Coming of age (YA comics)

Sometimes, important stuff happens. Sometimes, that stuff is important enough to make an impact on you, acting as a rite of passage. This stuff can be a single memorable moment, experiences with friends, family, at school, or just something singular and within ourselves.

When this happens in fiction, we call it 'coming of age'. All the comics in this list take effort to identify this 'stuff', make it real, and explain it, while taking us along on the same journey as the characters and hopefully revealing something more.

Updated August 1, 2024
W
Wellington City LibrariesYouth team at Wellington City Libraries
Drag items up and down to your preferred order then select the "Save Order" button.
The sacrifice of darkness
Gay, Roxane
Paper Book
"When I was a young girl, my husband's father flew an air machine into the sun. Since then, the days have been dark, the nights bright." Roxane Gay, Tracy Lynne Oliver ,and Rebecca Kirby adapt Gay's New York Times bestselling short story "We Are the Sacrifice of Darkness"...
The dumbest idea ever!
Gownley, Jimmy.
Paper Book
What if the dumbest idea ever turned your life upside down? At thirteen, Jimmy was popular, at the top of his class, and the leading scorer on his basketball team. But all that changed when chicken pox forced him to miss the championship game. Things went from bad to...
Girl on fire
Keys, Alicia
Paper Book
From New York Times bestselling author and 15-time GRAMMY® Award-winning artist Alicia Keys comes a new authentic and poignant coming-of-age young adult graphic novel, about finding the strength within when your whole world changes in an instant. Lolo Wright always...
DPS only!
Kong, Xiao Tong
Paper Book
This captivating coming-of-age story set in the world of e-sports will have readers cheering for girl gamer Vicky Tan as she overcomes social anxiety, self-doubt, and an overprotective big brother to pursue her dream of becoming a competitive gamer. From the Tapas webcomic, a 2021...
Mall Goth
Leth, Kate
Paper Book
Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me gets a Y2K twist in this coming-of-age young adult graphic novel from acclaimed comic artist Kate Leth about a 2000s goth teen whose favorite part of her new town is the mall. Liv Holme is not exactly thrilled to be moving to a new town...
This one summer
Tamaki, Mariko
Paper Book
Every summer, Rose goes with her mom and dad to a lake house in Awago Beach. It's their getaway, their refuge. Rosie's friend Windy is always there, too, like the little sister she never had. But this summer is different. Rose's mom and dad won't stop fighting, and when Rose and Windy seek a...
Drama
Telgemeier, Raina.
Ebook
From Raina Telgemeier, the #1 New York Times bestselling, multiple Eisner Award-winning author of Smile and Sisters!Callie loves theater. And while she would totally try out for her middle school's production of Moon over Mississippi, she can't really sing. Instead she's...
Hollow
Watters, Shannon
Ebook
Isabel "Izzy" Crane and her family just moved to the infamous Sleepy Hollow, but as a slick skeptic from the city, she's too busy adjusting to the change of scenery for ghost stories--they're not real, after all. Then she meets Vicky Van Tassel (yes, THAT Van Tassel) and the loveable prankster Croc...
Hungry ghost
Ying, Victoria
Paper Book
A beautiful and heart-wrenching young adult graphic novel takes a look at eating disorders, family dynamics, and ultimately, a journey to self-love. Valerie Chu is quiet, studious, and above all, thin. No one, not even her best friend Jordan, knows that she has been binging and...

Library staff! You can create and contribute to lists. Contact your catalog administrator or log in here.