Comics Plus® Age Appropriate Guidelines

Comic books, graphic novels, and manga offer an unparalleled opportunity to engage readers of all abilities and ages. ComicsPlus is a gateway into that diverse and engaging world.

Libraries have a unique responsibility to introduce young citizens to the world of information, and they have the right to a relevant, balanced, and diverse library collection that represents all reasonable points of view. Comics Plus aims to provide unlimited access to a broad range of ideas and information, by partnering with a variety of publishers to curate materials that offer diverse viewpoints.

Providing age-appropriate materials is also concern. However, appropriateness can be a subjective judgement that differs in every library system. Comics Plus follows a specific set of guidelines to determine appropriate age ranges for every title offered.

Pre-K-1/Ages 3-5 (Emergent)

Readers: Preschool and kindergarten; may be able to recognize sight words but can’t read independently yet..

Format: Picture books and early readers; comic books with simplified panel layouts.

Language: Simplified word balloons; no swearing.

Content: Story intensity, action, and violence should be similar to children’s television shows, reflecting age-appropriate experiences.

Comics Plus Package(s): Elementary, Children’s Library, All-Access for Public Libraries

Gr K-3/Ages 5-7 (Children)

Readers: Beginning and early readers in preschool, kindergarten, and early elementary school; reluctant and remedial readers in elementary.

Format: Easy readers and picture books; comic books with simplified panel layouts, including comic strips.

Language: Simplified word balloons; no swearing.

Content: Story intensity, action, and violence should be similar to G-rated movies, while reflecting age-appropriate experiences.

Comics Plus Package(s): Children’s Library, All-Access for Public Libraries

Gr 3-5/Ages 8-10 (Kids)

Readers: Elementary school age readers; reluctant and remedial readers in elementary through early middle school.

Format: Regular comic books and manga with simplified panel layouts, including comic strips.

Language: While some readers in this range can handle mild profanity, particularly in a humorous context, every family has different rules about swearing, so a very conservative approach is required at this level.

Content: Story intensity, action, and violence should be similar to PG-rated movies, while reflecting age-appropriate experiences. Romantic relationships and scenes of affection between partners (hugging, holding hands) are age-appropriate; emphasizing beauty, hypersexualized appearances, sexual behaviors, and stereotyped sexual roles is not age-appropriate. Drinking, drugs, smoking, and risky stunts aren’t age-appropriate.

Educational value: Readers in this age range will benefit from content that supports school-readiness, including social-emotional skills such as self-control. Older children are often reading for pleasure, so stories can build on school lessons from a full range of subjects, including history and science. Stories should expose them to diverse experiences; encourage them to think about other people’s lives; or teach them about different times and places.

Comics Plus Package(s): ): Children’s Library, All-Access for Public Libraries

Gr 6-8/Ages 11-14 (Teen)

Readers: Active readers in upper elementary and middle school; reluctant and remedial readers in high school.

Format: Comic books, manga, hybrid prose/comics; more sophisticated panel layouts.

Language: Mild profanity is age-appropriate in small doses, but every family has different rules about swearing, so a relatively conservative approach is observed.

Content: Story intensity, action, and violence should be equivalent to a typical PG-13 rated movie, while also reflecting a typical middle grader’s life experiences. Historical contexts of violence, including violence experienced by particular social groups, are considered age-appropriate. Humor may come at the expense of authority, and poop jokes and other potty humor are considered age-appropriate. Kissing and dating are age-appropriate; partial or full nudity and simulated sex are not. Disrespectful portrayals of characters as sexual objects or as sexual aggressors are not age-appropriate, nor is humor that relies on these themes.

Educational value: Readers in this range are often reading for pleasure, so stories can build on school lessons from a full range of subjects, including history and science, and can expose them to diverse experiences, encourage them to think about other people’s lives and viewpoints, or teach them about different times and places.

Comics Plus Package(s): Children’s Library, All-Access for Public Libraries

Grades 9-12/Ages 15-18 (Young Adult)

Readers: Active teenage readers in upper middle and high school; reluctant and remedial adult readers.

Format: All.

Language: Every family has different rules about swearing, so a mildly conservative approach is always preferable; similar to a more intense PG-13 movie.

Content: Story intensity, action, and violence are equivalent to more intense PG-13 movies like the Fast & Furious, James Bond, and Twilight franchises, while also reflecting a typical teenager’s life experiences. Some violence and blood, but no explicit, gratuitous, or excessive gore. Some nonsexual, partial nudity, or sexually suggestive content, but nothing gratuitously portrayed. Relevant coming-of-age body, health, and sexual situations are age-appropriate. Humor deriving from sexual innuendo or bodily functions is age-appropriate, but disrespectful portrayals of characters as sexual objects or as sexual aggressors are not, nor is humor that relies on these themes. Pairing sex and violence is not age-appropriate.

Educational value: Teenagers can glean educational value from less obvious lessons, and understand that knowledge can be gained from the experience of non-ideal situations, including historic or realistic context. It’s important for teens to become global citizens and learn about other cultures and points of view. Stories can build on school lessons from a full range of subjects, including history and science, to promote social emotional learning, exposing them to diverse experiences, encouraging them to think about other people’s lives, or teach them about different times and places.

Comics Plus Package(s): ): All-Access for Public Libraries

Adult/Ages 18+ (Adult)

Readers: Mature teens and adult readers of all interests.

Format: All.

Language: Similar to R-rated movies and many prestige TV shows.

Content: Explorations of mature themes with language and imagery appropriate for audiences 18 and over, similar to an R-rated movie or prestige TV show. Some titles may contain violence, blood, or even explicit gore; partial or full nudity, and suggestive or simulated sexual situations may appear, but pornographic content is not included.
Educational value: Readers who enjoy complex concepts and nuanced storytelling in both fiction and nonfiction will be exposed to a diverse range of stories and experiences.

Educational value: Readers who enjoy complex concepts and nuanced storytelling in both fiction and nonfiction will be exposed to a diverse range of stories and experiences.

Comics Plus Package(s): ): All-Access for Public Libraries