10 Essential Graphic Novels for your School Library
Paul Register
Educational speaker and librarian of 25 years
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During my Accessit webinar – Understanding Graphic Novels and Using Them in your School Library – I was asked by an attendee what graphic novels I would recommend as being essential for school libraries. I remember shooting off a few ideas that rose to the top of my brain the quickest, but I wanted to produce a follow-up blog to that question with a more considered list (with reasons for their inclusion too) that I hope many of you will find helpful.
Just to clarify, this is a list of graphic novels only and will not include manga. We can leave that for another day. It’s important to remember that the two formats are different, and you will have students in your schools that love their graphic novels but have little interest in manga – and vice versa. And that’s okay. We cater for many.
I should also point out that I have put together a top 10 here based on how popular I think they might be in your schools. I’ve avoided creating a simple list of the top 10 graphic novels of all time. That sort of thing is easily available online and will always be entirely subjective. Experience has taught me that those sorts of lists aren’t always helpful anyway. To use a regular fiction example, the greatest writers of all time are rarely the most borrowed in a school library. Jeff Kinney will always trump Dickens, I’m afraid! What I’m looking to do here is offer some suggestions of books that will enhance your graphic novel collections and be popular amongst your students – so let’s get to it!
V for Vendetta by Alan Moore & David Lloyd
(DC Comics) ISBN 978-1779511195
Quite different from the movie starring Natalie Portman, this graphic novel remains one of my favourite books of all time and is a product of both its 1980s creation (against a Thatcher-dominated background in UK politics) and the inspiration it takes from George Orwell’s 1984. A challenging read for any student, in terms of what it makes the reader think about regarding mass control, fascism, and authoritarianism.
Planet Hulk by Greg Pak & Carlo Pagulayan
(Marvel) ISBN 978-0785120124
A weighty tome of 416 pages that I have seen pull many a boy reader into its pages. The Hulk is shot into space to stop him being a threat to innocent humans anymore, and he ends up landing on an alien planet. Completely unprepared for the culture and the variety of new people around him, Hulk goes from gladiator to revolutionary leader to lover…and more. Much of the plot of this storyline was adapted for the movie Thor: Ragnarok.
Bunny vs Monkey, by Jamie Smart
(David Fickling Books) ISBN 978-1788451772
An absolute slam dunk this one! Guaranteed* to raise your borrowing figures amongst your 11- and 12-year-olds. A beautifully cartoony and hilarious take on the constant battle between nature and technology by the amazing Jamie Smart, one of the UK’s biggest talents in comics today. I think there are currently 15 Bunny vs Monkey titles out there, so if/when this first volume is successful in your library there’s a wealth of additional material to buy in.
*Guarantee only valid in fictional schools.
Batman: The Long Halloween by Jeph Loeb & Tim Sale
(DC) ISBN 978-1401232597
Long considered one of the finest Batman stories of all time (by two creators, Loeb and Sale, who worked together several times and always created something special – seriously, look them up!), The Long Halloween remains much loved to this day, by critics and readers alike. Featuring many of the Dark Knight’s rogues gallery, the story follows the attempts of Batman (with Jim Gordon and Harvey Dent) to stop a serial killer who only strikes on special holidays, like Halloween, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, etc.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier by Ed Brubaker, Steve Epting & Michael Lark
(Marvel) ISBN 978-1302956387
An instant classic that brought Captain America’s World War II sidekick Bucky Barnes back from the dead (and it had been decades in our time!) and into the modern day. A spy/espionage thriller that also dealt with the complications of the Cold War and the deep emotions of Cap’s survivor guilt, it was recreated in movie format in 2014…and is still considered by many to be Marvel Studios’ finest success on the silver screen. The ISBN I have included above is for the collected edition (which should still be available), but be aware that this story was originally published in two volumes, so just double-check what you’re buying.
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The next five graphic novels I want to add onto this list are books that all did well on the Excelsior Award, either by winning outright or winning their age category – so you know that they were all chosen by myself and my team of judges to appeal to students, and that those students validated our choices by giving them high marks.
Skyward: Volume 1 by Joe Henderson & Lee Garbett
(Image) ISBN 978-1534308336
Science fiction series centring on one girl’s life in a world where gravity has been reduced to a fraction of what it was – and her father’s attempts to return it to normal levels, after humanity has spent twenty years getting used to it.
Doctor Andromeda and the Kingdom of Lost Tomorrows by Jeff Lemire & Max Fiumara
(Dark Horse) ISBN 978-1506723297
Not for the faint-hearted and quite sweary in places (so make a decision about what age groups you’re lending it to), this is the story of an aged superhero and his desire to reconnect with his estranged son. You will be in tears by the end! (Originally titled Doctor Star and the Kingdom of Lost Tomorrows).
They Called Us Enemy by George Takei, Justin Eisinger, Steven Scott & Harmony Becker
(IDW Publishing) ISBN 978-1603094504
The firsthand account of George Takei’s childhood years living in an internment camp for Japanese immigrants in West Coast America during World War II. George became famous for his portrayal of Hikaru Sulu in Star Trek but has also been a vehement advocate of equal rights for many years.
Supergirl: Being Super by Mariko Tamaki & Joëlle Jones
(DC) ISBN 978-1779503190
A coming-of-age tale of a super-powered girl from Krypton navigating life in small-town America, whilst coping with the usual trappings of being an awkward teenager in high school…until a natural disaster forces her to confront her position in the world and make some hard choices. (Apparently, there is a new edition of this title coming out in April 2026, but as of today, I’m not sure if it will have any extra features included or not. Don’t feel the need to wait for it if you don’t want to).
Star Wars: Darth Vader by Kieron Gillen & Salvador Larroca
(Marvel) ISBN 978-0785192558
The first volume of some all-new adventures featuring the Sith formerly known as Anakin Skywalker. Great storytelling and lovely artwork of Darth Vader just doing the usual nasty and evil Vader stuff in the Star Wars universe. Adds some fascinating backstory to the character without upsetting any of the lore of the movies. I was still lending the various volumes in this series fairly regularly last year. I would describe this one as an easy win for librarians.
So, there you have it! I hope you have found this list useful. Don’t feel obliged to buy everything on this list if you don’t want to. They are just my recommendations (based on many years of reading, rating, and school library work), but as ever, you know your school and your students better than I do. It can be fun to dip your toe in the water sometimes! Enjoy!
