New Graphic Novels, Fall 2021

Graphic novel time!

It’s been forever since I could read one without dizziness so this post has taken a while. (Who knew concussion symptoms could last up to a year?!) I’m happy to say that I’ve finally managed to review the huge stack of graphic novels that I’ve been stockpiling. You’ll find so many great reading choices on this list to share with the kids in your life.

New Books for Ages 6 – 10

Magic Tree House The Graphic Novel Dinosaurs Before Dark by Mary Pope Osborne, adapted by Jenny Laird, illustrated by Kelly & Nichole Matthews
HISTORICAL FICTION
ages 6 – 10
Hands down, this is one of the best graphic adaptations of a novel that I’ve ever seen! The artwork by Kelly & Nichole Matthews makes the settings and characters come to life with nuances from which kids can infer. Plus, all the most important plot details are included. It is so EXCELLENT!! Even kids who have read the novels before will love rereading the books in graphic versions. In this first book, brother and sister Jack and Annie, find a magical treehouse filled with books. Jack begins a book on dinosaurs and wishes that he could travel to see them and zoom, they do! Annie befriends a flying dinosaur and they help save some baby dinosaurs.

Scaredy Squirrel in a Nutshell by Melanie Watt
HUMOR
ages 6 – 10
Scaredy Squirrel has many fears and therefore, elaborate coping strategies. In the first story, the scariest thing is an adorable pom-pom-tailed creature. Maybe he can just play dead?! In the second story, his pizza gets delivered to the wrong spot under his tree — his solution is to not touch the ground and involves stilts, a t-rex grabber tool, and the fail-safe option of playing dead. But that fluffy-tailed bunny gets his pizza and helpfully sets it where Scaredy Squirrel can get it! NOW what will he do? (Consider all his options and bravely make a new friend!)

Waffles & Pancake Planetary-Yum by Drew Brockington
REALISTIC
ages 6 – 10
Take a trip to the museum with Waffles, Pancake, and their dad! It’s a story that shows kids about museums and teaches a valuable lesson about what to do if you get lost…and it normalizes divorced parents. Read this before you head out to a natural history museum!

The Bailey School Kids Vampires Don’t Wear Polka Dots by Pear Low based on the novel by Marcia Thronton Jones and Debbie Dadey
PARANORMAL
ages 6 – 10
A quick and easy-to-read story with great pacing, suspense but isn’t scary! After the misbehaving kids ran off the last teacher, the new teacher sees worrisome– because the kids are sure she’s a zombie. Why do they think this? It’s based on clues like her appearance and the coffin in her basement that they find when they break into her house. Even though Eddie is scared of her, he continues to behave badly in class. Unfortunately for Eddie, their new teacher, Mrs. Jeepers, pulls him out of class and puts a stop to his bad behavior once and for all.

Dolphin Girl Trouble in Pizza Paradise by Zach Smith
SUPERHERO
ages 7 – 10
This hilarious story is about the weird and ridiculous antics of an unusual superhero, bizarre villains, and the Pizza Paradise restaurant. Dolphin girl uses her echolocation to learn Sea Cow’s evil plot. She recruits her friend Keith who becomes Otter Boy to help her thwart Sea Cow’s nefarious plan to turn Pizza Paradise customers into zombies and take over the restaurant. Gasp! So evil. What a silly adventure!

Cookie & Broccoli Play It Cool by Bob McMahon
HUMOR
ages 7 – 10
This cute story shows that kindness is better than coolness…Cookie, Broccoli, and Garlic are SO excited to join the cool crowd but they’re all rejected. But when the leader of the Cool Crowd, Cucumber, quits, and Broccoli gets elected as their leader, maybe they can join now? Broccoli runs away from all the work and Cookie and Garlic still don’t get it but don’t worry, they learn a valuable lesson and readers will enjoy the humor with a great message.

Jop and Blip Wanna Know #1 by Jim Benton
STEM / HUMOR
ages 6 – 10
If you like kooky stories, playful characters, and random facts, this beginning graphic novel for ages 6 to 10 is a hilarious and informative reading experience. Jop and Blip ponder topics like farts, words that begin with silent letters, perspective, dragons, and more — and as they discuss, you’ll learn a thing or ten.

