Collecting Graphic Novels and Comic Books

Volume 9 Issue 4 Spring 2009(2)

Edgar Allen Poe, feudal Japan, fairy tales, Buddha, holocaust survivors, and spandex superheroes: all these characters and more can be found in JMU Libraries’ new comic books and graphic novels collections.

Batgirl Comic In Fall 2008, JMU Libraries began to purchase a selection of mainstream comic books and graphic novels, starting with about 170 graphic novel titles, and 225 comic books. About 140 new items will be added to the comics collection in Spring 2009.

The genre can be serious or it can be funny; it has both literary titles and popular reading. Comic books and characters have become part of mainstream popular culture and could easily be used as primary sources for research into gender, sociology, literature, and more. According to a survey by the U.S. Market for Tweens and Young Teens, 2005, almost half of children--both boys and girls--aged 8-11 read comic books.

The difference between “graphic novels” and “comic books” is not clear, but graphic novels are usually published as book-length compilations, while comic books come out in serial format. Some confusion arises because many comic books are eventually republished as “graphic novels,” as they are termed by their publishers. The following sections list the original selection criteria for these formats at JMU, with recommended titles in each area. The comic books are shelved in Carrier Library’s Browsing Collection; most of the graphic novels are located in the ETMC. All can be found in JMU Library Catalog, are available for checkout, and can be requested with the delivery service.

Graphic novels: The graphic novel collection was intended for all ages, 101 Best Graphic Novels Cover Kindergarten through Adult readers. Claire Clemens, the Education Librarian, based her selection on award and best book lists. She used the guide “The 101 Best Graphic Novels “ by Stephen Weiner, published in 2005, to get a range of books that had been published previously; she also used more current lists, such as one from the Young Adult Library Services Association for newer titles. Equal amounts of books were targeted for each of the four age categories (see below).

To enhance the collections, the library purchased (and continues to purchase) books about the genre -- creating them, selecting them, using them in education, and books about the authors.

Here is a sample of these books, which demonstrate the multidisciplinary nature of the collections, as well as to the diversity they represent:

Graphic Novels--What to Read

Elementary (Grades K-5)

Amelia Rules! 1: The Whole World's Crazy
It Was a Dark and Silly Night ...
Owly

Middle School (Grades 6-8)

The Invention of Hugo Cabret: A Novel In Words and Pictures
Kampung Boy
Queen Bee

High School (Grades 9-12)

The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain
Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island: The Graphic Novel
Laika
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare; Richard Appignanesi

Adult

The salon / Nick Bertozzi
Nevermore : a graphic novel anthology of Edgar Allan Poe's short stories
Pride of Baghdad / written by Brian K. Vaughan
Epileptic David B
The dead boy detectives
Age of bronze / Eric Shanower
Mail order bride : a graphic novel / Mark Kalesniko
Dead end / Thomas Ott
Maus : a survivor's tale /Art Spiegelman
Mendel's daughter / Gusta Lemelman

Comic books: JMU's mainstream comic books collection features core titles from DC and Marvel, with some independent titles. Examples include Spider-Man, Iron Man, Superman, and the X-Men, Usagi Yojimbo, and Sandman. It also includes some graphic novels such as Watchmen and Batman, the Dark Knight returns.

Some criteria for selection were:

That the title be available in a bound or DVD format to facilitate preservation.
That the title be either one of the major comic titles or feature a leading female character or character of color (white male leads being the norm for so-called “major” titles).
That the collection include comics from the Golden Age (1930s-1940s), Silver Age (1959-1970), and modern day to facilitate time-series research.
That the collection include a few major manga titles (usually Japanese). Of graphic novels on the overall bestseller list, Naruto and Fruits Basket were of the most highly ranked in 2006. The most recent issue of Fruits Basket is ranked around 900 on the Amazon bestsellers list. Titles were also included from the most famous historical manga by Osamu Tezuka, the ‘father of manga.’

Circulation statistics for comic book titles were tracked during the first semester to evaluate the usefulness of this collection to the JMU community and general library funds are being used to purchase additional titles. As of January, 2009, 72 percent of the original collection has circulated at least once since they were added in the Summer of 2008. Thirty-six percent have circulated at least twice, and 19% have circulated at least three times.

Comic Books--What to read: With the exception of Fruits Basket, all the titles below were written for adults:

Fables deals with various characters from fairy tales and folklore.
Usagi Yojimbo is set in medieval Japan. All the characters just happen to look like animals!
Alias and Queen and Country feature private investigators in the US and UK respectively.
Fruits Basket is one of the top Japanese ‘manga’ titles, and follows the life of a high-school student investigating a zodiac curse!
Buddha tells the story of Siddartha in a visual and engaging format.

Helpful links:

Information page about comic books collection

Search in LEO for books about comic books and graphic novels, as well as the most complete list of comic books and graphic novels.

YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens: Annual List of Recommended Graphic Novels

References

Business of Consumer Book Publishing 2007 (Simba Information: 2007). Downloaded 11/27/2007 from Market Research Academic.com, p. 140.