43 Graphic Novels for Young Readers, From Toddlers to Teens

32. Nimona

By Noelle Stevenson

Nimona is a shapeshifter who teams up with Lord Ballister Blackheart, a villain who is determined to prove that Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin and the members of the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics are not heroes at all. But Nimona is more dangerous than anyone imagined. 

33. This One Summer

By Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki 

Rose and Windy spend each summer at Awago Beach. The lake house is usually a relaxing escape, but this summer is different; Rose’s parents have been fighting nonstop and the next-door neighbors are up to something dangerous.

34. Scott Pilgrim series

By Bryan O’Malley 

Scott Pilgrim is a part-time musician and full-time slacker. When he falls in love with Ramona Flowers, he must outdo all seven of her ex-boyfriends if he wants a shot at dating her.

35. Dare to Disappoint: Growing Up in Turkey

By Ozge Samanci

Growing up on the Aegean Coast in the 1980s, Ozge dreams of adventure but her parents have different plans. As tensions rise in her home country, Ozge deals with typical teenage problems in addition to political and cultural unrest.

36. Anya’s Ghost

By Vera Brosgol

Anya desperately needs a friend and she finds one in an unexpected place: at the bottom of an abandoned well. Her new friend happens to be a ghost who has been dead for a century.

37. American Born Chinese

By Gene Luen Yang

Yang weaves together the stories of a modern-day Chinese-American student, the fabled Monkey King and the evil Chin-Kee. When all their lives intersect in an unlikely manner, action ensues.

38. Roller Girl

By Victoria Jamieson

Astrid decides to spend her summer at derby camp, but it’s a little tougher than she thought. The older girls are hard to keep up with and she feels as though she’s losing her lifelong best friend, Nicole, who is at dance camp.

39. Sunny Side Up

By Jennifer Holm and Matt Holm 

When she heads to her grandpa’s in Florida for the summer, Sunny is disappointed that it’s not the amusement park she expected. She’s thrilled to meet a new friend, Buzz, but Sunny will soon learn a family secret that could change her life.

40. Blankets

By Craig Thompson 

In a story of first love, Craig and Raina bond over their shared dream of leaving their conservative Midwestern town. The pair’s personal demons cause their relationship to fall apart and the heartbreak will resonate with teen readers.

41. The Graveyard Book 

By Neil Gaiman 

The Newbery Medal-winning book gets the graphic novel treatment and a new generation of readers can meet Bod, a boy who is the only living resident of a graveyard. He’s raised by ghosts, but soon he’ll have to contend with both the living and the dead.

42. In Real Life

By Cory Doctorow and Jen Wang

Coarsegold Online is where Anda spends all her free time, playing games and making online friends from all over the world. When she encounters a player who breaks the rules because he desperately needs money, Anda realizes that right and wrong are a little more complicated in the real world.

43. Cardboard

By Doug TenNapel

No one wants to get a cardboard box for their birthday, but it’s all Cam’s dad can afford. They bend it into the shape of a man, but the result is completely unexpected. It comes to life!

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in October 2016, and updated in March 2020.