[My awesome friend Rachel Edidin tweeted that she had “Just sent someone a huge long list of comics recommendations for her 11-year-old daughter.” Of course, I immediately asked her if I could post the list here. Thanks, Rachel!
Also, I added links. Where Rachel recommended a series of books I linked to the first in the series. Or just to a random choice, if the series didn’t have any apparent order. –Amp]
The following is a list I compiled casually–mostly off the top of my head, which is my excuse for many of the no doubt numerous omissions (Sock Monkey! How could I have forgotten Sock Monkey?!)–for an acquaintance who asked me to recommend comics for her eleven-year-old daughter. As I mention below, I wasn’t shooting for a comprehensive list, nor even a super thorough one: the titles I mentioned are, for the most part, ones that I’ve read and enjoyed and that I feel comfortable recommending with little or no reservation to an eleven-year-old (and her parents). The list is also tailored somewhat to the interests of this particular eleven-year-old, who likes adventure and space but isn’t particularly interested in fairies, romance, or soap-opera angst.
In short: Your mileage will vary.
The other major considerations that went into the list were accessibility–I wanted to include books she was likely to be able to find at her school or local public library–and content–no explicit sex or graphic violence, and a hashmark to indicate books I thought Mom might want to review before passing them along to her daughter (not just based on sex and violence–for example, I marked Tintin because I’d balk at giving it to a kid without a conversation or two about racism and colonialism; and The Rabbi’s Cat because I consider it to be generally a more grown-up book). I’ve deliberately erred on the side of caution in terms of content–I grew up with almost no restrictions on reading material, and at eleven I was cheerfully reading Marge Piercey, Angela Carter, and Tom Robbins, so I’m not entirely comfortable gauging what constitutes age-appropriate material. Here, for the most part, I’ve omitted books that I might recommend only to specific eleven-year-olds. I struggled over whether to include Street Angel and Sparks but ultimately decided to keep them on the list, mostly because of how deeply I identify with both books and how much I know I would have loved them as an eleven-year-old. Others of the titles on the list–most notably, The Rabbi’s Cat and some of the G. T. Labs books–might skew older for more academic reasons, but I’d consider them well within the capacity and interest of many smart eleven-year-olds.
You’ll also notice a dearth of licensed comics and adaptations (although I’ll be the first to admit that there are some splendid ones out there). There are a couple reasons for this. First, extensive established continuity is a major turn-off for me when I’m trying something out for the first time (this is the same reason the only ongoing superhero comics you’ll see on the list are ones whose early arcs can stand alone). Second, I’m a huge format nerd: I like the idea of introducing newcomers to comics that they will see first and foremost as *comics* rather than immediately associating them with works in other media.
* * *
* indicates how-to books about making comics.
# indicates books you should review before giving them to your dd. No explicit sex or super-graphic violence, but some adult themes. I’ve probably used this more liberally than is technically called for, but better safe than sorry.
In Print
Hereville, by Barry Deutsch (the hardcover will be out in fall)
American Born Chinese, by Gene Luen Yang (If her school library doesn’t have this, it’s worth writing a stern letter about. American Born Chinese is one of the best YA graphic novels ever written, and was the first YA comic to be picked as a National Book Award finalist.)
*Drawing Comics Is Easy (Except When It’s Hard), by Alexa Kitchen
Polly and the Pirates, by Ted Naifeh
Courtney Crumrin (series; four volumes so far), by Ted Naifeh
Usagi Yojimbo, by Stan Sakai
The Courageous Princess, by Rod Espinoza
Groo, by Sergio Aragonés
Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the 8th Grade, by Landry Q. Walker and Eric Jones
Banana Sunday, by Colleen Coover
#The Adventures of Tintin, by Hergé (you might want to skim some of these for content; they’re older and very much products of their era in terms of their handling of race, etc. That said, I grew up on them and turned out okay. Smiley )
Ultimate Spider-Man (vol. 1-3), by Brian Bendis et. al.
Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane, by Sean McKeever et. al.
