ALIA Graphic Novels and Comics was officially formed in February 2020, making this month our fifth year of advocacy, advice, news and information on all things comics and graphic novels in libraries. Being part of a national network of library advocates has been a wonderful way to connect and spread the word of graphic novels and comics’ potential for library engagement and lifelong learning and we are excited for many more years of sharing news, podcasts, webinars and recommended reads with you all!
As we are just a small group scattered throughout Australia, we are almost completely powered by enthusiasm and passion for the medium. We are always interested to hear from fellow library workers, graphic novel creators and other people who are keen to lend us a hand and you are always welcome to reach out to us via email or express interest in joining the group here. If we can make it to one hundred podcasts since our inception in 2020, who knows what we can achieve with your help in another five years?
These last few months, we have been squirreling away the best and most relevant news and information for graphic novel-collecting libraries as well as planning our next moves for 2025. For our first roundup of the year, we have a packed edition of news, collections information, and other resources, featuring plenty of lists of the best and brightest comics of 2024 to fill your shelves at home or at work.
NEWS
- The ALA Youth Media Awards have been announced. Esther Keller highlights the graphic novels awarded in the School Library Journal here.
- Brian Hibbs always offers very insightful takes on the sales of comics in the U.S. market and his Tilting at Windmills series is a must read for anyone keen to understand the trends in the U.S. direct and book market. He has recently published an update on the state of the periodicals market on The Beat and it’s well worth a read. Check it out here.
- The Beat has published a thorough run down of the 2025 Angoulême official selections. They also analysed what titles are available in English, which is quite handy. Check out the list here. And they’ve also reported on the awards after the festival, with Linda Barry, John Romita Jr and French creator Luz receiving top awards. The report from Dean Simons can be found here.
- Sales of graphic novels have doubled over the past five years, to some parents’ dismay. But data shows these books can have a positive lifelong impact on young readers. Elizabeth Segran reports on Fast Company.
- For a long time Diamond was the sole distributor of comics to comic stores. That changed in 2020 when DC Comics decided to change distributors and started a whole wave of changes. Now Diamond has filed for bankruptcy. If you want to know more about all this and how it affects the business of comics and graphic novels, Robin Brenner has published an excellent and thoughtful article on The Comics Journal here. And Heidi MacDonald also explores the issue on Publishers Weekly here.
COLLECTIONS
- The ALA’s GNCRT has published their lists of Best Graphic Novels for 2024. The Best Graphic Novels for Children list can be found here and the Best Graphic Novels for Adults list can be found here. Similarly, YALSA has published the Great Graphic Novels for Teens reading list, including their Top 10. You can find the lists here.
- Publishers Weekly has highlighted the best graphic novels to be published in the coming months. They’ve handily divided the titles into four lists here they are:
- Amanda MacGregor has a roundup of middle grade graphic novels on Teen Librarian Toolbox here.
- Book Riot has a roundup of graphic novels coming out in February here.
- No Flying No Tights has published a list of the best graphic novels of 2024 as chosen by their staff. You can check out the list here.
- Publishers Weekly unveiled their 2024 Graphic Novel Critics Poll. Check out the two titles that topped the list and the others they highlight here. They’ve also published a roundup of 10 must read manga of 2024 that you can check out here. The Beat has also published a great list of the 22 best manga of 2024 which is available here and a list of the top 10 best selling manga with some analysis is here. The Beat’s best 50 comics of 2024 is available here.
- School Library Journal has published a list of graphic novels series and sequels that bring lessons about friendship, care, and self-determination into sharp focus. Check out the list here.
RESOURCES
- For anyone thinking of starting a comics and manga book club, if you’re a library service with Comics Plus, they have you covered. Comics Plus has a few resources for how to start the book club dedicated to graphic novels, including suggested titles and reader guides. You can find it all here.
PODCAST
- Sara Smith is an excellent contributor to comics librarianship with her The Graphic Library blog and advocacy. She’s also one of the co-authors of the newly published Manga Goes to School: Cultivating Engagement and Inclusion in the K-12 Settings (which we highly recommend). Listen to her talk all about manga and the book on Episode 25 of the Book Flood Podcast here.
NEW TITLES
Junior
- Cassi and the House of Memories by Dean Stuart (Viking Books for Young Readers) [9780593351130]
- Chickenpox by Remy Lai (Allen & Unwin) [9781761068621] [Australian Creator]
- Dog Man: Big Jim Begins by Dav Pilkey (Scholastic) [9781338896459]
- Dungeons & Dragons: Dungeon Club: Time to Party by Molly Knox Ostertag, Xanthe Bouma (HarperCollins – Farshore) [9780008702816]
- Saphie the One-Eyed Cat by Joho (Scholastic – Graphix) [9781546124962]
Young Adult
- Buzz! By Ananth Hirsh, Tess Stone (Oni Press) [9781637156193]
- Doctor Doom: Books of Doom by Ed Brubaker, Pablo Raimond (Marvel Comics) [9781302964733]
- Girl Rebels: From Greta Thunberg to Mala, Five Inspirational Tales of Courage by Fabien Morin, Laurent Hopman, Julien Derain, Various authors (Titan Comics) [9781787743311]
- Leap by Simina Popescu (Roaring Books Press) [9781250838308]
- Life Is a Dream by Calderón De La Barca, adapted by Ricado Vilbor, Alberto Sanz, Mario Ceballos (Ablaze) [9781684973330]
- Popeye: Young Man Overboard by Antoine Ozanam, Lelis (Ablaze) [9781684973590]
- Raised by Ghosts by Briana Loewinsohn (Fantagraphics) [9798875000508]
- The Strange Case of Harley and Harleen by Melissa Mar, Jenn St-Onge (DC Comics) [9781779509758]
- Visitations by Corey Egbert (Farrar, Straus and Groux) [9780374308391]
Adult
- Absolute Power by Mark Waid, Dan Mora (DC Comics) [9781799500209]
- Aya: Face the Music by Marguerite Abouet, Clément Oubrerie (Drawn & Quarterly) [9781770467521]
- Bowling with Corpses & Other Strange Tales by Mike Mignola & Dave Stewart (Dark Horse Comics) [9781506745886]
- Dogs and Punching Bags by Kaori Ozaki (Vertical) [9781647293994]
- Downlands by Norm Konyu (Titan Comics) [9781787743328]
- How Could You? by Ren Strapp (Oni Press) [9781637155264]
- Land of Mirrors by Maria Medem (Drawn & Quarterly) [9781770467545]
- Manhole Vol. 2 (of 3) by Tetsuya Tsutsui (Abrams-Kana) [9781419778339]
- Martin Scorsese by Amazing Ameziane (Titan Comics) [9781787743243]
- Masterpiece by Brian Michael Bendis, Alex Maleev (Dark Horse) [9781506730493]
- Soma by Fernando Llor, Carles Dalmau (Oni Press) [9781637156124]
- This Beautiful Ridiculous City: A Graphic Memoir by Kay Sohini (Jonathan Cape) [9781787334588]
- Transhuman Vol 3: Rebirth by Stephen Kok, Razz Tsolmon, Chiara Arena (TL Creative) [9781763652705]
- True Weird Vol 1 by James Tynion IV, various artists (Dark Horse) [9781506741680]
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