About CBR
CBR, also known as Comic Book Resources, was founded in 1995 and quickly became the go-to source for comics industry news, discussion, and community. Over the past two decades, we have amassed a readership of 60 million-plus users, including 75 thousand members of the CBR community forums. Our goal is to supply anyone interested in comic books, superheroes, and geek entertainment with information and resources that will provide a greater appreciation and investment in the medium, whether you’re a lifelong comic book enthusiast or a casual superhero movie fan.
Comic books are one of the most versatile mediums in any form of fiction. From horror to comedy, comic books are something that might arguably be universally timeless. Although some people only gravitate to the superhero genre, comics have something for everyone, which is well-demonstrated by graphic novels.
Whether it's a collection of stories formed into one big book or an original classic, graphic fiction catches people's attention and draws readers in. Some of the most recognized comics have been released as graphic novels, while new and award-winning stories debuted in some of the best graphic novels of all time.
Updated on September 21, 2023, by David Harth: Monthly comics are fine, but the format isn't for everyone. That's where graphic novels come in. These books - sometimes original works and other times collected editions of monthly comics - take readers on journeys throughout the worlds of fiction, from superheroes to horror to slice of life. There are plenty of amazing graphic novels out there for fans who know what they're looking for.
35 Uzumaki
Junji Ito
Japanese manga is a rich tapestry of stories, created by devoted and skilled writers and artists. There are many amazing mangas out there, and the best are among the greatest comics ever. There's always an argument about comics vs. manga, but discerning readers know the truth - there is no difference. The mangaka - the Japanese term for manga creators - are immensely talented and create amazing works. Writer/artist Junji Ito is a creator who consistently puts out brilliant horror manga, chilling comics that grip the readers and never let go. Among his best is Uzumaki.
- Published: 1998-1999 by Shogakuken in Japan, American publication by Viz Media 2001-2002, multiple omnibus editions since
Uzumaki takes place in the town of Kuruozo-cho, and focuses on Kirie and her boyfriend Shuichi as horrific circumstances involving spirals overtake the town, ripping everyone's lives apart. Uzumaki is cosmic horror at its finest, and Ito's art and writing are phenomenal. There is imagery in this book in this book that will stay with readers forever, especially the last chapter. Ito's writing is just as chilling as the art, playing up the helplessness of the people of Kuruozo-cho. Uzumaki is a masterpiece.
34 The Many Deaths Of Laila Starr
Writer Ram V and artist Filipe Andrade
Writer Ram V has made a name for himself writing comics with a horror/fantasy tinge that playoff his Indian heritage. V is a fresh voice in the industry, whose writing style feels very much like the greats of yesteryear without actually copying their style. The Many Deaths Of Laila Starr teams V with artist Filipe Andrade for a story about the Hindu god of death trying to stop the invention of a cure to death to keep her from becoming obsolete.
- Published: 2022 by Boom! Studios
- Awards: 2022 Eisner Nomination for Best Writer For Ram V
The Many Deaths Of Laila Starr is a celebration of life and love, confronting mortality in an uplifting manner. V and Andrade are an amazing team, and this graphic novel is in the vein of classics like The Sandman. It's a story that will grab anyone from the beginning, pulling them in with beautiful art, the sumptuous prose buoying them along for a story that will uplift them and make them think about the nature of life and death.
33 F.A.R.M System
Richard Koslowski
Superheroes are all the rage in pop culture, with shows based on comics like The Boys asking the question of what would happen if the creation of superheroes was an industrial process. The Boys, based on one of writer Garth Ennis's more nihilistic works, takes a cynical look at this, but F.A.R.M. System goes in a completely different direction. The book looks at superheroes like a sport, with training facilities, endorsement deals, and tiers like minor and major league baseball.
- Published : 2022 by Top Shelf Productions
F.A.R.M. System flew beneath the radar, but it's a brilliant read. Koslowski pulls readers into this world and they experience every aspect of the superhero industry of this world, from the heroes to the slightly sleazy agents and corporations who make the whole thing tick. It's a wonderful story that pulls readers in and asks them to think about superheroes in a new but entertaining way.