#Street Angel, by Brian Maruca and Jim Rugg (definitely read this one first. It’s cartoony, but there are also some adult themes and violence)
#Castle Waiting, by Linda Medley (It’s been a long time since I’ve read this, so I don’t feel entirely comfortable vouching for the content) ((I read this recently, and loved it, and vouch for the content. –Amp.))
#Hopeless Savages, by Jen Van Meter (I haven’t read this in a while; it *might* be a bit mature. Review first.)
#Sparks, by Lawrence Marvit (I think I’m on my fourth or fifth copy of this; I keep giving them away. It’s one of my favorite comics. Might be slightly better suited to a slightly older reader, but I’d have loved it at eleven, so.)
#Runaways, by Brian K. Vaughn et. al.
#Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi
#The Rabbi’s Cat, by Joann Sfar (Not really a YA book persay, but I would have devoured it as a kid. Gorgeous, fantastic)
Emily and the Intergalactic Lemonade Stand, by Ian Smith and Tyson Smith (Might skew a tad bit young, but it’s a LOT of fun)
Anything by Hope Larson
Anything by Raina Telgemeier
Anything by Jim Ottaviani / G.T. Labs (Particularly Two-Fisted Science and Dignifying Science)
Online
Butterfly, by Dean Trippe and Jemma Salume
Lunchbox Funnies (all-ages webcomics network)
Rice Boy and Order of Tales, by Evan Dahm
Minus, by Ryan Armand
Books I Haven’t Read But Which Come Highly Recommended by Librarians, Teachers, and Other YA Comics Fans I Trust (no content markers, since I’m not personally familiar with the books)
Skim, by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki
Rapunzel’s Revenge, by Shannon Hale, Dean Hale, and Nathan Hale
Bone, by Jeff Smith
*Adventures in Cartooning, by James Sturm et. al.
Sidekicks, by J. Torres et. al.
The War at Ellesmere, by Faith Erin Hicks
Zombies Calling, by Faith Erin Hicks
I Kill Giants, by Joe Kelly and J.M. Ken Nimura
Sardine In Outer Space, by Emmanuel Guibert and Joann Sfar
…And A Special One-Item List of Really Fantastic YA-Friendly Fantasy Graphic Novels I’m Editing Which Will Be Out in 2011:
The Last Dragon, by Jane Yolen and Rebecca Guay
I haven’t read it, but have heard people say that Bone gets very dark after the beginning. I’m also both surprised and pleased that anyone remembers Groo.
My brilliant-but-not-much-of-a-reader daughter LOVED Bone. She hunted down (all of?) the old copies on eBay. At one time there were plans to re-publish the series; I don’t know if that happened or not.
I didn’t read Bone myself; I was put off by the illustration style’s similarity to Walt Kelly’s Pogo.
@Motley
You know there’s still new Groo coming out from Dark Horse, right?
What about the Tim Hunter stories?
Great stories, admittedly they do have fairies, but probably bit the type that most 111 year old girls think of when they say that they don’t like fairies.
I particularly like “Bindings” and “The books of Magic”.
(“the books of magic” will make more sense if you are familiar with the DC universe)
Also Maus should be on any list of good graphic novels.
I’m not sure that I’d recommend Maus for every 11 year old.
I liked “Books of Magic,” but I haven’t read any other of the Hunter books. How many are there?
I’m pretty sure I read Maus when I was eleven or a little younger — I consider it a positive formative experience overall but I was more than a little freaked out by some of graphic parts.
My additional suggestions would #Mouse Guard , #Asterix, Spider-Girl, and the Marvel Adventures line, especially Spider-man, Avengers, and Power Pack.
@ Rachel –
No, I didn’t. That’s pretty cool.
Something that’s not on the list but that I would recommend for any 11 year old–girl or boy–is Flight, an anthology series put out by Ballantine. There are six issues so far, and they are packed with comics that are across the gamut of genres, from some of the best talent in the business.
