Graphic novels and comics are often dismissed as being “just for children,” but these dynamic storytelling mediums have evolved to captivate audiences of all ages. Graphic novels possess a unique narrative style that seamlessly blends visual elements and dialogue-driven plots. For reluctant readers, graphic novels can be a powerful gateway to cultivating a love of reading. The stories they contain span a vast spectrum – from the humorous adventures of a grumpy cat that hates Mondays, to the heroic exploits of those fighting to protect their city, and even deep, introspective social commentary on the very worth of humanity. This medium is so much more than just men in capes and spandex. Let’s dive into the wonderful world of graphic novels.
A plague suddenly kills every mammal on earth with a Y chromosome, with the exception of an escape artist named Yorick and his Monkey Ampersand. Yorick’s escape artist talents come in handy as various groups try to kill him, protect him, study him, or use him for purposes he cannot even imagine.
After receiving a fatal dose of solar radiation from a dastardly plot by Lex Luthor, Superman goes about completing several final tasks. While Superman strives to accomplish his lifelong dreams and care for those he will leave behind, Lex Luthor sets his own plans into motion in the background. As Clark Kent strives to accomplish his goals we learn what truly makes him a Superman
Persephone, young goddess of spring, is new to Olympus. Her mother, Demeter, has raised her in the mortal realm, but after Persephone promises to train as a sacred virgin, she’s allowed to live in the fast-moving, glamorous world of the gods. When her roommate, Artemis, takes her to a party, her entire life changes: she ends up meeting Hades and feels an immediate spark with the charming yet misunderstood ruler of the Underworld. Now Persephone must navigate the confusing politics and relationships that rule Olympus, while also figuring out her own place–and her own power.
An autobiographical account of the author’s lifelong struggle for civil and human rights. The story spans his youth in rural Alabama dealing with Jim Crow and segregation, his life-changing meeting with Martin Luther King, Jr., and the birth of the Nashville Student Movement. Reflecting on the highs and lows of the Civil Rights movement.
Ms. Marvel, introduces Kamala Khan, an ordinary girl from Jersey City. She’s a typical teenager, caught between balancing family expectations, cultural identity, and her love for superheroes. Kamala idolizes Captain Marvel, dreaming of being just like her. Her life takes a turn when she is exposed to the Terrigen Mist, suddenly granting her strange shapeshifting abilities. These powers manifest in unexpected and humorous ways, leading Kamala on a path of self-discovery.
Seventh grader Jordan Banks loves nothing more than drawing cartoons about his life. But instead of sending him to the art school of his dreams, his parents enroll him in a prestigious private school known for its academics, where Jordan is one of the few kids of color in his entire grade. As he makes the daily trip from his Washington Heights apartment to the upscale Riverdale Academy Day School, Jordan soon finds himself torn between two worlds–and not really fitting into either one. Can Jordan learn to navigate his new school culture while keeping his neighborhood friends and staying true to himself .
Imagine that Juliet came from Star Wars and Romeo from Grimm’s Fairy Tales and you might get close to nailing the genre mashup delight of this interplanetary romance. The high-tech Landfall Coalition runs an endless war with the magic-making folks from Wreath, a moon of Landfall. When dark-skinned Landfallian soldier Alana is assigned to guard Wreathean prisoner Marko , they swap the chains of captivity for chains of love and escape together to birth their daughter. So now everyone wants them dead: the Landfallians, the Wreathian High Command, and more. The far-fetched world building paired with marvelous characterization and an underlying theme of parenthood under fire elevate this above your average space opera.
Rick Grimes, a Sheriff’s deputy from Kentucky was wounded in action and enters are deep coma. When he awakes, he has come to find the world plagued by undead. He returns home only to find his house ransacked and his family nowhere to be seen. Rick travels to a military evacuation zone in Atlanta to find his family and joins a group of survivors along the way, while trying to adapt to the new world.
What does it mean to be American? Who gets to decide? When the world is against you, what can one person do? In this autobiographical account, George Takei chronicles his experience as a child growing up in a Japanese Internment camp during World War II. In 1942 President Roosevelt passed Executive Order 9066 authorizing the relocation of thousands of people of Japanese descent into military exclusion zones. Takei highlights the injustices and racism he experienced from a place he called home.
We follow the story’s title character and protagonist, V, an anarchist revolutionary dressed in a black cloak and a Guy Fawkes mask, as he begins an elaborate and theatrical revolutionist campaign to bring down the fascist state through the killing of his former captors . Along the way he saves and molds a young woman, Evey Hammond, to be his protégée.
“A comedian died last Friday in New York” and nobody seems to care. This sentiment kicks off the story of the Watchmen where we follow disenfranchised costumed heroes forced into retirement aby the Keene Act of 1977 as they attempt to save Earth from itself. Watchmen is a masterpiece of hard hitting introspection causing the reader to ask themselves many questions.
Follow high school student Mark Grayson as he gains the powers of his father the most powerful superhero on the planet Nolan Grayson or as most people know him, Omni-man. Mark has to learn how to use his new powers fast as the premier superhero team of earth, the Guardians of the Globe, were all mysteriously killed save Omni-man. With the Guardians of the Globe dead its up to Mark to become… Invincible.