New Books for Ages 8 – 12

Barb The Last Berzerker by Dan & Jason
ADVENTURE / NORSE MYTHOLOGY (ish)
ages 8 – 12
Join Barb on a funny, gross, and adventurous quest to find the northern tribe of Zerks so they can help rescue her own Zerks clan who the Witch Head has captured but Barb escapes. But first, Barb steals a special magical sword to help her become a Berzerker. As she travels, she’s joined by her yeti friend named Porkchop. Barb’s small but she’s brave and empathetic, both of which help her with the snot goblins, a giant, and vampire goat fiends, eventually finding her way to the Northern Zerks. But will they help?

Death and Sparkles by Rob Justus
A darling adventurous, and funny story with meaningful messages about consumerism and fame…Sparkles is an arrogant over0merchandized unicorn who learns some big life lessons when he meets Death and they become friends. Death is lonely because everything he touches dies — until Sparkles. In a big fight with the Lizard Bros. who are now the over-merchandized favorites, Sparkles rejects the big cupcake and fame in favor of his new BFF, Death.

Carlton Crumple Creature Catcher by David Fremont
MONSTERS
ages 8 – 12
Super fun and funny, this is a story about a naive kid named Carlton who decides to fight monsters who are actually his older brother. Nevertheless, Carlton learns how to fight monsters — and this knowledge comes in handy when he needs to save humanity from the monsters who will do anything for fast food burgers.

Strubble Town Squirrel Do Bad by Stephan Pastis
HUMOR
ages 8 – 12
Because of her overprotective dad, Wendy the Wanderer is stuck inside all day, every day. Until her dad takes a trip and she gets an inattentive teenage babysitter. Before her dad leaves, he reminds Wendy that even the smallest thing can have big consequences. And with that, you might be able to predict that this story will be a cascade of cause and effect mayhem that is funny and also, poignant. Wendy’s first small action is feeding Squirrley McSquirrel a surgery Mooshy drink. The consequence? Squirrely goes crazy around the town and sets off a domino-like chain reaction of events that you couldn’t predict and will keep you laughing out loud.

Batman, Robin, and Howard by Jeffrey Brown
SUPERHERO
ages 8 – 12
When Damian aka. Robin is sent to a new school, he immediately clashes with a kid named Howard, probably because Howard is smart and athletic just like Damian. But if they’re going to work as a team in soccer and in science, they’ll need to figure out how to get along. Fortunately, they become the best of friends. Then, when Damian’s dad, Batman, goes missing, the two of them work together to find the missing superhero and help Batman solve his current soccer-related case.

Big Hero 6 #1: The Series by Hong Gyun An
SUPERHERO
ages 8 – 12
I love this completely new, exciting story (not a rehash of the movie nor is it a manga) that captures the complexities of Hiro’s new life as both a college student and superhero with his friends Baymax, Go Go, Wasabi, Honey Lemon, and Fred. As superheroes, they’re trying to defeat a mother/daughter villain team called High Voltage. But at school, Hiro is assigned a mentor who hates him named Karmi, a student who was previously the youngest there until Hiro. And his schoolwork challenges seem overwhelming. Hiro learns from Baymax how his older brother also failed but continued to persevere. Adventurous and fun to read!

Ms. Marvel Stretched Thin by Nadia Shammas, illustrated by Nabi H. Ali
SUPERHERO
ages 8 – 12
Juggling school, family, and being a secret superhero is tiring and stressful for Kamala Khan, aka. Ms. Marvel. When a robot attacks Avengers Tower, Kamala’s stretched too thin (literally) and learns to rely on her team which helps her become more confident in her problem-solving abilities. A great read with a likable main character.

The Bright Family by Matthew Cody and Carol Burrell, illustrated by Derick Brooks
SCI-FI
ages 8 – 12
It’s a wild trip into new worlds when Jayden sneaks into his dad’s lab and accidentally sends his om and dad into a dimensional portal, then jumps in after them with his sister, Nia, and their robot nanny, Dusty. The siblings work together to face beasts, weather perils, and an entire species before they eventually reunite with their parents. If you like epic adventures in space and relatable characters with heart, don’t miss this first book in a new series.

The Legend of Auntie Po by Shing Yin Khor
HISTORICAL / FOLKTALE
ages 9 – 12

It’s the late 1800s and Mei lives at a logging camp where her dad works as the cook. She’s best friends with the camp owner’s daughter, she loves telling stories about a strong heroine called Auntie Po, a twist on the Paul Bunyan stories. As she deals with anti-Chinese sentiments that force her dad to leave, she confronts Auntie Po with anger and insists that she should help her. I like how the story addresses an important part of history but felt the pacing and plot were sluggish.