I began reading comic books in elementary school, checking out issues of Spider-Man along with my stacks of Goosebumps books. I eventually broadened my horizons past the amazing web slinger and onto the X-men, Batman and the rest of the Marvel and DC Universes. I mostly read this way until my late high school and early college years, during which I discovered Neil Gaiman’s Sandman comics and all the interesting stories Vertigo was publishing that didn’t involve characters in spandex. Now I will occasionally pick up a superhero book but typically gravitate towards stories outside of the caped universe.
The amount of interesting, quality graphic novels and comic books that are published for young readers today is impressive and exciting to see. I often think of how young readers can be exposed to the world of comics without feeling their only choice is a caped crusader. Of course, there is nothing wrong with loving and reading those stories but it’s important to have other choices in your collections for kids who are looking for something different.
I’ve highlighted three of my favorite quirky and fresh graphic novels for young readers, two of which are new publications, that will add something special to your shelves and make great choices for elementary school students in grades 1-5.
Hotel Strange by Florian and Katherine Ferrier. Illustrations by Katherine Ferrier. Translated by Carol Burrell. Graphic Universe; 2015. This is indeed a strange story with odd characters and more dialogue than action, but both volumes #1 and #2 of Hotel Strange are charming and fun to read.
Hilda and the Midnight Giant by Luke Pearson. Nobrow Press; 2012. I loved all of the Hildafolk books but Hilda and the Midnight Giant is probably my favorite. Pearson’s stories are a great mix of creepy moments, humor and modern fairytale magic. And his rich color palette- sigh. It is so beautiful you might just gaze at the pictures and forget to read the words!
The Only Child by Guojing. Schwartz and Wade; 2015. This book was heralded as a best book of last year from establishments like Entertainment Weekly, and rightfully so. It really is a wonderful piece of art and narrative. This wordless graphic novel is a bit nontraditional in it’s size and format, but is a touching story about a child’s loneliness and imagination that kids and adults will enjoy.
There are many other great titles that I would put into my quirky category, but I wanted to keep this post brief. These titles are also perfect to suggest to your resident Spider-Man fan who maybe needs the challenge of reading out of their comfort zone. What are some of your favorite non-superhero graphic novels? Do your young patrons seek out these types of comics or does Marvel rule your stacks? What comic books did you read as a child? Share in the comments!