2020 Great Graphic Novels for Teens

Members of the 2020 Great Graphic Novels for Teens Blogging Team are: Tina H. Lerno, chair, Los Angeles Public Library, Los Angeles, CA; Megan Baird, Yuma County Library District, Yuma AZ; Crystal Chen, The New York Public Library, Bronx, NY; Erin Durrett, Clinton-Macomb Public Library, Clinton Township, MI; Traci Glass, Nashville Public Library, Nashville TN; Thea Hashagen, Mill Valley Public Library, Mill Valley, CA; Lindsey Helfrich, Sacramento Public Library, Sacramento, CA; Kali Olson, The Blake School, Minneapolis, MN; Christine Pyles, Euclid Public Library, Euclid, OH; Celeste Rhoads, The American Library in Paris, Paris France; Loren Spector, Los Angeles Public Library, Los Angeles, CA; Becky Standal, Longview Public Library, Longview, WA; Allie Stevens, Calhoun County Library, Hampton, AR; Audrey Sumser, Stark Library, Canton, OH.

* denotes top ten title


NONFICTION
                                                
Best Friends. By Shannon Hale. Art by LeUyen Pham. First Second. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1250317469. Shannon heads into sixth grade full of confidence and hope for the best year ever. Her best friend Jen is the most popular girl in school, but stepping out from Jen's shadow might be the only way for Shannon to be true to herself—even if it means admitting that her best friends aren't the right friends anymore.
 
Blank Canvas: My So-Called Artist’s Journey. By Akiko Higashimura. Art by the author. 2019. 

  • Vol. 1. Seven Seas Entertainment. $13.99. ISBN: 978-1642750690.
  • Vol. 2. Seven Seas Entertainment. $13.99. ISBN: 978-1642750706.

An autobiographical tale of the author's journey. High schooler Akiko has big plans to become a popular mangaka before she even graduates, but she needs to get much better at drawing if she ever wants to reach her goal.
 
Charlotte Bronte Before Jane Eyre. By Glynnis Fawkes. Art by the author. Disney Hyperion. 2019. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1368023290. Tells the life story of novelist Charlotte Bronte from her mother's death when Charlotte was five years old up to the publication of Jane Eyre.
 
The Faithful Spy: Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Plot to Kill Hitler. By John Hendrix. Art by the author. Abrams ComicArts. 2018. $24.99. ISBN: 978-1419728389. In 1930s Germany, pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer watches as his country is taken over by Adolf Hilter. To save his country and humanity from Hitler's megalomania, Dietrich realizes that to be true to God, he must join fellow German conspirators in a plot to kill Hitler.

Femme Magnifique: 50 Magnificent Women Who Changed The World. By Shelly Bond. Art by various. Black Crown. 2018. $29.99. ISBN: 978-1684053209. A comic book anthology dedicated to the wonderful women who have made the world great. Each subject gets a 4-page summary of their life and accomplishments and is written and drawn by a variety of writers and illustrators. 
 
Fever Year: The Killer Flu of 1918. By Don Brown. Art by the author. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 2019. $18.99. ISBN: 978-0544837409. The story of the Spanish Influenza pandemic of 1918.

Gender Queer: A Memoir. By Maia Kobabe. Art by the author. Lion Forge. 2019. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1549304002. Genderqueer author and artist Maia Kobabe, who uses the non-binary e/em/eir pronouns, knew from childhood that e didn't fit traditional definitions of female, and was never completely comfortable thinking of emself as male either. E explores big themes like gender, sexuality, sex, relationships, and family side-by-side with specific individual experiences of bullying, clothing, haircuts, coming out and finding community. 

Grass. By Keum Suk Gendry-Kim. Art by the author. Drawn and Quarterly. 2019. $29.95. ISBN: 978-1770463622. The story of Lee Ok-sun, a Korean woman born into abject poverty and hard labor, denied any formal education, adopted out by her desperate parents, kidnapped off the street, and forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military during World War II. Upon liberation, Lee was outcast, homeless, eventually settling into an abusive marriage that kept her in China for the next fifty years before finally returning to Korea to reclaim her identity.
 
Guts. By Raina Telgemeier. Art by the author. Scholastic. 2019. $24.99. ISBN: 978-0545852517. The autobiographical story of the author's struggles with anxiety and the resulting stomachaches during her fourth-grade year. The characters are relatable and endearingly written, and the readers will enjoy getting to know Raina and her friends and family as Raina learns to deal with the changes around her and gets her body and mind under control.

Hawking. By Jim Ottaviani. Art by Leland Myrick. First Second. 2019. $29.99. ISBN: 9781620103838. Tells the story of Stephen Hawking's life, focusing on his career in science.
 
I Moved to Los Angeles to Work in Animation. By Natalie Nourigat. Art by the author. Boom! Box. 2019. $9.99. ISBN: 978-1684152919. Natalie moved from Portland to LA to transition from comic book illustrator to work in animation and find her true calling. Learning things like storyboarding, studio culture, as well as finding an apartment and getting by in the City of Angels taught Natalie more than she realized.

