This week, in the 52Book Reading Challenge, things a getting a little graphic.
That is, this week’s
challenge is:
45. A Graphic Novel
So what exactly is a
graphic novel? It’s a bit of an umbrella term used to cover works where the
story is told in pictures as well as words. Unlike an illustrated book, a
graphic novel involves sequential art – think of a comic book, where there are
panels of art conveying the stories with a few words contained in boxes and
speech bubbles.
A graphic novel might
be a straight up series of comic strips, or it might involve art that breaks
out of the confines of the panel and spreads all over the page. It can be
written and drawn by the same person, or there might be an artist and a writer
working together. It might be drawn, painted or digitally produced. It might be
a riot of colour, or simple black-and-white, or anything in between.
It’s important to
remember that graphic novels may be illustrated, but “illustrated” doesn’t mean
“for children”. Many graphic novels contain adult themes and some are
downright, well, graphic. But it’s also important to remember that when they’re
good, they’re very, very good. Art telling stories, and stories driving art.
You can search One Search for books with the subject heading "graphic novel", or you can find lists of graphic novels (like this one, this one or this one) on the Internet and then see if we've got a copy. Have fun!
Have you missed out on hearing about the 52 Book Challenge? Catch up here.
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