What to Read? Check out YALSA and the Cybils

Looking for some good reads? The Young Adult Library Services Association and the Cybils nominating committee have some suggestions for you. For the curious, links are included to our reviews and other coverage. So if you’re in the path of the big blizzard we’re expecting on the East Coast, pick up some of these along with the bread and milk!

First up is the YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens list. The full list is 112 titles long, but here’s the top ten:

Awkward, by Svetlana Chmakova (Yen Press) (review by Mike Pawuk, roundtable, preview)
Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans, by Don Brown (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
Lumberjanes, vols. 1 and 2, by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis, Shannon Watters, and Brooke Allen (BOOM! Studios) (review by Lori Henderson; preview)
Ms. Marvel, vol. 2, by G. Willow Wilson, Jacob Wyatt, and Adrian Alphona, and vol. 3, by G. Willow Wilson, Takeshi Miyazawa, and Elmo Bondoc (Marvel Comics) (review of vol. 1 by Lori Henderson)
Nimona, by Noelle Stevenson (Harper Teen)
Roller Girl, by Victoria Jamieson (Dial Books for Young Readers) (review by Esther Keller)
Sacred Heart, by Liz Suburbia (Fantagraphics)
A Silent Voice, vols. 1-3, by Yoshitoki Oima (Kodansha Comics) (review of vol. 1 by Michael May)
Trashed, by Derf Backderf (Abrams ComicArts)
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, vols. 1 and 2, by Ryan North and Erica Henderson (Marvel Comics)

Need more? YALSA also included a number of graphic novels in their list of Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers:

Human Body Theater, by Maris Wicks (First Second) (review by J. Caleb Mozzocco)
Awkward, by Svetlana Chmakova
Gotham Academy, vol. 1, by Becky Cloonan, Brenden Fletcher, Karl Kerschl (DC Comics) (review by Lori Henderson, roundtable, interview with artist Brenden Fletcher)
Roller Girl, by Victoria Jamieson
Ares: Bringer of War, by George O’Connor (First Second)
Junior Braves of the Apocalypse: A Brave Is a Brave, by Greg Smith (Oni Press)
Nimona, by Noelle Stevenson
The Woods, vol. 1, by James Tynion (BOOM! Studios)
Lumberjanes, vol. 1, by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis, Shannon Watters, and Brooke Allen
Ms. Marvel, vol. 3, by G. Willow Wilson, Takeshi Miyazawa, and Elmo Bondoc
Assassination Classroom, vols. 1-6, by Yusei Matsui (Viz)

And finally, the finalists have been released for the Cybils Awards. Some of these may seem a little familiar…

Elementary/Middle Grade

Baba Yaga’s Assistant, by Marika McCoola and Emily Carroll (Candlewick) (review by Esther Keller)
Courtney Crumrin, vol. 7: Tales of a Warlock, by Ted Naifeh (Oni Press)
Dragons Beware! by Jorge Aguirre and Rafael Rosado (First Second) (review by Esther Keller, book trailer)
Roller Girl, by Victoria Jamieson
Secret Coders, by Gene Luen Yang and Mike Holmes (First Second) (review by Esther Keller)
Sunny Side Up, by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm (Scholastic) (review by Esther Keller)
The Marvels, by Brian Selznick (Scholastic)

Young Adult

Honor Girl: A Graphic Memoir, by Maggie Thrash (Scholastic)
Lion of Rora, by by Christos Gage, Ruth Gage, and Jackie Lewis (Oni Press)
March, Book Two, by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell (Top Shelf) (review by Esther Keller, review by Brigid Alverson at Robot 6)
Ms. Marvel, vol. 1, by G. Willow Wilson, Adrian Alphona, and Jacob Wyatt (Marvel Comics)
Nimona, by Noelle Stevenson
Oyster War, by Ben Towle (Oni Press)
Terrorist: Gavrilo Princip, the Assassin Who Ignited World War I, by Henrik Rehr

Filed under: Graphic Novels