*I Was Their American Dream: a Graphic Memoir. By Malaka Gharib. Art by the author. Clarkson Potter. 2019. $16.99. ISBN: 978-0525575115. Malaka tells her story of being Filipino, Egyptian and American growing up in Cerritos, California. She details her life of being the “perfect Filipino kid” during the year with her mom while also trying to navigate the customs of her father’s home in Egypt during the summer. 

In Waves. By AJ Dungo. Art by the author. Nobrow. 2019. $18.95. ISBN: 978-1910620632. A passion for surfing unites the narratives in AJ Dungo's graphic novel memoir—from Hawaiians in the eighteen and nineteen-hundreds to Olympic swimmer Duke Kahanamoku and surfboard designer Tom Blake in the twentieth century, to his resilient girlfriend Kristin who is quietly dying of bone cancer. Dungo explores the history of surfing side-by-side with Kristin's history of recovery and relapse.

King of King Court. By Travis Dandro. Art by the author. Drawn and Quarterly. 2019. $29.95. ISBN: 978-1770463592. Travis Dandro recounts growing up with a drug-addicted birth father, alcoholic step-dad, and overwhelmed mother. As a kid, Dandro would temper the everyday tension with flights of fancy, finding refuge in toys and animals and insects rather than in the unpredictable adults around him. 

Let’s Make Ramen! A Comic Book Cookbook. By Hugh Amano. Art by Sarah Becan. Ten Speed Press. 2019. $19.99. ISBN: 978-0399581991. A comic book cookbook with accessible ramen recipes for the home cook, including simple weeknight bowls, weekend project stocks, homemade noodles, and an array of delicious accompaniments. The illustrations are clear, engaging, and mouth-watering, and both the illustrations and text go a long way toward making a complicated and often difficult process seem accessible and fun.

*The Life of Frederick Douglass: A Graphic Narrative of a Slave's Journey from Bondage to Freedom. By David F. Walker. Art by Damon Smyth, Marissa Louise.Ten Speed Press. 2019. $17.99. ISBN: 978-0399581441. The story of Frederick Douglass from his birth into slavery to his celebration by dignitaries is brought to readers in this spectacular graphic novel.

A Quick and Easy Guide to Queer and Trans Identities. By Mady G. Art by Mady G., J.R. Zuckerberg. Limerence Press. 2019. $9.99. ISBN: 978-1620105863. An educational guide to queer and trans identities. The guide discusses the difference between gender identity and sexual orientation and defines different terms, as well as discussions on gender expression, gender dysphoria, asexuality, coming out, and the basics of a healthy relationship. 

*They Called Us Enemy. By George Takei, Justin Eisinger, and Steven Scott. Art by Harmony Becker. Top Shelf Productions, an imprint of IDW Publishing. 2019. $19.99. ISBN: 978-1603094504. Before he was Sulu on the starship Enterprise, boldly going where no one has gone before, actor George Takei was a little boy struggling to understand why his family was packing up and going to live in a horse stable. Readers see history in a clear, concise, compelling context and follow Takei on his journey from childhood ignorance to righteous teenage anger and finally to a life of dedicated activism.

This Land is My Land: A Graphic History of Big Dreams, Micronations, and Other Self-Made States. By Andy Warner. Art by Sofie Louise Dam. Chronicle Books. 2019. $19.95. ISBN: 978-1452170183. This book, helpfully organized into 5 chapters—intentional communities, micronations, failed utopias, visionary environments, and strange dreams—highlights 30 stories of self-made places around the world. 

FICTION

Ao Haru Ride. By Io Sakisaka. Art by the author. 2019.

  • Vol. 3. VIZ Media. $9.99. ISBN: 978-1974702671.
  • Vol. 4. VIZ Media. $9.99. ISBN: 978-1974702688.
  • Vol. 5. VIZ Media. $9.99. ISBN: 978-1974702695.

Futaba Yoshioka knows that even though her middle school crush and first love, Kou Tanaka, is a different person than the one she knew, she still has feelings for him. But when she realizes one of her new best friends, Yuri, also likes Kou, can she be true to herself and not lose her friendship with Yuri?  

Ascender, Volume 1. By Jeff Lemire. Art by Dustin Nguyen. Image Comics. 2019. $9.99. ISBN: 978-1534313484. Picking up about 10 years after the Descender series ended, Andy and Mila are leaving as outsiders, away from society, on the planet Sampson. Instead of machines ruling the universe, now it's magic from the vampire queen, known only as Mother. 

The Avant-Guards, Volume 1. By Carly Usdin. Art by Noah Hayes. Boom! Studios. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1684153671. When Charlie transfers to The Georgia O'Keeffe College for Arts and Subtle Dramatics, she thought she was done with basketball. She hadn't accounted for Liv though, the passionate and exuberant basketball enthusiast determined to start a women's basketball league—and to get Charlie to play for their school’s new team. 

Become You, Volume 1. By Ichigo Takano. Art by the author. Seven Seas Entertainment. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1642756852. At the start of his final year in high school, Taiyou suddenly finds himself as the only remaining member of the music club. Though he manages to convince sullen music prodigy, Hikari, to help him on his quest for musical stardom, Hikari refuses to play any music, agreeing only to help Taiyou improve his musical skills. Can Taiyou overcome the trauma of his past and his crippling self-doubt to achieve his musical dreams?

