ROD Reading List

This is a page for listing all of the books referenced in ROD, the episode they were referenced in:

Anne of Green Gables
"Anne of Green Gables" was written by Lucy Maud Montgomery and published in 1908. It tells the story of Anne Shirley, a precocious orphan girl with bright red hair and wild imagination, and growing up in Prince Edward Island, Canada.

In Goodbye Japan, Hisami Hishiishii describes the book to Anita King, comparing Anita to Anne Shirley. Anita then asks about another girl on the cover, Diana, and decides that Hisa is like Diana. The book is referenced a second time in Bonjour Tristesse, when Anita falls asleep on the book and later sees Hisami with it, but because of the British Library's experiment Hisami doesn't remember anything special between them and the book. Finally, the book is referenced in the second ending, where two friends (one distinctly feminine and one masculine) are reading - much like Anne and Diana.

Heart of Darkness
"Heart of Darkness" was written by Joseph Conrad and published in 1902. Referenced in Heart of Darkness. The novella is about Marlow, an Englishman, being contracted to captain a ferry boat into Africa and the events during his employment.

The novella is referenced in the episode "Heart of Darkness", not only by episode title but through some similar themes.

Bonjour Tristesse
The title of the episode Bonjour Tristesse is named after the novel and because of the French meaning of the words. The French phrase means, "Hello sadness" in English.

The novel "Bonjour Tristesse" was written by Francois Sagan and published in 1954.

Fahrenheit 451
"Fahrenheit 451" is a novel written by Ray Bradbury in 1953. The story is about a dystopian future where books are banned; the protaganist, Guy Montag, is a 'fireman' who burns books for a living.

In Fahrenheit 451 the Special Operations Division engages in a similar act: it forcibly confiscates all the books in Jinbocho and destroys them in a giant pyre.

The Lost World
"The Lost World" was written in 1912 by Arthur Conan Doyle (the same man who penned the more popular 'Sherlock Holmes' series). The story describes an expedition into a plateau in South America, where they discover a world where dinosaurs exist and prehistoric humans are at war with vicious ape-like beings.

"The Lost World" can also refer to Michael Crichton's 1995 novel (a sequel to "Jurassic Park"), which also involves dinosaurs. However, it is unlikely given the era that the Special Operations Division was interested in.

In Not a Big Problem and From There On... Maggie Mui recognizes the pterodactyls flying over new London from the book. The pterodactyls attack the sisters, similar to how the main characters were first attacked by pterodactyls in the novel.

The War of the Worlds
"The War of the Worlds" was written in 1898 by H.G. Wells. The story describes an alien invasion of Earth from England, using advanced devices that easily destroy humanity.

In "Not a Big Problem" Maggie Mui recognizes the signature tripods that patrol new London. The British Library also has some of this technology, evidenced in From There On... when it erects the receiving antenna and the various devices in the main downloading chamber (such as the the spherical droid that guarded Joseph Carpenter and Wendy Earheart).

Diary of Anne Frank
"The Diary of Anne Frank" was written by Anne Frank during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, between 1942 (3 weeks before her family went into hiding) and 1944 (the year her family was discovered and arrested). The published book contains excerpts from her diaries written during her time in hiding.

In Read or Dream Manga 1 Anita King is coerced by her sisters to give a copy of the book to an alien, in order to prove that Earth deserves to be saved. Anita doesn't, as she has never read the book and can't vouch for it, and the girls instead opt to fight.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
"Alice in Wonderland" was written by Lewis Carroll (Charles Lutwidge Dodgeson) in the 1860's as a gift for Alice Liddell, a child friend of his.

In the Read or Dream manga, Anita and her sisters go to the park. Anita has a strange dream that draws references to "Alice in Wonderland", including a frog jumping into a puddle crying, "I'm late! I'm late!" and a mean queen with playing card guards.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
In the same dream mentioned above, there are also references to "The Wizard of Oz" by L. Frank Baum.

Anita follows the frog down the puddle, and lands on a witch, killing her in the process. Anita is put in a "Dorothy" position and sent down a yellow brick road with a Michelle scarecrow and a Maggie tin man. Oddly though, the Cowardly Lion is replaced by a Monkey King, a reference to the Chinese classic "Journey to the West".

For Whom the Bell Tolls
Referenced in Read or Dream Manga 1, "For Whom the Bell Tolls" is a novel by Ernest Hemingway, Maggie's favourite author. It is about anti-fascists during the Spanish Civil War.

Story of a Giraffe with a Shrunken Neck
This fictional book was written by Ben Wilson.

In R.O.D the TV, the book is key in getting the three sisters to meet. When Maggie and Michelle first meet, they notice that they are both reading the same book. Later, on Christmas Day, both girls give Anita the same book as presents.

In Read or Dream, the book's plot is slightly more detailed, describing the struggle of the aforementioned giraffe. It is a children's picture book (as opposed to the thicker novel-type in the TV series) and Maggie and Michelle persuade a silent Anita to read it because of its simplicity. Anita's paper powers react to the book, resulting in Dokusensha retrieving her from Maggie and Michelle.

The book is implied to feature a giraffe with a strunken neck; as a result, it is unable to take care of itself alone and bullied by others. When a lazy irresponsible lion and a underconfident aloof tiger are arguing about who is better, they come across the giraffe. Instead of fighting, they see the giraffe is in a poor state and overcome their differences to help the giraffe. The three become friends. Michelle and Maggie, when they break into Dokusensha to rescue Anita, recite the story, which parallels their relationship (Anita being the giraffe, Michelle as the lion, and Maggie as the tiger).

The Story of Three Men
Referenced in Read or Dream Manga 1

The Black Book of Fairy Tales
The Black Book of Fairy Tales is referenced in Read or Dream Manga 1.

The 24 Faces of Maggie Mui
Seen in Read or Dream Manga 3.

The 7,600 Faces of Michelle Chan
Seen in Read or Dream Manga 3.

Book of Truth
Mr. Gentleman's diary.

Cats & Roses
Referenced in Read or Dream Manga 1

Classroom in a Dream
Referenced in Read or Dream Manga 1

The Dark Abyss
A 16th century manuscript published in England by an unknown author. Bound in human flesh. The book was written by 5 different individuals each working on different pages as so they would not be exposed to the book in it's entirety. The book is capable of eliciting absolute dread in the reader.

Joseph Carpenter used an audio edition made by the Special Operations Division as a mechanism of torture. (Read or Die Manga 1, Chapter 4)

The Clock Diary
A special diary with a clock attached to it. On a certain date the diary can be opened; if it is forced open before then, it will leak ink and destroy the book.

In Read or Dream Manga 2 Lily the Reader Extraordinaire tricks Anita King into stealing the book for her. Anita, realizing her mistake and not wanting to disappoint her sisters and friends, retrieves the book alone.

A Hero's Diary
This fictional bookseries was written by the best-selling writer Yunfat. With the sixth volume of the series published to date, the series is about two childhood friends, who grow up to be a gangster and a cop. Referenced in Read or Dream Manga 2

Immortal Beloved
Immortal Beloved appears to be an extended version of Ludwig van Beethoven's letter, published as a book before Beethoven's death.

The Gentleman Books
The Gentleman Books were created to preserve the knowledge of Mr. Gentleman for his revival.