2023 was another excellent year for Australian comics and we’re very happy to share the long list of Notable Australian Graphic Novels from 2023.
The list recognises the best graphic novels by Australian creators selected by the ALIA Graphic Novels and Comics team. To be eligible, all these titles were published in 2023 and are widely available in stores and library suppliers.
The junior graphic novels list is big and varied. We note Scholastic Australia’s increasing number of publications, the return of Brenton McKenna with Magabala Books, and some Australian creators being published with international publishers. Allen & Unwin and Scholastic Australia dominate the category but we welcome more publishers and creators to it.
The junior category has grown and it’s clear that junior titles are the biggest selling titles. The YA category has significantly less titles this year and it’s mostly dominated by Tom Taylor’s superhero comics. We look forward to more varied titles and creators in this category this year with Queenie Chan’s The Dreaming and C.S. Pacat’s Fence published right at the start of this year.
The adult category has a good variety of works. Debut graphic novels by Sarah Firth and Rachel Coad make the list and Paul Peart Smith, originally from the UK, now residing in Tasmania makes his first appearance in our notables. The hard working Tom Taylor and Nicola Scott also make it into this category. We note the continuing rise and increase in output of TL Creative and Comics2Movies, independent publishers who are creating some of Australia’s most daring genre work through Kickstarter campaigns and then making their graphic novels available through library suppliers.
We recommend all these titles for libraries. The Notable Australian Graphic Novels Shortlist will be published at the end of March.
Junior
The Bad Guys: Let the Games Begin! by Aaron Blabey (Scholastic Australia) [9781761294457]
Ember and the Island of Lost Creatures by Jason Pamment (Allen & Unwin and Harper Alley) [9781761067488]
Fart Club: Silent but Deadly by Adam Wallace & James Hart (Scholastic Australia)
Ghost Book by Remy Lai (Allen & Unwin) [9781761291739]
Hairy Holes by Brenton McKenna (Magabala Books) [9781922613189]
Hello Twigs by Andrew McDonald, Ben Wood (Hardie Grant Children’s Publisher) – 4 volumes [Surprise 9781761211980] [Let’s Find Treasure 9781761212000] [How Are You Feeling? 9781761211997] [Time to Paint 9781761212017]
Leaf-Light by Trace Balla (Allen & Unwin) [9781760526207]
The Odds: The Power of Being Odd by Matt Stanton (ABC Books) [9780733340659]
Ollie and Bea: Bunny Ideas by Renee Treml (Allen & Unwin) [9781761068119]
Ollie and Bea: Otter-ly Ridiculous by Renee Treml (Allen & Unwin) [9781761068126]
Quinnelope and the Cookie King Catastrophe Vol. 1 by H.F. Brownfield, Kayla Coombs (Oni Press) [9781637152348]
Secret Agent Mole Book 1: Goldfishfinger by James Foley (Scholastic) [9781761200151]
Secret Agent Mole Book 2: The Boar Identity by James Foley (Scholastic) [9781761200168]
Word Smith Vol 4: Trust by Stephen Kok, P.R. Dedelis (TL Creative) [9780648946762]
Young Adult
Adventures of Superman: Jon Kent by Tom Taylor, Henry Clayton (DC Comics) [9781779520760]
Dark Knights of Steel Vol 1 by Tom Taylor, Yasmin Putri (DC Comics) [9781779520517]
Inferno Girl Red: Volume 1 by Erica D’Urso, Mat Groom, Igor Monti, Becca Carey (Image Comics) [9781534324817]
Nightwing Vol 3: The Battle for Bludhaven’s Heart by Tom Taylor, Bruno Redondo (DC Comics) [9781779520166]
Under Kingdom by Christof Bogacs, Marie Enger (Dark Horse) [9781506733630]
Women Who Were Kings 4: Catherine the Great by Queenie Chan (Bento Comics) [9781925376104]
Adult
Aquila by Dan Feuerriegel, Debora Lancianese, Grace Cong, Alicia Soria (Comics2Movies) [9780648242161]
Courier: The Adventures of Geraldine Barker Vol 1 by Angie Spice (Angie Spice) [9780645830002]
DCeased: War of the Undead Gods by Tom Taylor, Trevor Hairsone (DC Comics) [9781779520609]
Eventually Everything Connects by Sarah Firth (Allen & Unwin) [9781761068416]
Knight by Martin Copping, Razz Tsolmon, Shaun Keenan, Stephen Kok (TL Creative) [9780648946779]
New York City Glow by Rachel Coad (Black Inc) [9780645536942]
W. E. B. Du Bois: Souls of Black Folk – A Graphic Interpretation by W.E.B. Du Bois, Paul Peart-Smith (Rutgers University Press) [9781978824652]
Transhuman Vol 2 by Stephen Kok, Razz Tsolmon, Maria Arena (TL Creative) [9780648946786]
Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons by Kelly Sue DeConnick, Phil Jimenez, Gene Ha, Nicola Scott (DC Comics) [9781779521354]
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