Beyonders, Volume 1: The Mapmakers. By Paul Jenkins. Art by Wesley St.Claire. Aftershock. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1949028065. High school senior Jacob Tate is obsessed with puzzles and conspiracy theories. When he wakes up one morning to discover that the sandwich-obsessed aunt and uncle he lives with are actually robots, he is suddenly whisked into the biggest puzzle of them all. Joining up with a group called The Beyonders, Jacob, math genius Nadine, and his flatulent cyborg corgi Shadwell is soon on the run from location to location discovering how centuries of mysteries and conspiracies are all tied together and how even their role has been foretold.

Blackbird, Volume 1. By Sam Humphries. Art by Jen Bartel. Image Comics. 2019. $16.99. ISBN: 978-1534312593. Nina and her family survive an earthquake and see a magical beast. Although everyone is made to forget the magical beast, Nina doesn't. She grows up convinced that there are shadowy magical people in the world called Paragons. 

Blackwood. By Evan Dorkin. Art by Veronica Fish, Andy Fish. Dark Horse. 2018. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1506707426. A group of teens at Blackwood College encounter supernatural happenings and must save the world.

*Bloom. By Kevin Panetta. Art by Savanna Ganucheau. First Second. 2019. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1626726413. A recent high school graduate, Ari, works in his family-owned bakery and plays in an indie band with 4 of his best friends in a small coastal town. When an accident occurs at the bakery, Ari has to rethink what he wants to do with his life and what will bring him happiness.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Volume 1, High School Is Hell. By Jordie Bellaire. Art by Dan Mora, Raul Angulo. Boom! Studios. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1684153572. It’s 2019 and Buffy Summers is starting at a new high school, slaying demons, and making friends.

*Cosmoknights: Book One. By Hannah Templer. Art by the author. Top Shelf Productions, an imprint of IDW Publishing. 2019. $19.99. ISBN: 978-1603094542. Pan lives a very ordinary world on a planet called Verdian. She spends most of her time working in her father's shop and hanging out with her friend, Tara, who is a princess. But when Tara's life takes a very different turn, Pan gets a chance to bring down an archaic medieval-type jousting tradition.

Coyotes, Volume 2. By Sean Lewis. Art by Caitlin Yarsky. Image Comics. 2019. $16.99. ISBN: 978-1534310315. Eleven-year-old Red is now the leader of the women determined to kill the men donning wolf pelts—the men who have been terrorizing and killing the women of their small town for years without repercussions. On a journey to recruit more women in their fight, Red finds a new faction of women that believes in rehabilitation as opposed to killing their attackers. These two factions of women must find enough common ground to work together and rid themselves of the wolves once and for all.   

The Crossover: Graphic Novel. By Kwame Alexander. Art by Dawud Anyabwile. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1328575494. Twin brothers, Josh and Jordan(JB) are the stars of their middle school basketball team. Basketball is in their blood. As the season progresses, the brothers start to drift apart when JB gets a girlfriend, making Josh feel left out.

Crowded, Volume 1. By Christopher Sebela. Art by Ro Stein, Ted Brandt, Triona Farrell, Cardinal Rae. Image Comics. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1534310544. In a not-so-distant future where anyone with a grudge and some money can turn resentment into a crowdsourced opportunity for revenge, Charlie Ellison discovers she's Los Angeles's latest target for assassination. With a million-dollar bounty on her head, Charlie enlists Vita, a low-rated DFENDer, to help keep her alive as they try to figure out who on REAPR wants her dead.

Fence. By C.S. Pascat. Art by Johanna the Mad. 2019.

  • Vol. 2. Boom! Box. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1684152971.
  • Vol. 3. Boom! Box. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1684153343.

Rivals and roommates Seiji and Nicholas are continuing to fence their way towards a spot on the King's Row school team. Their matches get more intense as they get closer to the end of the tournament.

Frankenstein: Junji Ito Story Collection. By Junji Ito. Art by the author. Viz Media. 2018. $22.99. ISBN: 978-1974703760. The first half of the book is Ito's retelling of the Mary Shelley classic, Frankenstein. After that follows, a series of stories about lonely high schooler Oshikiri, who lives alone in a giant haunted house while attending school. The remaining stories are a mixture of horror and an ode to the author's family dog, Non-non.

Giant Days: Early Registration. By John Allison. Art by the author. Boom! Box. 2018. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1684152650. Travel through the first time that Esther, Daisy, and Susan all met when they were tiny freshmen in the big city away from their friends and families. You will see the development of their awesome friendships as well as see little hints from their pasts.

Giant Days. By John Allison. Art by Max Sarin, Julia Madrigal. 2019.

  • Vol. 9. Boom! Box. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1684153107.
  • Vol. 10. Boom! Box. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1684153718.

Esther, Daisy, and Susan are at the end of their second year of university and figuring out what next year is going to look like now that they've decided they won't be living together. Esther hasn't found a place to live yet and commiserates with Ed Gemmell on an ill-advised pub crawl. Daisy thinks maybe it's time to break it off with Ingrid. Susan's dad is back in town to help them move.

The Giver: Graphic Novel. By Lois Lowry. Art by P. Craig Russell. HMH Books for Young Readers. 2019. $22.99. ISBN: 978-0544157880. At the age of 12, Jonas is assigned the rare job of "Receiver of Memory,” tasked with absorbing the secrets and memories of his entire community. As he begins to understand the colorless conformity of his current world, he becomes determined to change it for the better.

