this book is for you!
Rating:
Summary: An Enlightened View for all Citizens who Care about Kids
Review: Killing Monster's offers educators, parents and anyone who cares about kids an important perspective that is often missing from the debate over the effects of media violence on child development: the child's. This expansive, scholarly critique of the debate asks us to put aside our automatic rejection of fantasy violence and ask: Why do kids like it so much? Are these fantasy scenarios of good and evil enabling young media enthusiasts to express their own fears and anxieties in ways that help them understand them better? At a time when the new media can alter the child's relationship to it by changing them from consumres to users, Gerard Jones encourages us to trust kids to use intense media fantasy to find and express the emotional meaning these stories have for them. In and era in which many adults are anxious about the uncertainties of the world our children are growing up in, this book reminds us of the powerful role storytelling has played throughout history as a teacher about the capacity of humans to help and hurt each other. My hope is that this book will persuade media creators to realize that they have underestimated
children's need and desire for complex narratives. As Jones suggests, stories about age-old conflicts that limit humankinds abilty to achieve harmony in a world of individual and cultural differences can help our future citizens understand the vicissitudes of the moral dilemnas and conflicts that surrounbd us today. Dr.Carla Seal-Wanner, a developmental psychologist and children's media developer and advocate, formerly Director of the Graduate Program in Instructional Technology and Media, Columbia University
Rating:
Summary: A Readable, Intelligent and Persuasive Book
Review: Killing Monsters is a "must read" for parents of boys and a "should read" for parents of girls. I have looked a long time for an intelligent explanation of why violent fantasy and super-hero play is so compelling for boys (and many girls) and why "playing it out" actually prevents children from "acting it out" despite what the media and some conventional wisdom would have us believe. Of particular interest is Jones' scrutiny of studies which purport to "prove" a link between violent media and actual aggression. Not only did Jones support his thesis, but the points he made will make me look a lot closer at such study "conclusions" in the future. In summary, I found this book a compelling and informative read.
Rating:
Summary: This is the real world!
Review: Normally I hate it when reviewers keep referring back to previous reviews, and I planned just to write a nice review about how helpful this book was to me in communicating with my own kids--but the review by "A Reader from the real world" drove me so crazy I had no choice! I can't imagine that this reviewer read the book! This book is hardly an excuse for NOT being "positively involved" in your child's life--it's a call to be even MORE involved than ever! There's a whole chapter, "Model, Mentor, Mirror," of hands-on, specific, how-to tips for parents. And unlike almost everything else I've read about kids and the media (and as a parent of two pretty rambunctious boys, I've read a lot!) these tips actually take the REALITY of kids into account! To say this guy wrote this book because of his "vested interest" is like saying a coach talks about the benefits of sports because of his "vested interest." I never saw him dismissing the critics of entertainment because of their "interests"--he quotes a lot of experts respectfully about the dangers of it. But I see him being very open about how his own childhood experiences made him want to write comic books in the first place--AND about why he decided to QUIT comic books to do more work with kids. He talks about the downside of violent entertainment and helps us understand how to help kids with the negatives. Look, I don't agree with all his conclusions. (Sorry. Eminem in my house? Nope!) God knows there's a lot wrong with our kid's culture and I could imagine a good critique of this book. (BTW I appreciate Kurt A. Johnson's review!) But even when I disagree this book helps me understand where my kids are coming from and why they like this stuff and HOW I can talk to them about it that doesn't just make them tune me out. This reviewer reminds me of moms I used to have arguments with on the playground who were trapped in this total rejection of all kinds of pretend guns and fighting--and when I'd say, hey, maybe the kids have to do this stuff for a reason, they just WOULDN'T LISTEN. They didn't like it so therefore it was bad for everyone and that was it. I've always felt that people who didn't want to hear and consider the other side of any argument knew in their hearts that they didn't have a strong case. To all such people I say: open your minds and think! Read the book before you write a review! Or at least pay attention to what people are really saying instead of just blowing them off because of where you EXPECT they're coming from! This is a book that THINKS about it--and it gets us thinking about it if we'll let it!
Rating:
Summary: At last! Someone who listens to kids!
Review: So many people who criticize media violence mean well, but don't appear to know any children personally. The author of this book does. You can see it in his writing. He describes his own childhood reaction to media violence, and then he describes his son's, and those of children he's taught. No two kids react in the same way. It's these individuals -- and the author's respect for them as individuals -- that makes this book so useful. As a life-long pacifist who grew up loving action movies, I appreciate the book's validation of my own experience. And as a mother trying to raise a responsible, stable son, it gave me insight into what he was going through.
Rating:
Summary: ONE LESS WORRY FOR PARENTS IS WORTH BOOK'S PRICE
Review: Some myths are so accepted that no one ever bothers to rebut them. In this intelligent, impressively researched, sober and persuasive book, Gerard Jones takes on the myth that fantasy violence is destructive to children's emotional growth. He shows that some fantasy super-hero violence can actually be healthy to a child. And he presents his arguments in a rational way, founded on research and on his own observations as a parent. If he went into the process of writing the book with a fixed set of opinions, you certainly would not know from reading the book. On the contrary, KILLING MONSTERS unfolds as a process of discovery. It's clear that Jones was trying to find the answers within the data, not imposing his own interpretation from without. That's probably why the book reads as honest and reasonable.
I think parents need this book in order to see what they don't need to worry about. As it stands, they need to worry about a lot. Finding out what they specifically DON'T have to worry about for the next dozen or so years is at least worth the price of this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Helping the good parent get better
Review: The author's love for his child, and for all children, is abundant in this book, and clearly he writes for the parent who truly cares and is deeply involved in his or her child's life (and who may tend to err by worrying too much about every possible wayward emotion and fantasy). I'd have liked to see more about children in stressful environments or suffering through neglectful or hostile parenting--Jones' comments on the topic are intriguing and suggest he has much to say--but perhaps that's another book. This is a beautiful, reassuring book for the concerned, nurturing parent trying to make sense of our children's play and the culture around them. (And full of very charming anecdotes about his own childhood and his son!)
Rating:
Summary: An enlightened and compassionate view
Review: The book, however, as one reviewer below noted, is "bloated." It's a bit too long. It's also a bit erratic--some parts are quite entertaining and thought-provoking; others, not so much. Besides those criticisms, I enjoyed this work thoroughly. The author makes a simple point that many people fail to understand--there is a difference between fantasy and reality. Kids playing violent games, which they have done since the beginning of the human race, are playing. To assume there is a direct cause-and-effect between kids playing and becoming violent when they grow up is not only bad science, but utterly lacking in common sense. Some below have engaged in ad hominen attacks against the author; they're assuming they can read his mind. Critics should instead read the book, and understand it.
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