Graphic Novels

Eight meaningful, whimsical, philosophical, historical, and fantastical works that are a joy for both reading and viewing.

Graphic novels have enjoyed a meteoric rise in popularity in the last five years. Since 2019, sales of graphic novels have risen over 100 percent. While that growth has leveled off, graphic novels are now the third best-selling genre (35 million books sold) in the U.S. and Canada, behind only general fiction and romance. 

Collecting one of the most popular, beloved, and influential comic strips ever created, this volume and the four preceding it are essential purchases for all libraries.

Illustration, design, color, and text combine to create multisensory reading experiences in these extraordinary titles.

Emil Ferris grew up during the turbulent 1960s in Chicago, where she still lives, and is consequently a devotee of all things monstrous and horrific. She has an MFA in creative writing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Comics play to their strengths this season, stressing layout and mood while also supporting reader interests in works of horror and adaptation.

New graphic novel series include a fantastic space opera, an intriguing sci-fi adventure, and an occasionally shocking, sometimes nightmarish, completely unpredictable satire of modern masculinity.

Comics seem uniquely equipped to educate about health and medicine, as these stories of sickness and medicine demonstrate.

Impactful illustrations complement poignant, thought-provoking tales and memoirs in these unforgettable best graphic novels of 2023.