Grimoire Noir. By Vera Greentea. Art by Yana Bogatch. First Second. 2019. $19.95. ISBN: 978-1626725980. Bucky Orson's little sister has gone missing and he's determined to find her before his mother's tears literally flood their town. Where they live, all the girls have magic and everyone has secrets.

Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass. By Mariko Tamaki. Art by Steve Pugh. DC Comics. 2019. $16.99. ISBN: 978-1401283292. Fifteen-year-old Harleen Quinzel is sent to live in Gotham City while her mom works on a cruise ship. When Gotham's best drag queen, Mama, takes her in, Harley finds a home and makes a new best friend, Ivy, at Gotham High. 

The Highest House: Book One. By Mike Carey. Art by Peter Gross. IDW Publishing. 2018. $24.99. ISBN: 978-1684053544. A high fantasy story about a young boy Moth, sold into slavery. He must learn to survive in the Highest House, a castle fortress; practically it's own city. He begins to hear a magical voice that invades his dreams. The Obsidian will lead him on a journey of self-discovery where he is forced to forge a new path in life. He must learn many things if he is to survive.

Hot Comb. By Ebony Flowers. Art by the author. Drawn and Quarterly. 2019. $21.95. ISBN: 978-1770463486. A graphic novel collection of short stories exploring identity, race, and class through stories revolving around each protagonist's experience with hair and how it related to them. From the titular experience with a hot comb to glimpses into one character's travels to Angola, each story brings about a new perspective.

Hotel Dare. By Terry Blas. Art by Claudia Aguirre. Boom! Studios. 2019. $9.99. ISBN: 978-1684152056. Three teenage siblings, Olive, Darwyn, and Charlotte, are sent to spend the summer with their estranged grandmother, Mama Lupe, in her labyrinthine, guestless hotel in Mexico. Their visit goes from banal to bizarre when they unwittingly open portals to parallel dimensions and are transported to strange worlds.

I Want to Eat Your Pancreas. By Yoru Sumino. Art by Idumi Kirihara. Seven Seas Entertainment. 2019. $19.99. ISBN: 978-1642750324. An introverted teenage boy accidentally discovers that one of his outgoing classmates, Yamauchi Sakura, is dying. As they start to spend more time together, they grow closer, and the boy is afraid of Sakura dying.

Ignited, Volume 1. By Mark Waid and Kwanza Osalyefo. Art by Phil Briones, John Cassaday.  Humanoids. 2019. $14.95. ISBN: 9781534301894. The lives of six teenagers are changed when a shooter targets their high school. Now the power to restore order is literally in their hands. So many friends and colleagues were lost, and some of those who survived underwent changes—they IGNITED, gaining supernatural abilities they barely understand. How will they use their powers to stand up for their fellow students as parents and teachers argue over the appropriate response to this tragedy?

The Iliad. By Gareth Hinds. Art by the author. Candlewick Press. 2019. $27.99. ISBN: 978-0763681135. This lyrical and vibrant retelling of the epic poem takes readers from the argument between Achilles and Agamemnon in the final year of the Trojan War to the death of Hector while emphasizing the roles that the Greek gods played in the story. Told with pencil and watercolor illustrations, this adaptation of the classic war story includes excellent character maps, dialog, and well-placed notes.

Ironheart, Volume 1: Those with Courage. By Eve L. Ewing. Art by Kevin Libranda, Luciano Vecchio, Matt Milla. Marvel Comics. 2019. $15.99. ISBN: 978-1302915087. As Ironheart, Riri Williams struggles to balance her career and personal life in Chicago. When someone she knows goes missing, Riri must suit up and take down a secret, villainous organization.

Isola, Volume 1. By Brenden Fletcher. Art by Karl Kerschl, MSASSYK. Image Comics. 2018. $9.99. ISBN: 978-1534309227. A loyal guard travels with her bewitched queen to far away Isola in the hopes of removing the curse. On their journey, they face many dangers and must work together to survive.

Kaiju Girl Caramelise, Volume 1. By Spica Aoki. Art by the author. Yen Press. 2019. $13.00. ISBN: 9781975357054. Kuroe Akaishi turns into a Godzilla-like creature when faced with her crush.

*Kiss Number 8. By Colleen AF Venable. Art by Ellen T. Crenshaw. First Second. 2019. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1596437098. The first seven kisses 16-year-old Amanda has experienced were less than exceptional. But after finding out that her father, her ultimate best friend, is keeping a secret from her, and realizing she may have a crush on Cat, her best friend from her conservative Catholic school, everything in Amanda's life starts to shift. Which leads to her 8th kiss—the one that changes everything.

Last Pick: Born to Run. By Jason Waltz. Art by the author. First Second. 2019. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1626728936. Teenage twins Sam and Wyatt were leading the resistance against the aliens that took most of the population between the ages 16-65, leaving only the old, the young, and the undesirables on Earth. But now Sam has been taken too, leaving Earth's revolution solely to Wyatt, while Sam starts up her own uprising on a distant planet.

*Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up With Me. By Mariko Tamaki. Art by Rosemary Valero-O'Connell. First Second. 2019. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1626722590. Laura Dean has broken up with Freddy three times. Laura Dean keeps coming back and Freddy keeps taking her back despite Laura Dean's blatant cheating. After visiting a medium, Freddy finds herself questioning whether or not Laura Dean can be monogamous and how she can get on with her life without Laura Dean. 

Love in Focus. By Yoko Nogiri. Art by the author. 2019.

  • Vol. 1. Kodansha Comics. $10.99. ISBN: 978-1632367686.
  • Vol. 2. Kodansha Comics. $10.99. ISBN: 978-1632367693.
  • Vol. 3. Kodansha Comics. $10.99. ISBN: 978-1632367969.

Mako, a talented teenage photographer, moves away from home to go to a new school with a well-reputed photography club. There she moves into Lens Inn, a boarding house for photography students. Among the boarders is Mitsuru, a mysterious withdrawn boy, and Mako's old friend, Kei. With so many teens living together in the same house, romance is in the air, and Mako suddenly finds herself needing to figure out more than just the best ways to take the perfect picture.

Manuelito. By Elisa Amado. Art by Abraham Urias. Annick Press. 2019. $19.95. ISBN: 978-1773212661. Thirteen-year-old Manuelito is a gentle boy who lives with his family in a tiny village in the Guatemalan countryside. But life is far from idyllic: PACs—armed civil patrol—are a constant presence in the streets, and terrifying memories of the country’s war linger in the villagers’ collective conscience.

Mech Cadet Yu. By Greg Pak. Art by Takeshi Miyazawa.

  • Vol. 2. Boom! Studios. 2018. $14.99. ISBN: 9781684152537.
  • Vol. 3. Boom! Studios. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 9781684153374.

The Mech Cadets are fighting the second Sharg war against alien invaders. The cadets are ordered to bring their robos back to headquarters so their hearts can be removed to build a suprarobo that can take out the Sharg opponents. Mech Cadets Yu, Park, Olivetti, and Sanchez disobey orders again and show that as a team they have what it takes to save the world.

Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy: Little Women. By Rey Terceiro. Art by Bre Indigo. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-0316522885. Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy is a modern retelling of Louisa May Alcott's 1868 novel Little Women. 

Middlewest: Book One. By Scottie Young. Art by Jorge Corona, Mike Huddleston. Image Comics. 2019. $9.99. ISBN: 978-1534312173. After suffering one final abuse at the hands of his violent father, Abel decides to leave his home in Farmington but not before his father transforms into the monster he truly is. Accompanied by a talking fox, Abel sets out on a quest across the Middlewest to find a cure before his father finds him.

Midwinter Witch. By Molly Knox Ostertag. Art by the author. Scholastic Graphix. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1338540550. Even though orphaned witch, Ariel, is now training with Aster and his family and living with Charlie and her dads, she still feels like an outsider. With the Midwinter celebration coming up, both Aster and Ariel see this as the perfect opportunity to prove themselves to the rest of their witch community.

Miles Morales: Straight Out Of Brooklyn. By Saladin Ahmed. Art by Javier Garron. Marvel Comics. 2019. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1302914783. Miles teams up with usual villain Rhino to recover children who have been abducted. Meanwhile, Miles is targeted by the Vice Principal of his school as a bad egg and things heat up between Miles and his friend Barbara.

Mob Psycho 100. By ONE. Art by the author.

  • Vol. 1. Dark Horse Manga. 2018. $11.99. ISBN: 978-1506709871. 
  • Vol. 2. Dark Horse Manga. 2019. $11.99. ISBN: 978-1506709888. 
  • Vol. 3. Dark Horse Manga. 2019. $11.99. ISBN: 978-1506709895.

Mob is your average 8th grader...only he has superpowers. He only uses the powers as part of his job with a Spirit Medium, exorcising spirits. Otherwise, he's a normal kid that wants to do whatever he can to be more attractive to one particular girl. 

Mooncakes. By Suzanne Walker. Art by Wendy Xu. Lion Forge. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1549303043. Nova is a witch, completing her witchhood apprenticeship at home with her grandmothers. When her non-binary werewolf childhood best friend, Tam, shows up in town unexpectedly, Nova decides to help Tam defeat the werewolf-seeking demon hunting them.  

Ms. Marvel, Volume 1: Destined. By Saladin Ahmed. Art by Minkyu Jung. Marvel. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1302918293. Ms. Marvel is back with a new writer and illustrator. In this first volume, she must fight Deathbringer (twice) and save a planet who believes she is the Destined One. Unfortunately, her parents both now know that Kamala is Ms. Marvel and end up traveling with her to the alien planet, Saffa, to save it from the Beast Legions. 

Nancy Drew: The Palace of Wisdom. By Kelly Thompson. Art by Jenn St. Onge. Dynamite Entertainment. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1524108496. Nancy is a 17-year-old super sleuth. When she receives a mysterious letter bringing up her mother's death she travels back to the town she grew up in to investigate. Once there she immediately meets up with all her old friends, including the Hardy Boys. 

New Kid. By Jerry Craft. Art by the author. HarperCollins Publishers. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-0062691194. Jordan Banks starts a new school and finds himself torn between his neighborhood in Washington Heights and the posh environment of Riverdale Academy Day School.

