Collection Development

by Maura McKee

Graphic Novels n. A novel whose narrative is related through a combination of text and art, often in comic-strip form.
"graphic novel." (2003). In The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language. Retrieved November 08, 2007, from http://www.credoreference.com/entry/4092450graphic novel.

Since our grant determines our collection to be part of our Young Adult population, we have defined this as teens ages 12-18. In order to start developing our collection, we looked for current and well-regarded resources for finding the most appropriate titles for this age group. We want to purchase content that is popular and age appropriate. The term graphic novel for our collection will include manga titles and collections of comics in book format.

The first step in building this collection involved finding sources for reviews of graphic novels, determining awards specific to this genre, and compiling a list of popular publishers of graphic novels. We then chose the best reference books, websites, and catalogs for title recommendations.

After finding graphic novels for our collection we will likely expand our titles to include reference, drawing, and movie titles based on the comic book genre. Below you will find the top resources we found necessary for creating our graphic novel collection, including where to buy titles for this genre and where we will house our collection in the library.

Print Reviews:

Publisher’s Weekly - http://www.publishersweekly.com
Published weekly
Includes Comics reviews for children and teens. Current best sellers, prize winners. Recent March 5, 2007 issue covers the 2007 Comic-con show in New York




Booklist - http://www.ala.org/booklist/
Published twice monthly, includes graphic novel reviews
Recent March 15, 2007 issue “Spotlight on Graphic Novels” End of the year “Best Books” includes best graphic novels for teens. The ALA website also includes a YALSA sponsored “Great Graphic Novels for Teens” section. Here you will find 2007 nominations and winners, and well as, current nominations for 2008:

"Great Graphic Novels For Teens" website
http://www.ala.org/ala/yalsa/booklistsawards/greatgraphicnovelsforteens/gn.cfm

The Comics Journal http://www.tcj.com/
Published monthy
Provides industry news, interviews, and current reviews

School Library Journal http://www.slj.com
Published monthly
Includes starred reviews, best books of the year list in December issue

There are also many articles indexed in Wilson Web's Library Lit database. The two main subject areas are "comic books, strips, etc" and "graphic novels." If you search for these subject headings under "browse" you will find nice subheadings like "exhibits and displays" and "selection."

• Useful journals indexed by LibraryLit database:
• Library Journal
• Library Media Connection
• Young Adult Library Services
• several of the ones listed above as well.
  

Awards - see this post

Published Guides:

The 101 Best Graphic Novels by Stephen Weiner, 2005 (1-56163-444-1)
This is a great title because every book in this list is assigned a reading level of :

• “C” for all ages, (especially 12 and under),
• “Y” for readers 12 and 15,
• “Y+” for teens 16-19,
• or “A” for adult readers ages 20 and up.

This is a good starting point to pick out the best titles that might fall in either the Y or Y+ category. For the purposes of our age group, we would likely start with the Y titles before choosing Y+. Stephen Weiner is a public library director and comics historian.

Developing and Promoting Graphic Novel Collections by Steve Miller, 2005 (9781555704612)
This thorough volume explains the details of developing, acquiring, cataloging, maintaining, and making displays for graphic novel collection in libraries.

To view examples of other reference books, see this post.
Or view our WorldCat list of 46 more titles here:
Collection Development for Comics, Manga, and Graphic Novels

Websites - see this post

Publishers - see this post

Catalogs & Booksellers:

• H.W. Wilson Core Collections http://www.corecollections.net/graphicnovels_copy(1).htm
• Provides recent picks for graphic novel and manga titles. Good source for finding current, popular titles. Also provides price, review sources, and reading levels.

• Brodart - http://www.graphicnovels.brodart.com/home.htm
• Maintains a graphic novel selection with core lists for long term availability. Other features include “New This Month” and Spanish Titles.

• Booksellers offering library discounts from 20-45%
• Ingram
• BWI
• Brodart
• Baker & Taylor
• Local Comic Book Shops or Bookstores

Related materials - see this post
(includes more reference books, how to draw books, movies and television series)