What disappoints me about the list, though, is that I would have loved seeing more female cartoonists showcased on it. There are so many putting out excellent material. But I’m attributing it to the lack of visibility female cartoonists face in the industry as a whole. I had a friend just last week tell me he didn’t have many female creators on his shelf, until I started naming titles I know he’s read.
I can’t imagine a universe in which this sentence makes any sense.
:-P
No mention of Girl Genius? Really, now! It’s available online (that link takes you to the very beginnng) and there are collected editions every year.
Don’t assume you know what is or is not “too dark” for any child of any age. At six, I loved The Wuggly Ump (Edward Gorey) but was terrified of The Pants With No One In Them (Dr. Seuss).
“Skim” is terrific, but it would depend on the 11-year-old – it has a lot about teen identity, trying to find a way forward as a proto-pagan, and a student/teacher relationship. It’s not violent or skeevy in any way, but I wouldn’t have been interested at 11. I’d definitely recommend it for 14-plus, though.
Ultimate Spider-Man is great, but there’s a lot of cartoonish violence, including guns. Less than in most super-hero comics, but more than in most PG movies.
Slightly amusing–been making a list for my own nephews of text and graphic novels, and as far as graphic novels go I have a few of the same ones.
I’m guessing the recommendations are to be US/western-centric?
Anyway, I second Mouseguard, Spider-Girl and Girl Genius.
Another one I can come up with off the top of my head (and a personal fave of mine) is Leave it to Chance by James Robinson, starring a young girl who hopes to become the heir of her family’s Doctor Strange-esque lineage.
And another young adult mystery graphic novel would be Jeremy Love’s Shadow Rock, of a young boy who moves to a small New England town of the same name and comes to explore its dark legends with a ghostly companion. Along with dark legends is his work Bayou (online and in-print) set in Depression Era Mississippi beside a parallel world where southern folktales are real. Its sort of an Alice in Wonderland feel with a dark edge and doesn’t shy away from the racial politics of the time.
Not sure, but I think he may also be penning a new Fraggle Rock comicbook series.
Groo? Really? I’ve always considered Groo to be a valorisation of male entitlement – Groo shows up, ruins peoples lives playing out his adolescent power fantasies, causes death and mayhem, and leaves – and we’re supposed to sympathise with him!
I second the recommendation for Flight. When I was younger I enjoyed Disney Adventures magazine as well, but that’s more commercial I suppose.
@ daedalus_x –
We were supposed to sympathize with Groo? Huh. That really puts a different spin on it.
Groo is the viewpoint character, so yea, we’re supposed to sympathise with him. He’s portrayed as a doofus, but a loveable one. Which is pretty horrifying.
I’ve raised this before and I always get the “LOL, it’s just a silly comic, don’t take it so seriously” excuse, which infuriates me.
I recommend anything by Shaun Tan, but particularly “The Arrival” and “Tales from Outer Suburbia”. Ditto Girl Genius. I’d also recommend Ursula Vernon’s “Irrational Fears”, “Digger”, and the “Dragonbreath” books (those are geared more to boys but are excellent and just the right target age range)…Digger has some more adult concepts, specifically a character recovering from domestic abuse and another with what could probably be labeled as PTSD, so it will depend dramatically on the 11-year-old whether it’s appropriate for her.
I’m not sure why we’re necessarily supposed to sympathise with Groo just because he’s the viewpoint character. I can think of quite a number of viewpoint characters in literature that are not sympathetic at all, nor are they meant to be.
I’ve always read Groo as a cautionary tale against the traits that you think it valorises.
My $0.02:
Fun Home by Alison Bechdel (memoir of a childhood growing up in the local funeral home),
Blankets by Craig Thompson (a story of a midwestern lutheran boy’s coming of age),
Alice In Sunderland by Bryan Talbot (a local history of Talbot’s and Lewis Carroll’s hometown),
Laika by Nick Abadzis (about the first dog in space),
Louis Reil by Chester Brown, and
the several different The Cartoon History of … books.
Re: American Born Chinese.
I discovered this at my local library and pushed it into a few friends’ hands. Most excellent and fun.