The Okay Witch. By Emma Steinkeller. Art by the author. Aladdin. 2019. $20.99. ISBN: 978-1534431461. Thirteen-year-old Moth Hush loves spooky stories, Halloween, and all things witchy. So when she discovers her own magical powers, it's a dream come true. But being a witch is not the cure-all to eighth-grade angst that Moth hoped it would be. Packed with action, wit, and a charming heroine who is impossible not to root for, plus that talking cat!

Operatic. By Kyo Maclear. Art by Byron Eggenschwiler. Groundworks Books. 2019. $19.99 ISBN: 978-1554989720. Charlie and other 8th graders in Mr. K's music class are just a couple months from graduating middle school and are tasked with an assignment to find "their song." Charlie connects with the music and life of opera diva Maria Callas and at the same time deals with the absence of her friend Luka, who hasn't been coming to school after being the victim of homophobic bullying.

Our Dreams at Dusk. By Yuhki Kamatani. Art by the author. 2019.

  • Vol. 1. Seven Seas. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1642750607.
  • Vol. 2. Seven Seas. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1642750607.
  • Vol. 3. Seven Seas. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1642750621.

Tasuku’s terrified he’s been outed as gay and just before he does the unthinkable, he meets a mysterious woman who leads him to a drop-in center. There he finds other people dealing with similar problems. With their help, can Tasuku find his place in the world?   

Outpost Zero. By Sean Kelly McKeever. Art by Alexandre Tengfenki, Jean-François Beaulieu. 2019.

  • Vol. 1, The Smallest Town in the Universe. Image Comics. $14.99 ISBN: 978-1534306929.
  • Vol. 2, Follow it Down. Image Comics. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1534312166.

Welcome back to the smallest town in the universe! A devastating storm has trapped the Outpost under ice, threatening to crush them all. As the Planning Team ventures out into the Frost to save them, teenagers Alea, Sam and Lyss find an unexpected opportunity to prove their worth and uncover greater mysteries buried beneath the surface.

Paper Girls. By Brian K. Vaughan. Art by Cliff Chiang.

  • Vol. 5. Image Comics. 2018. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1534308671.
  • Vol. 6. Image Comics. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1534313248.

The four paper girls travel through time to the future and the prehistoric past, only to find neither is quite what they thought it would be.

*Pumpkinheads. By Rainbow Rowell. Art by Faith Erin Hicks. First Second. 2019. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1626721623. On their final night of work at DeKnock’s Pumpkin Patch, high school seniors and “Patch” friends Josiah and Deja decide to make their final shift an adventurous one as they explore the park’s many sights and tasty treats in search of the Fudge Girl, Josiah’s long-time, unrequited crush.

Queen of the Sea. By Dylan Mecoonis. Art by the author. Candlewick. 2019. $24.99. ISBN: 978-1536204988. Raised by nuns on a small, remote island, Margaret, a spirited young orphan, spends her time exploring her surroundings, learning the ways of the Elysian sisters, and hoping for the appearance of newcomers. With the successive arrival of two strangers, Margaret’s routine life is upended as she not only discovers the island’s true purpose but learns the truth of her own past and the grave danger she is in.

Quincredible, Volume 1: Quest to Be the Best! By Rodney Barnes. Art by Selina Espiritu. Lion Forge. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 9781549302824. Quin is a normal teen just trying to fit in. But Quin discovers a secret superpower: invulnerability. Can Quin use his new super-ability to save his family and his New Orleans community?

Ronin Island, Volume 1. By Greg Pak. Art by Giannis Milonogiannis. Boom! Studios. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1684154593. In Feudal times on an island off the China Sea, Japanese Kenishi is graduating from his warrior training along with his chief rival, Hana, a Korean orphan. Though Kenishi and Hana are at odds, they must learn how to work together when an emissary of the new Shogun demands fealty from the island and support in fighting an even greater threat to both the peaceful island as well as the entire mainland.

Runaways. By Rainbow Rowell. Art by Andres Genolet, Kris Anka & David Lafuente. 2019.

  • Vol. 3, That Was Yesterday. Marvel Comics. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1302914134.
  • Vol. 4, But You Can’t Hide. Marvel Comics. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1302918019.

The return of Alex Wilder. The origin of Nico's staff's power. And a reckoning with the children of the Gibborim, the source of their parents' and Alex's original betrayal. It's enough to ruin Christmas.

Sabrina the Teenage Witch. By Kelly Thompson. Art by Veronica Fish. Archie Comics. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1682558058. In this reboot of Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Sabrina Spellman has just moved to Greendale with her aunts Hilda and Zelda and their sassy talking cat (and former wizard), Salem. While she quickly catches the attention of new crushes, a friend, and an enemy, Sabrina’s attempts to fit in fall to the bottom of her priority list when she is attacked by monsters outside of the high school.

Satoko and Nada. By Anashin. Art by the author.

  • Vol. 1. Seven Seas Entertainment. 2018. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1626929098.
  • Vol. 2. Seven Seas Entertainment. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1626929852.

Satoko is from Japan and Nada is from Saudi Arabia. Satoko and Nada are college students and roommates attending school in America. Told as short one-page vignettes, Satoko and Nada get to know each other's cultures through food, religion, and custom; leading to a great friendship.

