How do I… Become a comic book pro in my library?

Written by Ashley Kazyaka, Project Manager and comic book lover at the Colorado State Library.

With Denver Comic Con happening this weekend, and Will Eisner Awards to be announced later this month, this seems like the prime time for you to get your graphic novel skills in shape!

Basic Things to Know

Just like libraries, the graphic novel industry has it’s own special inside jargon. Here are a few terms you might encounter:

• LCB  – Local comic book store (or LCS – local comics shop)
• Big Two – Marvel and DC (the two biggest comic book publishers)
• Pick List – a regularly established lists of titles you’ll get new releases for automatically through your local comic book store
• Single issue – the glossy cover, staple bound issue of a comic, released on a weekly, biweekly, or monthly basis (usually)
• Trade – a sturdier bound book that contains multiple single issues in one collection

Reader’s Advisory for Graphic Novels

Recommending graphic novels and comics uses the same reader’s advisory skills you would use with books, DVDs, or movies, but with a few extra considerations, including visual aesthetics and age appropriateness. The video below gives some ideas for reader’s advisory for graphic novels.

Suggested Reading Lists

• Graphic Novels for Libraries from the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund
• 2016 Eisner Award Nominees
• YALSA’s 2016 Great Graphic Novels for Teens

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This post is part of the How do I…? series, where Colorado librarians share their expertise in specific programming topics. If you have an idea for this series, please email Amy Hitchner (ahitchner@coloradovirtuallibrary.org).