Suggested reading
The following is a (small!) collection of graphic novels appropriate for classroom use in a variety of genres. Some of these titles were helpfully suggested by Paula E. Griffith (2010) in her article Graphic Novels in the Secondary Classroom and School Libraries, from the Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, while some of them I have added myself (those suggested by Griffith with have an asterisk* next to the title). Clicking on the title of the graphic novel will take you to its respective Amazon page (note: summaries are also those provided on Amazon.com, and are quoted here).
Maus, art spiegelman
Suggested curriculum use: English, language arts: narrative, use of flashbacks, tone, characterization. Social studies: World War II.
Summary: "By addressing the horror of the Holocaust through cartoons, the author captures the everyday reality of fear and is able to explore the guilt, relief and extraordinary sensation of survival - and how the children of survivors are in their own way affected by the trials of their parents." |
Persepolis, marjane satrapi
Suggested curriculum use: English, language arts: narrative, identity, isolation. Social studies: Iranian revolution.
Summary: "Persepolis is the story of Satrapi's unforgettable childhood and coming of age within a large and loving family in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution; of the contradictions between private life and public life in a country plagued by political upheaval; of her high school years in Vienna facing the trials of adolescence far from her family; of her homecoming--both sweet and terrible; and, finally, of her self-imposed exile from her beloved homeland." |
the wall: growing up behind the iron curtain*, peter sis
Suggested curriculum use: Social studies: Cold War, communism
Summary: "Through annotated illustrations, journals, maps, and dreamscapes, Peter Sís shows what life was like for a child who loved to draw, proudly wore the red scarf of a Young Pioneer, stood guard at the giant statue of Stalin, and believed whatever he was told to believe. But adolescence brought questions. Cracks began to appear in the Iron Curtain, and news from the West slowly filtered into the country. Sís learned about beat poetry, rock ’n’ roll, blue jeans, and Coca-Cola. He let his hair grow long, secretly read banned books, and joined a rock band. Then came the Prague Spring of 1968, and for a teenager who wanted to see the world and meet the Beatles, this was a magical time. It was short-lived, however, brought to a sudden and brutal end by the Soviet-led invasion. But this brief flowering had provided a glimpse of new possibilities—creativity could be discouraged but not easily killed. " |
Bram Stoker's dracula: the graphic novel*, gary reed
Suggested curriculum use: Language arts: Classics, adaptation studies
Summary: "Jonathan Harker is sent by his law firm to Castle Dracula to discuss business with Transylvanian noble Count Dracula. His nightmare experience there is just the start of a macabre chain of events. Harker soon finds himself in a race against time to free his wife, Mina, and other souls who are in thrall to the evil Count. Dracula must be destroyed at all costs. . . . This fresh adaptation of Dracula is a stylized and appealing take on the original master horror novel." |
Satchel Paige: Striking Out Jim Crow*, James Sturm
Suggested curriculum use: Social studies: Civil Rights movement. English, language arts: Research opportunities, characterization, setting.
Summary: "Baseball Hall of Famer Leroy 'Satchel' Paige (1905? – 1982) changed the face of the game in a career that spanned five decades. Much has been written about this larger-than-life pitcher, but when it comes to Paige, fact does not easily separate from fiction. He made a point of writing his own history…and then re-writing it. A tall, lanky fireballer, he was arguably the Negro League’s hardest thrower, most entertaining storyteller and greatest gate attraction. Now the Center for Cartoon Studies turns a graphic novelist’s eye to Paige’s story. Told from the point of view of a sharecropper, this compelling narrative follows Paige from game to game as he travels throughout the segregated South. In stark prose and powerful graphics, author and artist share the story of a sports hero, role model, consummate showman, and era-defining American." |
The arrival*;. shaun tan
Suggested curriculum use: Social studies: immigration; English, language arts: inferences
Summary: "Tan captures the displacement and awe with which immigrants respond to their new surroundings in this wordless graphic novel. It depicts the journey of one man, threatened by dark shapes that cast shadows on his family's life, to a new country. The only writing is in an invented alphabet, which creates the sensation immigrants must feel when they encounter a strange new language and way of life. A wide variety of ethnicities is represented in Tan's hyper-realistic style, and the sense of warmth and caring for others, regardless of race, age, or background, is present on nearly every page." |
Re-gifters*, mike carey
Suggested curriculum use: Language arts: theme, culture
Summary: "Korean American teenager Dixie and her best friend, Avril, practice hapkido, a martial art. There is a big hapkido tournament coming up in their South Central Los Angeles neighborhood, but Dixie, who has a firey disposition, loses her focus when she develops a crush on another teen hapkido artist, Adam. She spends her contest entry fee on an exorbitant gift for him and then realizes that he has no romantic interest in her. When Dixie attempts to win a free spot in the tournament at a neighborhood (library-centered!) competition, the other contestants, who are rougher street kids, disparage her efforts. Plot twists, which are both credible and nicely paced, include a falling out between Dixie and Avril, an accident that provides Dixie with an entry ticket to the big event, vengeance on Adam, and a new flame for Dixie." |
Inside out: portrait of an eating disorder*, nadia shivack
Suggested curriculum use: Language arts: symbolism, nonfiction. Health: Bulimia
Summary: "In this heartfelt, honest memoir, the author uses a graphic novel format to reveal her anguished, ongoing struggle with bulimia. Shivack's story unfolds largely through rudimentary drawings with captions and speech balloons, many created on paper napkins while she was being treated for her eating disorder. Setting the scene, the author initially depicts her rather contentious relationship with her mother, a Holocaust survivor who had very strong ideas about food, insisting that her three daughters finish everything on their dinner plates even though she herself ate only once a day (just enough to keep herself going, not a bite more). Shivack notes that her eating disorder (which she depicts as a monster named Ed) started when she began swimming competitively in high school—her coach criticized those swimmers who needed to lose weight. Feeling a part of that category, Shivack launched a regimen of binging, purging and compulsive exercising. In a poignant drawing, she likens her daily routine as a teen to a perilous climb up a steep, jagged mountain. Her dizzying downward spiral is sobering indeed, as her bulimia takes over her life and she becomes suicidal. Yet Shivack ends on a hopeful note, vowing, as an adult, to continue on her road to recovery." |
Garage band*, gipi
Suggested curriculum use: Language arts: International literature, characterization
Summary: " When Giuliano's father loans him the family garage, he and three of his friends form a band. Playing their battered secondhand instruments, the four teenagers find something they love to do, and they find in their friendship and music a refuge from difficult and turbulent home lives. But when their only amp blows a fuse, a desperate search for some new equipment lands them in more trouble than they ever saw coming. Written and painted in stunning watercolors by the renowned Italian artist Gipi, GARAGE BAND is an introspective meditation on teenage life. " |
beowulf*, gareth hinds
Suggested curriculum use: Language arts: Classics, epic poetry/legends, adaption studies
Summary: "The mighty mead-hall of Hrothgar the Dane stands empty at night, for none of his warriors can face the hideous onslaught of the swamp-fiend Grendel. Now, there comes a man from the North -- a man who will face Grendel unarmed and unarmored, in a battle destined to become legend. He is the mightiest of all Viking heroes... Beowulf." |