Sequential Art
A better, more accurate description of a graphic novel is to call it sequential art. This term gives a little more respect to the artist story teller, especially since the word ‘graphic’ has been hijacked by movie censors. To those of you who have never tried reading a graphic novel, why not? In the same way that listening to an audio book is a different experience of a story, so is reading a story told with pictures and dialogue.
A reader’s engagement occurs on a different level when visual images are present. Our imagination fills in the gaps and we see characters ‘walking’ even though the image is immovable ink on paper.
Sequential art books are available in all genres; fiction, nonfiction, historical fiction, poetry, young adult, LGBTQ, and literature. They can be fun or funny, or serious, emotional, sci-fi, fantasy, mystery, all or any of it. And the art – oh! – some of the art and colouring is just stunning and adds a whole new dimension to the reading experience. It can be so absorbing to look at a beautifully rendered storyline with compelling artwork. Sometimes I feel like I’m falling into the page.
Recently, there has been a trend to convert classic stories, literature, and popular novels to graphic form; The Hobbit, Game of Thrones, Outlander, The Odyssey, and well, you get the idea. And how much more accessible is Shakespeare for high school students when told in graphic form? From my own experience, I never really understood the power of Hamlet’s soliloquy (“To be, or not to be…”) until I saw it rendered by the astounding graphic artist and author Will Eisner. (Will Eisner is the godfather of the sequential art form and best known for his work The Spirit. The image accompanying this post is his.)
If you can make room in your summer reading list, please try one. Or, if there is a young adult in your circle who perhaps resists reading, choose one for them.
Libraries have growing graphic novel sections with lots to choose from. Montréal’s Librairie Drawn and Quarterly Bookshop is one of the biggest publishers and suppliers of graphic novels in French or English. Goodreads also has extensive lists and reviews. Orders are available online.
I highly recommend going on your own search within your preferred genres, or, you can click here for a list of my favourites from a previous post. If you enjoy reading sequential art already, please add your recommendations as a comment, or if you try one this summer, please let me know.
Stay safe everyone.
I LOVE graphic novels! Maybe not surprising since i enjoyed comic books as a kid. The illustrations definitely add another dimension to the story, often without any accompanying words. What I noticed was that the drawings can focus your attention on poignant details that might otherwise have gone unnoticed. My favourite, although i have liked all the graphic novels I’ve read, is “This One Summer” by Mariko Tamaki. Simply brilliant.
This One Summer is a terrific read. Some people have found the content a little touchy for a young adult readership, and it was actually banned in some areas. As an adult reading it, it took me right back to those summers where you are a little too old to play with the younger kids and a little too young to be with the older kids. Everything is awkward, everything is changing. Great recommendation. Thank you.
My granddaughter has always been an avid reader, well beyond her years. Most recently she has found a love for anime and is now reading manga, which is a challenge starting from the back and reading right to left. Nevertheless, she’s obsessed.
Good for her. Manga is beautiful. I need to explore it further. Thank you.