2026 Maverick List - Great Graphic Novels for Grades 9-12

Check out these recommended graphic novels for grades 9-12 that appear on the 2026 Texas Library Association's Maverick Reading List.* (Looking for graphic novels for tweens? Try the Maverick List for grades 6-8!)

*Not listed: Almark, vol. 1 by Hiyuto Yunoki; Big Jim and the White Boy by David F. Walker & Marcus Kwame Anderson; Silenced Voices by Pablo Leon; Space Walking with You by Inuhiko Doronoda; and This Place Kills Me by Mariko Tamaki.

About the Maverick Reading List: "The Texas Maverick Graphic Novels Reading List (TMGNRL) is a recommended reading list developed by public and school librarians from the Young Adult Round Table (YART). The list’s purpose is to encourage students in grades 6-12 to explore a variety of current books. The TMGNRL list is intended for recreational reading, not to support a specific curriculum." (from the TLA website)

Updated February 20, 2026
Lewisville Public Library
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Family Force V. Book one
Braly, Matthew
Maise's just a normal teenager - she goes to school, spends time with friends, oh and saves the world from alien kaiju with her superhero family.
The guy she was interested in wasn't a guy at all. 1
Arai, Sumiko
Paper Book
Fashionable and upbeat high schooler Aya loves listening to rock, but no one else seems to share her interest...until she meets a cool, stylish employee at a CD shop. Dressed in black from head to toe, he has this air of mystery about him, and his taste in music is impeccable. Aya falls hard for him...
I shall never fall in love
Conner, Hari
Paper Book
The Prince and the Dressmaker goes to Austenland in this historically inspired, joyfully queer, stunningly romantic graphic novel mash-up of Jane Austen novels--where two friends discover their feelings for each other and find a space in their world for their love and identity. George...
Song of a blackbird
Van Lieshout, Maria
Paper Book
FIVE STARRED REVIEWS!A Michael L. Printz Honor BookA National Book Award Longlist Selection A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR for Kirkus Reviews, School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, The Horn Book, Book Riot,...

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