Great fiction and nonfiction graphic novels to read and enjoy, for both people new to the genre, and graphic novel lovers looking for their next read. This list contains books with both physical and digital copies.


The Avant-Guards

Carly Usdin
GN Avant Guards v. 1

As a transfer student to the Georgia O'Keeffe College for Arts and Subtle Dramatics, former sports star Charlie is struggling to find her classes, her dorm, and her place amongst a student body full of artists who seem to know exactly where they're going. When the school's barely-a-basketball-team unexpectedly attempts to recruit her, Charlie's adamant that she's left that life behind... until she's won over by the charming team captain, Liv, and the ragtag crew she's managed to assemble. This is a delightfully fun read, even for people who know nothing about basketball.


Banned Book Club

Kim Hyun Sook, Ryan Estrada
GN 741.5092 Kim Kim

The autobiography of a South Korean woman's student days under an authoritarian regime, and how she defied state censorship. This is a great primer for modern South Korean history, that sheds a light on issues happening in the country, and around the world, today. Highly enjoyable, and in turns both funny and heartbreaking, this is a great read for graphic memoir lovers.


Black AF : America's sweetheart

Kwanza Osajyefo
GN Osajyef Black AF Americas Sweetheart

Can a black woman be America's first superhero? Eli Franklin is a 15-year-old girl living in rural Montana-- and she just happens to be the most powerful person on the planet. In the aftermath of the world learning that only black people have superpowers, Eli makes her debut as the superhero Good Girl, on a mission to help people and quell the fear of empowered blacks. When a super-terrorist threatens to take away everything Eli has worked toward, will donning a patriotic costume be enough for her to find acceptance? This is a fun and relevent read, for fans of Black Lightening.


Bloom

Kevin Panetta
GN Panetta Bloom

Now that high school is over, Ari is dying to move to the big city with his ultra-hip band―if he can just persuade his dad to let him quit his job at their struggling family bakery. Though he loved working there as a kid, Ari cannot fathom a life wasting away over rising dough and hot ovens. But while interviewing candidates for his replacement, Ari meets Hector, an easygoing guy who loves baking as much as Ari wants to escape it. As they become closer over batches of bread, love is ready to bloom . . . that is, if Ari doesn’t ruin everything. A delightful coming of age story, that is full of great illustration and well developed characters.


Fence

C.S. Pacat
GN Fence v. 1

Nicholas, the illegitimate son of a retired fencing champion, is a scrappy fencing wunderkind, and dreams of getting the chance and the training to actually compete. After getting accepted to the prodigious Kings Row private school, Nicholas is thrust into a cut-throat world, and finds himself facing not only his golden-boy half-brother, but the unbeatable, mysterious Seiji Katayama... A great start to what is proving to be a fun series, for people who love fencing or who like sports graphic novels or manga. 


The Fire Never Goes Out

Noelle Stevenson
GN 741.5092 Stevenson Ste

In a collection of personal comics that span eight years of her young adult life, author-illustrator Noelle Stevenson charts the highs and lows of being a creative human in the world. This memoir will make you laugh and cry, and is great for people who love Stevenson's other works.


The Golden Age

Roxanne Moreil, Cyril Pedrosa
GN Golden Age v. 1

When the old king dies, his daughter, Tilda, prepares to take the throne and succeed him. With the support of the wise Tankred and the loyal Bertil, her closest counselors and friends, she intends to carry out the reforms needed to relieve her people of their misery. But a plot led by her younger brother suddenly condemns her to exile. Guided by strange visions, Tilda decides to take back her kingdom with the help of her two companions. This graphic novel is worth the read just to look at the beautifully rendered illustrations. The art combined with a story of an epic struggle make for an all around great read.


Good Talk

Mira Jacob
GN 800.92 Jacob Goo

Like many six-year-olds, Mira Jacob's half-Jewish, half-Indian son, Z, has questions about everything. At first they are innocuous enough, but as tensions from the 2016 election spread from the media into his own family, they become much, much more complicated. Trying to answer him honestly, Mira has to think back to where she's gotten her own answers: her most formative conversations about race, color, sexuality, and, of course, love. This is a great read for anyone who is looking for some real world examples of how to talk to children about some harder issues.


Grass

Keum Suk Gendry-Kim
GN Gendryk Grass

Grass is a powerful anti-war graphic novel, offering up firsthand the life story of a Korean girl named Okseon Lee who was forced into sexual slavery for the Japanese Imperial Army during the second World War - a disputed chapter in 20th century Asian history. Beginning in Lee's childhood, Grass shows the lead up to World War II from a child's vulnerable perspective, detailing how one person experienced the Japanese occupation and the widespread suffering it entailed for ordinary Korean folk. Using traditional painting techniques, this novel is worth it just for the beautifully illustrated panels, not to mention the riviting storyline.


