Favourite Graphic Novels for Secondary School Children
These comics and graphic novels offer a different route into discovering the pleasure of reading.
The graphic novel format is a great way to engage reluctant readers, present difficult subject matter in an accesible way, as well as to just enjoy a great read. There is something on this list for every teen.
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Conspiracy of Ravens
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Conspiracy of Ravens
Anne Ravenhall is just trying to get through her exams at boarding school - until a mysterious aunt leaves her a mysterious locket…
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Invisible Emmie
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Invisible Emmie
Thirteen-year-old Emmie is the quiet girl at school, the one nobody notices. She loves to draw – and is good at it too – and has a…
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The Legend of Sally Jones
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The Legend of Sally Jones
Jakob Wegelius’ graphic novel prequel to the novel The Murderer’s Ape tells the gorilla Sally Jones’ sad origin story wi…
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Pumpkin Heads
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Pumpkin Heads
A story of friendship and romance told in a funny and inclusive graphic novel that celebrates the joy and diversity of Halloween t…
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Stormbreaker: The Graphic Novel
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Stormbreaker: The Graphic Novel
The graphic novel adaptation of this well-written and action-packed story of a teenage spy works really well
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Trish Trash: Rollergirl of Mars - The Collected Edition
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Trish Trash: Rollergirl of Mars - The Collected Edition
This collection of Trish Trash: Rollergirl of Mars, issues 1-3, is a fascinating graphic novel, melding a dystopian Mars soci…
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The Senses
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The Senses
Diane starts to explore her five senses with the help of a virtual reality headset. It’s extremely unusual to see scientific …
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Pie in the Sky
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Pie in the Sky
Illustrated throughout, this heartfelt story contains so much: a family coping with bereavement, the alienation of moving somewher…
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Alpha: Abidjan to Gare du Nord
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Alpha: Abidjan to Gare du Nord
A powerful, terrible and essential story, Alpha should be required reading for everyone. The graphic novel highlights the terror a…
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Tales From Outer Suburbia
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Tales From Outer Suburbia
These often thought-provoking stories look at the reactions ordinary people have to the unusual situations they find themselves in…
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Ethel & Ernest
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Ethel & Ernest
Ethel & Ernest tells the story of Raymond Briggs' parents, from 1928 to their deaths in the 70s - spanning a period of great s…
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The Amulet of Samarkand: A Bartimaeus Graphic Novel
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The Amulet of Samarkand: A Bartimaeus Graphic Novel
The graphic novel adaptation of the first volume in the best-selling Bartimaeus sequence makes the series more accessible to reade…
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Dark Satanic Mills
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Dark Satanic Mills
In a Britain laid to waste by catastrophic global warming, a motorcycle courier, Christy, and an atheist campaigner are on the run…
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Persepolis
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Persepolis
Persepolis is Satrapi's history of Iran and her life in Iran and France as she tries to retain her Iranian culture but also grow u…
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Geis 2: A Game Without Rules
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Geis 2: A Game Without Rules
In this sequel to Geis: A Matter of Life and Death, Alexis Deacon creates a darker, perilous fairytale, in which his characte…
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Jane, the Fox & Me
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Jane, the Fox & Me
This thought-provoking graphic novel by Fanny Britt, exquisitely illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault, is a real visual delight
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Salem Brownstone: All Along the Watchtowers
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Salem Brownstone: All Along the Watchtowers
In this dark gothic fantasy, Salem must meet his guardian familiar, get help from some new friends and defeat mysterious dark forc…
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Line Of Fire: Diary Of An Unknown Soldier
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Line Of Fire: Diary Of An Unknown Soldier
In this striking graphic novel adaptation of a 100-year-old diary, the events of the first two months of WWI are told through the …
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The Marvels
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The Marvels
More than just a mystery, The Marvels is a heart-warming story about growing up, identity and family, full of cinematic and captiv…
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The Isobel Journal
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The Isobel Journal
Subtitled ‘Just a Northern Girl from Where Nothing Really Happens’, this beautifully-presented book from 18-year-old d…
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Romeo and Juliet - Manga Shakespeare
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Romeo and Juliet - Manga Shakespeare
Set in modern Tokyo, with the Capulets and Montagues recast as organised-crime rivals, this racy retelling gets to the heart …
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The Arrival
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The Arrival
In this unusual book, we follow a young man as he packs his bags and leaves his family to go and start a new life in another count…
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