Tokyo Heist

Review

Common Sense Media says

Manga, art, and life lessons in topnotch mystery adventure.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

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Kids say

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What parents need to know

Parents need to know that teen heroine Violet and her friend Reika are sometimes in real danger in Tokyo Heist, since they've gotten mixed up with a missing Van Gogh painting sought by the yakuza (an organized crime syndicate in Japan). There's a comical fist fight, various robberies, burglaries, and break-ins, a kidnapping, and Japanese art collectors are threatened with violence to property and people's lives over the missing painting. There's one scene with a lot of gunfire, but nobody dies. Along the way, both the girls and young readers learn a lot about art, Japanese culture, people, and the ways your loved ones can surprise you.

  • Educational value4
    Readers will pick up useful phrases of Japanese, lots of knowledge about modern and older Japanese culture, art, and the art world, and the ins and outs of manga (Japanese comics).
  • Positive messages4
    Like most 16-year-olds, Violet doesn't always make ideal choices, and in low-level matters there are no real consequences -- as when she and her friend Reika pig out on the contents of a gift basket intended for their hosts. But in most respects, both Violet and those close to her have a strong sense of responsibility, and they all learn a lot about seeing things from one another's point of view. The power of love and friendship comes through, as well as a few lessons about not jumping to conclusions about people too soon.
  • Positive role models4
    Even the positive characters are complex enough to be believable. Violet is smart, brave, and talented, but that doesn't keep her from being completely wrong sometimes. Her pal Reika is a true, dependable friend, when she isn't losing her mind because there's a cute guy in the room. Her dad, who's childish and self-absorbed at the beginning of the story, comes through as an artist and as a father when there's a crisis. And the mysterious innkeeper turns out to be a lady of hidden qualities.
  • Violence2
    Early on, Violet's dad gets in a brief, comical fist fight with another guy over a girl they're both interested in. There are various robberies, burglaries, and break-ins, as well as a kidnapping. The Japanese art collectors are being threatened with violence to property and people's lives over a missing painting. Decades earlier, the last person to possess the painting committed suicide -- or was he murdered? Now thugs are after Violet, her dad, and their Japanese friends. There's one scene with a lot of gunfire, but nobody dies.
  • Sex1
    Some brief, nonsexual discussion of nudity in the (same-sex) public baths in Japan. There's also a scene in which the girls glimpse the tattooed back of a bathing yakuza, but his back is all they see. Some kissing between Violet and her love interest.
  • Language0
    Not applicable.
  • Consumerism1
    Anyone who's ever been to Japan will get a kick out of Violet's discovery of brands like Pokkari Sweat, electronics heaven in the Akihabara, and fractured English slogans.
  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking3
    Adults, especially Japanese men, smoke. Drinking by adults, and there's one scene in which the girls are happy to get away with drinking sake at a dinner party. Violet is quite wobbly getting down the hall on her way back to her room afterward.
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What's the story?

Sixteen-year-old manga enthusiast Violet Rossi is looking forward to spending the summer with her artist dad in Seattle, until he suddenly gets a commission that sends them both to Japan. It soon comes to light that his wealthy clients, the Yamadas, have been the victims of a major art theft -- and that if a long-lost Van Gogh isn't found and turned over to the thief, people will be killed. In Tokyo and Kyoto, from bullet train to rustic inn, Violet and her best friend Reika are on the case.

Is it any good?

 

TOKYO HEIST is a gem, hip enough to appeal to teen girls -- especially the more artistic, cosmopolitan ones -- but also so well crafted, with so many surprises and interesting characters, that their mystery-loving moms will probably go for it, too.

First-time novelist Diana Renn's writing is topnotch, and she keeps plot complications in play quite deftly. Violet, a smart, creative child of single parents, is appealing and true to life; she's often more adult than her artist father, but both of them learn a lot about themselves and each other in the course of their adventures.

Explore, discuss, enjoy

  • Families can talk about what you know about today's Japanese culture. If you went to Japan, what would you go see first? The electronics? The fashions? The historic buildings?

  • How does Violet's relationship with her father start out rocky but improve? How do they get to understand each other better? What do they have in common?

  • Are you a fan of comics? Which ones? Why do you think manga has caught on in the United States?

This review of Tokyo Heist was written by
Parent of 9 and 12 year old
July 5, 2012
AGE
12
 
Read this in one day.
My 12 year old daughter loved it. I did not read it.
Was this review useful?
Helped me decide (11) | Had useful details (9) | Read my mind (17)
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Teen, 13 years old
July 19, 2012
AGE
12
 
Tokyo Heist: Amazing, you wont be sorry
I have not yet read the whole book but so far this story is a pleasant story told from the 1st person point of view, while there are some occasional mistakes with the caps lock and one typo the book is amazing,the pages are filled with magnificent detail and how she describes every corner the main character turns the authors descriptive words jump out of the page and give me great visualization of what is happening in the story.
Was this review useful?
Helped me decide (9) | Had useful details (10) | Read my mind (13)
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This review of Tokyo Heist was written by
Topics:adventures, friendship
Author:Diana Renn
Book type:Fiction
Genre:Mystery
Publisher:Viking Juvenile
Publication date:June 14, 2012
Number of pages:384
Publisher's recommended age(s):12 - 17
This review of Tokyo Heist was written by
 
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