Heartstopper

Alice Oseman
GN Heartstopper v. 1

Charlie Spring is in Year 10 at Truham Grammar School for Boys. The past year hasn't been too great, but at least he's not being bullied anymore, and he's sort of got a boyfriend, even if he's kind of mean and only wants to meet up in secret. Nick Nelson is in Year 11 and on the school rugby team. He's heard a little about Charlie but he's never had the opportunity to talk to him. That is, until the start of January, in which Nick and Charlie are placed in the same form group and made to sit together... This graphic series is sweet and funny, with characters you love and want to root for. This is a great series for fans trying to get over the ending of the series Check Please.


Heathen

Natasha Alterici
GN Heathen v. 1

Aydis is a viking, a warrior, an outcast, and a self-proclaimed heathen. Aydis is friend to the talking horse Saga, rescuer of the immortal Valkyrie Brynhild, and battler of demons and fantastic monsters. Aydis is a woman. Born into a time of warfare, suffering, and subjugation of women, she is on a mission to end the oppressive reign of the god-king Odin. This remingining of Norse mythology is a new and interesting take on what it means to be a female viking.


Invisible Kingdom

G. Willow Wilson
GN Invisible Kingdom v. 1

In a small solar system in a far-flung galaxy, two women -- one a young religious acolyte and the other a hard-bitten freighter pilot --uncover a conspiracy between the leaders of the most dominant religion and an all-consuming mega-corporation. On the run from reprisals on both sides, this unlikely pair must decide where their loyalties lie -- and risk plunging the world into anarchy if they reveal the truth. This Hugo and World Fantasy winning graphic novel is an exciting new scifi epic, and will leave readers waiting impatiently for the next entry in the series.


Kid Gloves

Lucy Knisley
GN 618.24 Kni

Her whole life, Lucy Knisley wanted to be a mother. But when it was finally the perfect time, conceiving turned out to be harder than anything she'd ever attempted. Fertility problems were followed by miscarriages, and her eventual successful pregnancy plagued by health issues, up to a dramatic, near-death experience during labor and delivery. This moving, hilarious, and surprisingly informative memoir not only follows Lucy's personal transition into motherhood but also illustrates the history and science of reproductive health from all angles, including curious facts and inspiring (and notorious) figures in medicine and midwifery. This is great read for anyone with a uterus, or who knows someone who has one.


Monstress

Marjorie Liu
GN Monstress v. 1

Set in an alternate world of art deco beauty and steampunk horror, Monstress tells the epic story of Maika Halfwolf, a teenage survivor of a cataclysmic war between humans and their hated enemies, the Arcanics. In the face of oppression and terrible danger, Maika is both hunter and hunted, searching for answers about her mysterious past as those who seek to use her remain just one step behind ... and all the while, the monster within begins to awaken ... A dark and sweeping series that is well worth the read.


Mooncakes

Suzanne Walker
GN Walker Mooncakes

Nova Huang knows more about magic than your average teen witch. One fateful night, she follows reports of a white wolf into the woods, and she comes across the unexpected: her childhood crush, Tam Lang, battling a horse demon in the woods. Pursued by dark forces eager to claim the magic of wolves and out of options, Tam turns to Nova for help. Their latent feelings are rekindled against the backdrop of witchcraft, untested magic, occult rituals, and family ties both new and old in this enchanting tale of self-discovery. A graphic novel with a lot of heart and a different perspective on witchcraft and magic. Great for anyone who likes graphic novels about queer witchs.


On a Sunbeam

Tillie Walden
GN Walden On A Sunbeam

In two interwoven timelines, a ragtag crew travels to the deepest reaches of space, rebuilding beautiful, broken structures to piece the past together; and two girls meet in boarding school and fall deeply in love, only to learn the pain of loss. Beautifully illustrated and told, this is a graphic novel that should not be missed.


Pumpkinheads

Rainbow Rowell
GN Rowell Pumpkinheads

Working at a pumpkin patch every autumn, Deja and Josiah plan the ultimate Halloween night to celebrate their last year working together. This happy and heartwarming read is a delightful (and slightly spooky) ride.


Sleepless

Sarah Vaughn
GN Sleepless v. 1

Lady "Poppy" Pyppenia is guarded by the Sleepless Knight Cyrenic but becomes endangered when an assassin threatens her life in the new king's reign. As Poppy and Cyrenic try to discover who wants her dead, they must navigate the dangerous waters of life at court and of their growing feelings for one another. This is a fast and fun read in a well developed world with characters you can't help but root for.


Woman World

Aminder Dhaliwal
GN Dhaliwa Woman World

When a birth defect wipes out the planet's entire population of men, Woman World rises out of society's ashes. Full of hilarious vignettes about a world without men, this graphic novel challenges our notions about the roles women play.