Sea Sirens: A Trot & Cap'n Bill Adventure. By Amy Chu. Art by Janet K. Lee. Viking Books for Young Readers. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-0451480170. Trot, a Vietnamese American surfer girl, and Cap'n Bill, her cranky one-eyed cat, catch too big a wave and wipe out, sucked down into a magical underwater kingdom where an ancient deep-sea battle rages. The beautiful Sea Siren mermaids are under attack from the Serpent King and his slithery minions—and Trot and her feline become dangerously entangled in this war of tails and fins.

Shuri, Volume 1: The Search for Black Panther. By Nnedi Okorafor. Art by Leonardo Romero. Marvel Comics. 2019. $10.99. ISBN: 978-1302915230. Shuri is a scientist, an inventor, and always in the shadow of her Black Panther big brother. But when the superhero king of Wakanda disappears on a space mission, the mantle falls to Shuri. Her mission to find T'Challa is complicated by space bugs, astral projection, Groot and Rocket, and pressure from her queenly mother. The nation's cry is "Wakanda forever"—but where does Shuri fit in, and what does she want for herself?

*Simon & Louise. By Max de Radiguès. Art by the author. Conundrum Press. 2019. $18.00. ISBN: 978-1772620351. The school year is over and it's time for Louise to leave on her family vacation for two months, leaving boyfriend Simon on his own. Within a day, Louise has changed her Facebook status to "single" and Simon has no idea why. Louise tells him her Dad forbids the relationship, but Simon refuses to accept that and leaves home to hitchhike to the beach town to win Louise back. 

Sincerely, Harriet. By Sarah Winifred Searle. Art by the author. Graphic Universe. 2019. $11.99. ISBN: 978-1541545298. Harriet Flores is a young girl dealing with an invisible disability. Over the course of a summer, she becomes friends with her neighbor Pearl and finds solace in reading and writing.

Skyward. By Joe Henderson. Art by Lee Garbett. 2019.

  • Vol. 2, Here There Be Dragonflies. Image Comics. $16.99. ISBN: 978-1534308817.
  • Vol. 3, Fix the World. Image Comics. $16.99. ISBN: 978-1534312432.

Willa is on the run from Chicago to Kansas City, determined to find the gravity fix her father alluded to before he died. But she’ll have to survive a manhunt, a class war, and some giant bugs if she’s going to make it there alive.

Sleepless, Volume 2. By Sarah Vaughn. Art by Leila del Ducca. Image Comics. 2019. $16.99. ISBN: 978-1534310582. Lady "Poppy" Pyppenia, the illegitimate daughter of the late king, has survived several attempts on her life, but she is now in more danger than ever. Having released Sir Cyrenic from his vow of sleeplessness to protect her, Poppy is on her own and is resolved to find a to way expose her attackers and finally live in peace without the threat of violence hanging over her. 

Smashed: Junji Ito Story Collection. By Junji Ito. Art by the author. VIZ Media. 2019. $22.99. ISBN: 978-1421598468. A collection of thirteen terrifying tales by the Japanese master of horror, Junji Ito. From your average suburb to local schools and rivers no place is safe from Ito! He makes the mundane monstrous. Read with the lights on!

Spider-Gwen: Ghost-Spider, Volume 2: Impossible Year. By Seanan McGuire. Art by Takeshi Miyazawa, Rosi Kampe. Marvel Comics. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1302914776. Her identity no longer a secret, Gwen Stacy strives to maintain a balance between her everyday life and the sudden fame her superhero status has brought her. Unfortunately for Gwen, nothing can ever be easy. 

Stage Dreams. By Melanie Gillman. Art by the author. Graphic Universe. 2019. $10.99. ISBN: 978-1541572843. In New Mexico Territory, 1861, Grace is fleeing inscription into the Confederate Army when the coach she's riding is attacked by the notorious outlaw Ghost Hawk.

Stargazing. By Jen Wang. Art by the author. First Second. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1250183880. Christine Hong is a normal middle school girl—good grades, music lessons, helpful and polite in her family's Chinese American community. Moon Li, the new girl who moves into the Hongs' rental property with her mother, is a quirky artsy misfit with a K-pop obsession and anger management issues. Despite their differences, Christine and Moon become fast friends, bonding over music and food and field trips to the planetarium and a dance routine for the talent show. 

Stephen McCranie's Space Boy. By Stephen McCranie. Art by the author. 2019.

  • Vol. 2. Dark Horse Books. $10.99. ISBN:9781506706801.
  • Vol. 3. Dark Horse Books. $10.99. ISBN:9781506708423.
  • Vol. 4. Dark Horse Books. $10.99. ISBN:9781506708430.

After spending thirty years cryogenically frozen on a space flight to Earth, Amy is adjusting to a new school, planet, and time period. Despite her new friends’ discouragement, Amy befriends Oliver, a loner and the only person who doesn’t set off her synesthesia that attaches flavors to people. While they bond over their shared outsider status, many things about Oliver remain a mystery.

Submerged. By Vita Ayala. Art by Lisa Sterle. Vault Comics. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1939424426. Her whole Life, Elysia Puente has been cleaning up the messes her younger brother, Angel, has made. When he calls to tell her he's in trouble on one of the stormiest nights of the year, Elysia can't help but go rescue him once again. She descends into the subway station that’s closed for flooding and encounters strange beings on her quest to find her brother.

