#9: Danger and Other Unknown Risks

 

 

 Danger and Other Unknown Risks

Ryan North & Erica Henderson

 

Year Published: 2023

Pages: 206

Genres: YA graphic novel, fantasy, dystopia, humor

Topics: Personal quests, chosen family, adjusting to change, generational conflict

Recognition

    Eisner Award for Best Publication for Teens, 2024

Summary

In the year 2000, the world ended. Not because of a technological apocalypse, but because magic suddenly became real. Earth was split into countless magical realms, each one operating under different rules. All of them, though, are at risk, as the magic decays and destabilizes, and dark magic threatens to plunge everything into chaos.

Marguerite de Pruitt has been trained since birth by her uncle Bernard to stop the chaos and save the world. Although she only knows one spell, and it works differently in every realm, Marguerite was raised to believe she is the Chosen One, destined to help her uncle end civilization's slide into darkness. Together with her best friend Daisy—a talking dog—and D&D-obsessed security guard Jacin, Marguerite sets off on a quest to find the three magical totems Uncle Bernard needs to cast the spell that will save the world.

However, when Marguerite meets a mysterious woman in a magical greenhouse deep in an abandoned airport, her entire worldview is shaken, along with her idea of what it means to "save the world."

Danger and Other Unknown Risks and Me

I've been an avid reader of comics and graphic novels since I was in elementary school, and I've been a fan of Ryan North and Erica Henderson since their collaboration on The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl in 2015-2018. When I heard they had won an Eisner Award (given to the best comics and graphic novels) for Danger and Unknown Risks, I was excited to read it.

And I really wanted to like it more than I did. Not that I thought it was a bad graphic novel. I just wanted more of it. The premise holds a lot of promise, and the twist that happens about two-thirds of the way through opens the world to all kinds of possibilities. Unfortunately, very little of that is explored. Instead, the narrative speeds along, with very little development of setting or even characters. We never really get to see much of the dystopian world that Marguerite lives in, or how magic works, or why it suddenly appeared in 2000. A midpoint romance is rushed through, as is the ending. I still think Danger and Unknown Risks is worth reading; it can easily be finished in one sitting. I just wish North and Henderson had had more time and space to explore the world they created.

I do still really like the creators, though, and I recently came across How to Invent Everything: A Survival Guide for the Stranded Time Traveler, North's nonfiction prose book about technology, which I'm interested in reading.

Teaching Considerations

Late Middle Grade to Early Young Adult: Danger and Other Unknown Risks is approachable and good-humored, even for a story with such high stakes. That tone leads me to think that it will probably be most enjoyed by late middle grade to early young adults readers, maybe ages 12-15.

Small Group or Independent Read: The novel does contain a salient socio-political metaphor that's revealed partway into the book, which I won't spoil. Otherwise, it's a mostly lighthearted adventure that probably wouldn't be appropriate for a whole-class read. A small group could discuss its more developed themes if they were interested in reading it together, but it might be best as an independent read for fans of graphic novels.

Graphic Novel Format: I'm a strong advocate for teaching graphic novels as a legitimate medium in their own right, rather than just as an easier-to-read alternative to prose books. I think North and Henderson's style lends itself to some in-depth exploration of techniques used by graphic novel writers and artists, and I think using it as a mentor text while reading Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics would work well.

Sensitive Content: There isn't much to be concerned about in Danger and Other Unknown Risks. It contains one or two rude words and some discussion of fantasy deaths on a large scale, and one character is non-lethally shot, but otherwise the book is pretty family friendly.

Read-Aloud/Viewing Passages

• Pages 12-20
• Marguerite and Daisy escape from a group of monks with the first magical totem, the Simian's Paw, using only their wits and Marguerite's one spell. It's a fun, exciting introduction to the two main characters that sets up the rest of the story and showcases Henderson's kinetic art style.
  
  
• Pages 66-73
• Marguerite and Daisy explore a big box store that's mysteriously appeared in the middle of a desert. They're amazed by the sheer volume and variety of stuff they find inside, and they first encounter Jacin. This is a funny passage, and one of the few that really highlights the dystopian world the main characters inhabit as they're overawed by cheap goods in a Walmart analogue.
  
  
• Pages 133-139
• The woman in the greenhouse upends Marguerite's conception of herself and her quest. I don't want to give too much away, but this is a pivotal moment in the plot that changes everything going forward. If you don't mind giving away spoilers, this is a great episode to share.

Liked Danger and Other Unknown Risks? Try These:

• Paper Girls by Brian K. Vaughan & Cliff Chiang (2015-2019)
• The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl by Ryan North, Erica Henderson, & Derek Charm (2015-2019)
• The Deep Dark by Molly Knox Ostertag (2024)