graphic novels

  • Staff Faves 2024: Teen Fiction and Graphic Novels

    Staff Faves 2024: Teen Fiction and Graphic Novels

    Every fall, we ask staff members around the library system to share their favorite reads published in this year.  2024 is no different, and we have a stellar lineup of fiction and graphic novels. Aisle Nine, a graphic novel by Ian X. Cho, follows Jasper, whose amnesia may have something to do with his dead-end… Continue reading

  • 6 Books by Artists at the 2024 Short Run Comix Festival

    6 Books by Artists at the 2024 Short Run Comix Festival

    Now in its 12th year, the annual Short Run Comix Festival, which takes place on Nov. 2 at Seattle Center’s Fisher Pavilion, celebrates the fusion of art and literature in the ever-expanding medium of comics. Free and open to the public, Short Run showcases hundreds of emerging and established artists from the Pacific Northwest and… Continue reading

  • Comic Book Cool Cats

    Comic Book Cool Cats

    It’s kitten season (April-October) and cats are absolutely everywhere right meow, including in just about every type of comic book or manga story you could imagine. In Cat Massage Therapy by Haru Hisakawa, world weary workers find relief from the most unexpected of feline massage professionals. Catboy by Benji Nate sees Olive’s wish to hang… Continue reading

  • Staff Faves 2021: Graphic Novels

    It seems like both the quantity and quality of graphic novels and graphic nonfiction just keeps increasing every year.  This is great news for readers but it can feel a bit overwhelming when trying to find your next great graphic read. Luckily, our librarians read hundred of titles this year did a fantastic job sorting… Continue reading

  • #BookBingoNW2021: Graphic Novel or Comic

    This is a short list of my favorite reads that can be applied to the graphic novel or comic 2021 Book Bingo square. These are thrilling, heart wrenching, thoughtful stories. Infinitum: An Afrofuturist Tale by Tim Fielder From the distant past through to the unforeseeable future, King Aja Oba lives many lives, made immortal by… Continue reading

  • Three on a Theme: LGBT Comics

    While many of us tend to associate the graphic novel and comic book genre with superheroes, in a cultural market dominated by companies like Marvel and DC that produce blockbuster movies based in on graphic novels every year, there are plenty of other types of comic books out there that are available to you with… Continue reading

  • Three on a Theme: Animal Comics

    Animals often figure prominently in comic strips and graphic novels, but the ways in which they are represented and the roles they play in telling a story vary greatly across genres and the works of different authors. Often, animals in the comics genre exist mainly for comedic relief, representing cartoon caricatures or anthropomorphisms that tell… Continue reading

  • #BookBingoNW2020 Poetry or Comics

    One of the best things about Summer Book Bingo is how it challenges readers to step outside their comfort zones.  Of all the different kinds of books out there, however, poetry and graphic novels can be some of the most challenging. Readers not used to a visual format can sometimes struggle to make a cohesive… Continue reading

  • Comics before Cinema! Part Three

    This is the third and final feature of comics as the original source material before their cinematic adaptations. I admit that I have not watched or read many of what I’ve listed (though not for a lack of trying!) and I made it a point to explore outside the expansive DC and Marvel universe. Today I will be showcasing the nitty gritty of graphic novels and comics, and how those stories… Continue reading

  • Recommendations from My Precarious Piles of Printed Pictures and Prose

    I moved in the middle of this pandemic, and have nearly twenty open boxes and unsorted piles of comics and graphic novels sitting around. Revisiting the books I already own (whether I’ve gotten around to reading them all, or not) while unpacking has been incredibly fun, and is the basis of the following comics recommendations.… Continue reading

  • Oh, doggone it!

    Dogs can completely change the way we feel—for the better. They are funny, loving, and intelligent. Canine companions live in an estimated 63 million U.S. homes, so it’s no wonder stories, movies, and videos featuring dogs have always been big hits. Let’s not forget our own local legend, the public-transit-riding dog, Eclipse, who rides the… Continue reading

  • Hoopla Comics: Tips and Recommendations

    Many people are now familiar with Hoopla for music and videos, but it is also an excellent place to download comic books and graphic novels! The Seattle Public Library doesn’t carry individual issues of comics, but you can find many of them in Hoopla. If there is a hot new title you want to keep… Continue reading

  • Local Graphic Novels to Gear Up for Short Run

    Graphic novels are doing particularly well in the Pacific Northwest, with Short Run Comix & Arts Festival coming up I like to prepare for the small press and independent level of creators by focusing on local creators. From mainstream on down to independent, Seattle has every genre being created right here. Here are a few… Continue reading

  • Graphic Medicine

    Ever read a comic story with a character that has arthritis? How about someone who lives with anxiety and depression? PTSD? Food poisoning? If so, then you’re already familiar with Graphic Medicine! Graphic Medicine is a genre of comics (with a website!) that examines the intersection of the comics medium with the discourses of healthcare,… Continue reading

  • #BookBingoNW2019: Comics

    Comics is a magical and mysterious medium that can fill one or all of your Book Bingo card squares this summer! It’s up to you! Take a look at this recent staff booklist of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Comics and Graphic Novels and maybe try out In Between, a collection of poetry comics by… Continue reading

  • Seattle Reads: An Interview with Thi Bui

    In celebration of Seattle Reads 2019, Jess Boyd spoke to Thi Bui about her award- winning graphic novel, The Best We Could Do (TBWCD), the 2019 Seattle Reads selection. _________________________________________ An Interview with Thi Bui by Jess Boyd Thi Bui’s The Best We Could Do is a story that moved me, my family and my… Continue reading

  • OverDrive Comics and ‘The Best We Could Do’

    The Seattle Public Library has physical comics for children, teens, and adults available for checkout in all of our 27 locations, as well as through our mobile services. We also have comics available through our Hoopla Digital service. But did you know, amongst all of the mysteries, memoirs, and literary fiction e-books, that we also… Continue reading

  • Rick Riordan Presents

    In early 2017, acclaimed author Rick Riordan, of Percy Jackson fame, announced he would be leading an imprint from Disney, with the goal of publishing “great books by middle grade authors from underrepresented cultures and backgrounds, to let them tell their own stories inspired by the mythology and folklore of their own heritage.” He had… Continue reading