32 Phonogram: Rue Britannia
Writer Kieron Gillen and artist Jamie McKelvie
The team of Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie have created brilliant graphic novels, working on books at Marvel like Younge Avengers and The Wicked + The Divine at Image. However, their earliest collaboration at Image is still among their best. Phonogram: Rue Britannia introduces readers to phonomancers, runic magic users who use music to focus their magics. This volume stars David Kohl, who used '90s Britpop as the basis of his magic, when the proverbial magical chickens come home to roost.
- Published : 2006-2007 by Image Comics
Phonogram: Rue Britannia looks at nostalgia and fandom through a unique lens, asking what price one pays when their influences make them who they are. Gillen and McKelvie create a story full of interesting characters and amazing situations, one that anyone who's a fan of anything will understand. Plus, it takes a deep dive into Britpop and '90s pop culture that will make anyone interested in the bygone days of the '90s.
31 Death: The High Cost Of Living
Writer Neil Gaiman and artist Chris Bachalo
Neil Gaiman is a treasure house of story. Getting his start as journalist in England, he made the jump to comics and was part of DC's late '80s British Invasion. The Sandman made Gaiman a star, with one of the breakout characters on the book being Death, the anthropomorphic representation of the end of all things. This perky goth charmed everyone she met and soon she was starring in her own three-issue miniseries from Gaiman and artist Chris Bachalo.
- Published: 1993 by Vertigo/DC Comics
- Awards: 1993 Comic Buyer's Guide Award for Favorite Miniseries (tied with Daredevil: The Man Without Fear), 1993 Eisner Awards for Best Writer - Neil Gaiman and Best Editor - Karen Berger
Death: The High Cost Of Living focuses on a plot point brought up in The Sandman - that Death takes on human form once every hundred years. A suicidal teenager named Sexton meets a girl named Didi, who takes him on adventure through New York City, as she's chased by someone who wants to steal her ankh and the power of death. Gaiman and Bachalo give readers a brilliant little tale about living life to the fullest that's as good as anything found in The Sandman.
30 A Contract With God
Will Eisner
It's almost impossible to discuss graphic novels without mentioning comic icon Will Eisner's A Contract with God and Other Tenement Stories. The celebrated work from one of the creators of serialized comics was the first to be called a graphic novel and was instrumental in kicking off the successful format.
- Published: 1978 by Baronet Books
- Awards: Eisner earned the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Federation for Jewish Culture
A Contract with God contains four stand-alone stories about poor Jewish characters who all lived in the same tenement. Eisner used memories from his own childhood that dealt with frustration and disillusionment in an undocumented era of Jewish-American history. A Contract with God is a mature and sometimes hard read, but it is also a beautiful piece of comic history.
29 American Born Chinese
Gene Luen Yang
American Born Chinese explores three seemingly unconnected tales that intertwine ancient mythology with a modern coming-of-age story that will appeal to fans of all ages and genres. The classic story of the Monkey King gets a contemporary upgrade in American Born Chinese alongside stories of immigrant families, racial stereotypes, and reclaiming Chinese identities.
- Published: 2006 by First Second Books
- Awards: 2007 Michael L. Printz Award, the 2007 Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album: New, the Publishers Weekly Comics Week Best Comic of the Year, the San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year, the 2006/2007 Best Book Award from The Chinese American Librarians Association, and Amazon.com Best Graphic Novel/Comic of the Year
Gene Luen Yang's award-winning graphic novel established a dedicated comic fanbase after its celebrated release. However. American Born Chinese is set to win over a whole new audience with a live-action adaptation on Disney+ that started streaming on May 24th, 2023.
28 From Hell
Writer Alan Moore and artist Eddie Campbell
Alan Moore is a recognized name in comics who is known for both his iconic superhero stories as well as his dark takes on historical and literary figures. He teamed up with artist Eddie Campbell for From Hell, which first appeared in Taboo before it was released in graphic novel form.
- Published: 1999 by Top Shelf Productions
- Awards: Eisner Awards ("Best Serialized Story" (1993), "Best Writer" (1995, 1996, 1997), and "Best Graphic Album – Reprint" (2000)), 1995 Harvey Award for Best Continuing or Limited Series, 2000 Harvey Award for Best Graphic Album of Previously Published Work. 2000 Eagle Award for Favourite Trade Paperback/Reprint Collection, the "Prix de la critique" at 2001's Angoulême International Comics Festival, 1996 International Horror Guild Award for Graphic Story/illustrated Narrative, and the 1997 Ignatz Award for Outstanding Story.
