More Graphic Novel Recommendations

I’ve read over 300 graphic novels in 2023. Most of them were okay. Less than 20 were so bad as to be wastes of time. The following I recommend so strongly that I want you to reach out to me if you end up reading them so we can discuss them together.

Superlatives

Most surreal:

• Bonding by Matthew Erman

Best use of devastating minimalism:

• Sabrina by Nick Drnaso, if you want mundane horror
• Acting Class by Nick Drnaso, if you want surreal horror
• Beverly by Nick Drnaso, if you want short surreal stories

Best existential French vibes:

• Lupus by Frederick Peeters

Best existential Japanese vibes:

• Solanin + Solanin: an Epilogue by Inio Asano

Best magical realism:

• Shubeik Lubeik by Deena Mohammed

Best blind (don’t read the synopsis or anything) read:

• Why Don’t You Love Me by Paul B. Rainy

Best historical deep dives:

• Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths by Shigeru Mizuki, but all of his historical books (Hitler, Showa) are amazing
• We Hereby Refuse by Frank Abe, Tamiko Nimura, Ross Ishikawa, Matt Sasaki
• The Black Panther Party by David Walker
• Are you willing to die for the cause? Chris Oliveros

Best non-fiction deep-dive into a region:

• Macedonia by Harvey Pekar, Heather Roberson
• Paying the Land by Joe Sacco
• Ducks by Kate Beaton

Best autobiographical works:

• Forget My Name by Zerocalcare
• The Hospital Suite by John Porcellino
• Melody by Sylvie Rancourt

Most thrilling:

• Hostage by Guy Delisle

Best at making me aggressively/shamefully envy youth, despite the fact I’m getting older and should really be embracing these new stages in life instead indulging in sick nostalgia:

• How Do We Relationship? by Tamifull

Slice of Life

Great for quickly getting the vibe for life in another country and another time.

Best Swedish:

• Red Winter by Anneli Furmark

Best French:

• Juliette by Camille Jourdy
• Lulu Anew by Etienne Davodeau

Best Japanese:

• Talk to My Back by Yamada Murasaki

Under-rated Canadians

Seth, Chester Brown, Guy Deslisle are all great, but there’s some others that I had to dig to find:

• The Abominable Mr. Seabrook by Joe Ollman
• Titan by Francois Vigneault

Under-rated artists

I only recently started developing a critical eye for art in graphic novels, but these artists caught my attention:

• The River at Night by Kevin Huizenga
• It’s Lonely at the Centre of the Earth by Zoe Thorogood

Classics

Read anything by these authors and you won’t be disappointed, but generally their most recent work is better.

• Alison Bechdel
• Scott McCloud
• Guy Deslise
• Joe Sacco
• Adrian Tomine
• Chester Brown
• Nick Drnaso
• Seth
• Joe Ollman
• John Porcellino
• Zerocalcare