Graphic Novels for Adults

In celebration of Free Comic Book Day (annually on the 1st Saturday of May), GVPL asked staff what their favorite graphic novels are. Here are some of the ones we love and think you might love too!

Updated August 16, 2024
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Akira. Book one
?tomo, Katsuhiro
Paper Book
Welcome to Neo-Tokyo, built on the ashes of a Tokyo annihilated by a blast of unknown origin that triggered World War III. The lives of two streetwise teenage friends, Tetsuo and Kaneda, change forever when paranormal abilities begin to waken in Tetsuo, making him a target for a shadowy agency that...
Ducks : two years in the oil sands
Beaton, Kate
Paper Book
A New York Times Notable book! One of Barack Obama's favorite books of 2022! Winner of Canada Reads 2023! "An exceptionally beautiful book about loneliness, labor, and survival."--Carmen Maria Machado Before there was Kate Beaton, New York Times...
Are you my mother? : a comic drama
Bechdel, Alison
Paper Book
From the New York Times bestselling author of Fun Home, Are You My Mother?: A Comic Drama is a brilliantly told graphic memoir of Alison Bechdel becoming the artist her mother wanted to be. A New York Times, USA Today, and Time Best Book of the Year
Fun home : a family tragicomic
Bechdel, Alison
Paper Book
A fresh and brilliantly told memoir from a cult favorite comic artist, marked by gothic twists, a family funeral home, sexual angst, and great books. This breakout book by Alison Bechdel is a darkly funny family tale, pitch-perfectly illustrated with Bechdel's sweetly gothic...
Spy x family. 1
Endo, Tatsuya
Paper Book
An action-packed comedy about a fake family that includes a spy, an assassin and a telepath! Master spy Twilight is unparalleled when it comes to going undercover on dangerous missions for the betterment of the world. But when he receives the ultimate assignment--to get married...
Uzumaki : spiral into horror
Itō, Junji
Paper Book
A masterpiece of horror manga, now available in a deluxe hardcover edition! Kurouzu-cho, a small fogbound town on the coast of Japan, is cursed. According to Shuichi Saito, the withdrawn boyfriend of teenager Kirie Goshima, their town is haunted not by a person or being but a...
The boy, the mole, the fox and the horse
Mackesy, Charlie
Paper Book
Charlie Mackesy's beloved The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse has been adapted into an Academy Award® winning animated short film, now available to stream on Apple TV+ #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER · WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER  ·...
V for vendetta
Moore, Alan
Paper Book
In an alternate future in which Germany wins World War II and Britain becomesa fascist state, a vigilante named V stalks the streets of London trying tofree England of its ideological chains.
The handmaid's tale : the graphic novel
Nault, Renée
Paper Book
The stunning graphic novel adaptation * A must-read and collector's item for fans of "the patron saint of feminist dystopian fiction" (New York Times).   Look for The Testaments, the sequel to The Handmaid's Tale   In Margaret...
Persepolis
Satrapi, Marjane
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Wise, funny, and heartbreaking, Persepolis is Marjane Satrapi's acclaimed graphic memoir of growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. "A wholly original achievement.... Satrapi evokes herself and her schoolmates coming of age in a...
Stitches : a memoir --
Small, David
Paper Book
The prize-winning children's author depicts a childhood from hell in this searing yet redemptive graphic memoir. One day David Small awoke from a supposedly harmless operation to discover that he had been transformed into a virtual mute. A vocal cord removed, his throat...
Maus : a survivor's tale
Spiegelman, Art.
Paper Book
Maus es la biografía de Vladek Spiegelman, un judío polaco superviviente de los campos de exterminio nazis, contada a través de su hijo Art, un dibujante de cómics que quiere dejar memoria de la aterradora persecución que sufrieron millones de personas en la Europa sometida por Hitler y de...
Blankets : a graphic novel
Thompson, Craig
Paper Book
"Quaint, meditative and sometimes dreamy, blankets will take you straight back to your first kiss." --The Guardian Blankets is the story of a young man coming of age and finding the confidence to express his creative voice. Craig Thompson's poignant...
Monster. Volume 1
Urasawa, Naoki
Paper Book
Naoki Urasawa's unforgettable thriller follows a brilliant doctor's journey into the darkest depths of the human soul. Johan is a cold and calculating killer with a mysterious past, and brilliant Dr. Kenzo Tenma is the only one who can stop him! Conspiracy and serial murder open...
Saga. Book one
Vaughan, Brian K.
Paper Book
Collecting the first 18 issues of the smash-hit series, this deluxe hardcover edition features a striking new cover, as well as special extras, including never-before-seen sketches, script pages, and a roundtable discussion with the creators about how SAGA is really made. Written...

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