Surviving the City. By Tasha Spillet. Art by Natasha Donovan. HighWater Press. 2019. $18.95. ISBN: 978-1553797562. Miikwan and Dez are best friends, each grappling with family issues. When Dez disappears one night, Miikwan fears that she has become one of the murdered and missing Indigenous women of their community.

Teen Titans: Raven. By Kami Garcia. Art by Gabriel Picolo. DC Comics. 2019. $16.99. ISBN: 978-1401286231. Raven lives a nice life with her foster mom Viv when tragically her mom is killed in an accident and she's taken in by her mom's sister and daughter. Raven cannot remember anything about her old life yet, and strange supernatural things are happening all around her. Prom night will reveal all!

This Was Our Pact. By Ryan Andrews. Art by the author. First Second. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 978-1626720534. Every year, the townsfolk drop paper lanterns into the river to celebrate the Autumn Equinox Festival. This year, Ben and his buddies—plus misfit tagalong Nathaniel—are determined to follow the lanterns as far as they go. They have two rules: No one turns for home, and no one looks back.

The Unstoppable Wasp, Unlimited. By Jeremy Whitley. Art by Gurihiru, Alti Firmansyah. 2019.

  • Vol. 1, Fix Everything. Marvel Comics. $15.99. ISBN: 978-1302914264.
  • Vol. 2, Unstoppable! Marvel Comic. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1532143663.

Nadia Van Dyne and the other girl geniuses of G.I.R.L. Labs have been proving their worth as a new superhero team. When a new group of scientific girl genius supervillains starts attacking local labs, the girls of G.I.R.L. must band together to stop this threat from terrorizing the city—and tearing their newfound family apart.

West Coast Avengers. By Kelly Thompson. Art by Daniele Di Nicuolo, Gang Yuk Lim, Moy R, Stefano Caselli, Triona Farrell. 2019.

  • Vol. 1, Best Coast. Marvel Comics. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1302913458.
  • Vol. 2, City of Evils. Marvel Comics. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1302913465.

When the West Coast Avengers, led by the best Hawkeye (Kate Bishop of course), have relocated to LA, they notice a dearth of superheroes protecting our shorelines out West. Kate's got some great friends with her like America Chavez, Kid Omega, and Gwenpool! But, when Tigra shows up supersize, not everything is as it seems. Is a certain supervillain calling the shots to take down the WCAs?

*Witch Hat Atelier. By Kamome Shirahama. Art by the author. 2019.

  • Vol. 1. Kodansha Comics. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1632367709.
  • Vol. 2. Kodansha Comics. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1632368041.
  • Vol. 3. Kodansha Comics. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1632368058.

Coco dreams of being a magician. In her world, the only way to learn magic is to already be a witch and Coco is not. One day a band of traveling witches comes to town, and Coco meets the enigmatic Qifrey. Her world is turned upside down when she accidentally performs a spell that traps her mother in stone. To rescue her, she must leave with Qifrey and become his magical apprentice in a land far from home.

Witchy. By Ariel Slamet Ries. Art by the author. Lion Forge. 2019. $14.99. ISBN: 9781549304811. Nyneve is a young witch living in the fantasy kingdom of Hyalin. In Hyalin, long hair means powerful magic and Nyneve and her father both have long hair. However, if your hair is too long, you're seen as a threat and killed (as Nyneve's father was). When Nyneve comes of age, she is conscripted into the Witch Guard and trains with other young witches.

Woman World. By Aminder Dhaliwal. Art by the author. Drawn and Quarterly. 2018. $24.95. ISBN: 978-1770463356. The future is female—literally. Over the last few generations, men have gone extinct. All babies born now identify as female. A village of women unifies under the flag of "Beyonce's Thighs," led by their cheerfully nudist mayor Gaia, a practical grandmother who is the source of all remaining knowledge about men, and an authentically diverse group of young women and girls who are just as willing to contemplate the meaning of life as they are to make a fart joke.

Wonderland. By Yugo Ishikawa. Art by the author.

  • Vol. 1. Seven Seas Entertainment. 2018. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1626929081.
  • Vol. 2. Seven Seas Entertainment. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1626929982.
  • Vol. 3. Seven Seas Entertainment. 2019. $12.99. ISBN: 978-1642751277.

Yukko wakes up one morning learning that she and her family have shrunk in size. She watches her tiny parents get murdered by her cat, and her dog serves as her vehicle to get her through the apocalypse town. Yukko meets Alice who doesn't speak the same language but is shrouded in mystery and intrigue.
 
X-23. By Mariko Tamaki. Art by Juann Cabal, Marcio Fiorito, Georges Duarte, Diego Oloregui. 2019.

  • Vol. 1, Family Album. Marvel Comics. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1302913083.
  • Vol. 2, X - Assassin. Marvel Comics. $17.99. ISBN: 978-1302916862.

After years of nothing but loneliness, tragedy, and violence in her life, the original X-23 clone, Laura Kinney, is finally at peace, living with her teenaged cloned sister, Gabby. When Gabby is kidnapped by the Cuckoos, three sisters who are clones of Emma Frost, Laura will do whatever it takes to get her back, even if it means turning other sisters against each other.