YALSA Announces Great Graphic Novels for 2017

The Young Adult Library Services Association’s latest annual list of Great Graphic Novels is out! Books are nominated for inclusion on the list by members of YALSA, a division of the American Library Association, and then voted on by a committee made up of school and public librarians from across the United States. The books on the list are judged to exemplify “both good quality literature and appealing reading for teens.” From the long list of 104 titles, committee members also selected their top ten titles:

Giant Days, Volumes 1 and 2 by John Allison and Lissa Treiman

Friends Susan, Esther, and Daisy navigate their first semester in college while balancing boys, halls, rivals, and classes.

Black Panther, Book One: A Nation Under Our Feet by Ta-Nehisi Coates and Brian Stelfreeze

When a superhuman terrorist group sparks a violent uprising, Wakanda is thrown into turmoil. Can its monarch, one in a long line of Black Panthers, survive the necessary change? Heavy lies the head that wears the cowl!

Mighty Jack by Ben Hatke

Jack, his sister Maddy, and new friend Lilly fight monster plants after he buys seeds from a mysterious stranger.


Plutona
by Jeff Lemire and Emi Lennox

You’ve heard this before: five kids find a body in the woods and don’t know what to do; but, this time it is the city’s greatest superheroine, Plutona!

marchbook3March: Book Three by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell

Congressman John Lewis chronicles the struggles and triumphs of the Civil Rights Movement from 1963 through the Voting Rights Act.

Filmish: a Graphic Journey Through Film by Edward Ross

Ross’s cartoon alter ego guides readers through the annals of cinematic history, introducing some of the strange and fascinating concepts at work in the movies and tackles serious issues—sexuality, race, censorship, propaganda—with authority and wit.

Prez, Volume 1: Corndog in Chief by Mark Russell, Ben Caldwell, and Mark Morales

In a future where corporations can run for office, the poor are used as human billboards, and tacos are delivered by drone, 19-year-old social media celebrity, Beth Ross, unwittingly becomes President of the United States.

orange: The Complete Collection 1 by Ichigo Takno

Naho receives a letter from her future self, begging her to watch over new student Kakeru.

Paper Girls 1 by Brian K. Vaughan and Cliff ChiangPaper Girls

In the early hours after Halloween 1988, four 12-year-old newspaper delivery girls uncover the most important story of all time.

We Stand On Guard by Brian K. Vaughan, Steve Skroce, and Matt Hollingsworth

One hundred years in the future, Canada and the United States are at war and a small band of Canadian freedom fighters are all that stands in the way of total U.S. takeover.

If you want to see the rest of this year’s Great Graphic Novels or you’re looking for some more good reading, YALSA Great Graphic Novels lists from this and previous years can be found here.

We need your help to keep fighting for the right to read! Help support CBLDF’s important First Amendment work by visiting the Rewards Zonemaking a donation, or becoming a member of CBLDF!

Julie O’Brien is an information professional, library nerd, and active member of the American Library Association. She enjoys board games, coffee, comics, and standing up for free speech.