May Roundup

It’s May, the days are getting colder, at least in Melbourne, so what a great time to cozy up at home and read some graphic novels. 

This month, we’re very happy to see Rachel Ang’s I Ate the Whole World to Find You, which is published by Drawn & Quarterly in the USA, reviewed on Publishers Weekly and featured on their newsletter. We’ve recently recorded a creator chat with Rachel, so watch out for it coming on our podcast feed and YouTube channel, sometime early June. 

We are also very excited to see the new graphic novel by Gavin Aung Than is being published by Figment. We will also have a creator chat with him out in June where we’ll discuss the new graphic novel and also his hilarious Baa Baa Black Belt picture books.

The ALIA Graphic Notables longlist was announced this week! Congratulations to everyone in the longlist and we encourage everyone to check out all the longlisted titles. The judging panel have been busy reading all the entries and we’re almost ready to announce the ALIA Graphic Notables. Look out for the announcment June 11! It’s going to be a big month so make sure you follow this blog and subscribe to our podcast and YouTube channel.

And, don’t forget, if you if you want to listen James and Luke discussing some of the graphic novels they’ve read recently, some of this month’s news and their favourite picks from this month’s crop of new titles, listen to the May Roundup podcast!

Now onto the roundup itself… 

NEWS

• By fostering a more respectful and supportive fan community, we can help veteran comics creators feel safe to share their invaluable experience, enriching the industry for everyone. You can read the article here.
• Tessa Hulls, a seasonal cafeteria worker at the Alaska Capitol, won the Pulitzer Prize for her graphic memoir “Feeding Ghosts,” chronicling three generations of her family’s history. Tessa has also said that Feeding Ghosts will most likely be her only graphic novel. You can read the article here
• The Eisner Awards recognize outstanding comic and graphic novel work, with nominees selected annually across 30+ categories at Comic-Con International: San Diego. The 2025 nominees have been announced.
• Coop Bicknell reflects on the state of challenges and bans of manga in the USA.
• Cheryl Bicknell explores graphic novels that deal with grief and loss on Publishers Weekly.
• Heavy Metal magazine returns with a new quarterly print edition, featuring a mix of classic and new adult sci-fi comics.
• Bad news. Boom Studios’ will have to comply with their new owner’s, Penguin Random House, policies and their comics will disappear from the Comics Plus app.  
• Joe Sacco, a pioneer of graphic journalism, has announced the upcoming The Once and Future Riot, out in October, will be his final long form graphic journalism book. He doesn’t rule out doing short graphic journalism but he wants to move to fiction and satire.
• The Heartstopper TV series will end with a movie, not a fourth season, with a script written by Alice Oseman.
• Penguin Random House is pulling BOOM! Studios digital comics from library platforms like Comics Plus, limiting access due to disagreements over unlimited user lending models. 

COLLECTIONS

• Lots of titles are being adapted into graphic novels and proving quite popular. Publishers Weekly has a roundup of 2025’s children’s and YA graphic novel adaptations.

LEARNING

• Join Booklist’s “Graphic Jam!” Their free, one-hour webinar buzzing all about upcoming graphic novels titles from Simon & Schuster, Oni Press, Viz Media and MadCave Studios! Sarah Hunter, Editor for Books for Youth and Graphic Novels at Booklist will moderate. It’s at 4am AEDT, but register for free and you can access the recording after the event. 
• Primary school teacher Richard Ruddick wanted to increase his students’ reading and run an experiment. His results and reflections, particularly pertaining to increased reading and comics are really worth a read. You can find his report here.

PODCASTS

• The Off Panel podcasts has a great episode on Why We Love Comics with Kazu Kibuishi, Ryan North, and Lucy Knisley. A must listen. It’s available here or wherever you listen to podcasts.

NEW GRAPHIC NOVELS

Junior

• Creaky Acres by Calista Brill, Nilah Magruder (Penguin) [9780735230620]
• Creature Clinic by Gavin Aung Than (Hardie Grants – Figment) [9781761215599] [Australian Creator]
• Emma and Capucine Vol 1 by Jérôme Hamon, Lena Sayaphoum (TokyoPop) [9781427880666]
• J vs K by Kwame Alexander, Jerry Craft (Little Brown & Company) [9780316597104]
• Alanna: A Graphic Novel Adaptation, Tamora Pierce (Abrams) [9781419765575]
• Mickey Mouse and the Amazing Lost Ocean by Denis-Pierre Filippi, Silvio Camboni (Fantagraphics) [9798875000386]

YA

• Acception by Coco Ouwerkwerk (Wattpad Books) [ 9781998854875]
• Everyone Sux But You by K. Wroten (St Martin’s Press) [9781250821676]
• Trans History: A Graphic Novel by Alex L. Combs, Andrew Eakett, Alex L. Combs, Andrew Eakett (Candlewick Press) [9781536244175]

Adult

• Alice in Cryptoland: Bitcoin, NFT and Other Curiosities by Daniel Villa Monteiro, Nicolas Balas (NBM) [9781681123554]
• Animal Pound by Tom King, Peter Gross (Boom Studios) [9781637969779]
• The Amusement Park by George Romero, Jeff Whitehead, Sandy King, Ryan Carr (Storm King Comics) [9798988728573]
• The Dissident Club by Taha Siddiqui, Hubert Maury (Arsenal Pulp Press) [9781551529530]
• Fault Lines by Robert Cullen (Ablaze) [9781684973941]
• The Girl Who Flew Away by Lee Dean (Iron Circus Comics) [9781638991397]
• Low: David Bowie’s Berlin Years by Reinhard Kleist (SelfMadeHero) [9781914224287]
• Saga Vol 12 by Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples (Image Comics) [9781534355330]
• Spent by Alison Bechdel (HarperCollins) [9780063278929]