From Hell took place during the Whitechapel murders and explored the potential conspiracy behind the Jack the Ripper murders. The graphic novel brought new meaning to the term with gory depictions of the murders that terrified London between 1888 and 1891. Johnny Depp later starred in a film that was loosely based on From Hell.
27 Arkham Asylum: A Serious House On Serious Earth
Writer Grant Morrison and penciler/inker/colorist Dave McKean
As one of DC's most popular characters, Batman has starred in quite a few amazing graphic novels that explore the character and his dark world. Grant Morrison and Dave McKean's Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth featured a darker take on Batman's villains as Joker took over the titular prison hospital to lure Batman into a mind-bending dive into insanity.
- Published: October 1989 by DC Comics
Morrison's unique understanding of the Dark Knight resulted in a celebrated run with the character years later but was on full display in Arkham Asylum. McKean's beautiful artwork also brought a unique and upsetting atmosphere to Arkham that had never been seen in Gotham City before. While other hits focus on Batman's origin or future, Arkham Asylum takes a dark look at his present.
26 The Walking Dead, Vol. 1: Days Gone Bye
Writer Robert Kirkman and penciler/inker Tony Moore
The popular zombie genre was reinvigorated in the comics thanks to Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore's The Walking Dead. It's a black-and-white series from Image Comics that became a popular smash hit. The first volume followed Sheriff Rick Grimes as he awoke from a coma to a world overrun by the undead.
- Published: May 2004 by Image Comics
- Awards: 2007/2010 Eisner Awards for Best Continuing Series
Rick soon embarked on a mission to search for his family and find safety in an increasingly dangerous world, along with answers to the mystery plague that caused the dead to walk. The Walking Dead is a character-driven story with amazing art that developed a huge fanbase.
25 Ghost World
Daniel Clowes
Ghost World by Daniel Clowes was first published in his Eightball comic series before its popularity led to the successful release of the story in graphic novel form. Clowes explored the end of adolescence and the beginning of adulthood by following recent high school graduates Enid and Rebecca.
- Published: 1997 by Fantagraphics Books
- Awards: 1998 Ignatz Award Winner, Outstanding Graphic Novel
Ghost World featured relatable characters struggling with real-world issues in a sometimes frank and somber way. Enid and Rebecca's takedown of pop culture and suburban life while exploring the multitude of options for their future made Ghost World a cult hit that was adapted into an award-winning live-action film.
24 Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic
Alison Bechdel
Alison Bechdel told a personal tale about her father in Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic. It explored her upbringing at the town funeral home and the sexuality of both the author and her father. The series dived into Bechdel's reveal that she was a lesbian that ultimately uncovered a truth about her father's own sexuality that was left unexplored after his tragic passing.
- Published: June 2006 by Houghton Mifflin (Hardcover)
- Awards: 2007's Eisner Award for Best Reality-Based Work
Fun Home is an honest memoir that brings readers into the author's own exploration of her relationship with her father, his sexuality, and the mystery of his life. The celebrated graphic novel was also adapted into a Tony Award-winning musical.
23 Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life
Bryan Lee O'Malley
Bryan Lee O'Malley's hit series launched in 2004 with Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life. It followed the titular Canadian slacker as he navigated the manga-inspired Toronto music scene and his complicated love life.
- Published: August 2004 by Oni Press
- Awards: 2005 Doug Wright Award for Best Emerging Talent, 2007's Joe Shuster Award for Outstanding Canadian Comic Book Cartoonist (Writer/Artist), 2007 Harvey Award, 2010 Eisner Award for Best Humor Publication
Pilgrim was forced to fight through a gauntlet of his new girlfriend's evil exes while dating a younger girl, as he was still trying to get over another girl. The series ran for multiple volumes and became a cult hit that was later adapted to the big screen by director Edgar Wright as Scott Pilgrim vs. The World.
22 Fantastic Four: Full Circle
Alex Ross
Comic legend Alex Ross released a new graphic novel in 2022 starring Marvel's First Family of Comics. Fantastic Four: Full Circle features a dynamic new art style from Alex Ross. It followed the most powerful members of the Fantastic Four on a mission to the Negative Zone.
- Published: September 2022 by Marvel Comics
Fantastic Four: Full Circle is a brilliantly colorful epic that calls back to the early days of the team with numerous homages to Jack "The King" Kirby. Alex Ross has left his iconic mark on quite a few different comic heroes over the years, with Fantastic Four: Full Circle offering something new to even longtime fans of the creator.
21 100 Bullets, Vol. 1: First Shot, Last Call
Writer Brian Azzarello and penciler/inker Eduardo Risso
Fans of hard-boiled crime mysteries and gritty interconnected stories will undoubtedly find something to love in Brian Azzarello & Eduardo Risso's 100 Bullets series.DC's Vertigo imprint first introduced fans to Agent Graves, a mysterious but well-connected member of a clandestine criminal organization.
- Published: February 2000 by Vertigo Comics
- Awards: 2002 Harvey Awards for Best Writer, Best Artist and Best Continuing Series, 2003 Harvey Award for Best Artist, 2001 Eisner Award for Best Serialized Story, 2002 and 2004 Eisner Awards for Best Continuing Series.
Graves delivered cases filled with information, an untraceable gun, and the titular amount of ammunition to test vengeful subjects for his own amusement. 100 Bullets is a deep and intricate exploration of the extremes humanity will go to without the threat of consequences. Azzarello and Risso developed a darkly beautiful world with rich characters that should be read by more fans.
20 Ducks: Two Years In The Oil Sands
Kate Beaton
Canadian cartoonist Kate Beaton became known for her long-running historical comedy webcomic Hark! A Vagrant. She later impressed fans in 2022 with the autobiographical Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands. Beaton spent two years working in the Canadian Oil Sands, which inspired this true tale that wowed critics and audiences.
- Published: September 2022 by Drawn & Quarterly
- Awards: Lynd Ward Graphic Novel Prize Honor Winner, Doug Wright Award for Best Book, Canada Reads' Best Book, ALCUIN Society Book Design Awards' Best Comics, ALA's Graphic Novels & Comics Round Table's Best Graphic Novels for Adults, and Chatelaine's Doris Anderson Award
While working at the Athabasca oil sands in Alberta, Beaton witnessed the tragic deaths of hundreds of ducks who landed in a toxic tailings pond. Ducks is a sobering look at the oil sands and working environment experienced by Beaton that shone in the graphic novel format.
Writer Bill Willingham and penciler Lan Medina
Classic fairy tales and creatures from folklore were reimagined by Bill Willingham and Mark Buckingham in Fables. The first collected edition followed these mythical creatures and characters like Bigby Wolf and Snow White.
- Published: December 2002 by Vertigo Comics
- Awards: Multiple Eisner Awards including Best New Series in 2003, Best Serialized Story in 2003, 2005, and 2006, Best Anthology in 2007, Best Short Story in 2007, Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team in 2007, Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (Interior) in 2007, Best Cover Artist in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009 (James Jean), Best Writer in 2009 (Bill Willingham), and Best Lettering in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2011 (Todd Klein)
The mystical creatures all secretly existed in their own community of Fabletown, hidden in New York City. The fan-favorite series won over a dozen Eisner Awards and was nominated for several Hugo Awards over Fables' long run. Fables was initially published in December 2002, and it has received high reader ratings on Google, Goodreads, Hoopla, and Apple Books.
18 House of X/Powers of X
Writer Jonathan Hickman and penciler/inkers Pepe Larraz & R.B. Silva
Creator Jonathan Hickman rebooted the X-Men franchise with an exciting new concept that united the mutant community into a powerful new force. House of X/Powers of X was a dual mini-series event that reshaped the X-Men's world as Professor Xavier and Magneto teamed up to found a new society on the mutant island of Krakoa.
- Published: December 2019 by Marvel Comics
House of X and Powers of X also explored multiple timelines and dived into the far future of the X-Men's ongoing struggle against both humanity and machines. Hickman's creative reimagining along with Pepe Larraz and R.B. Silva's beautiful artwork brought Marvel's popular mutants back to the forefront in a big way that continues in the new era of Krakoa.
17 Batman: Year One
Writer Frank Miller and penciler/inker Dave Mazzucchelli
Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli reimagined the origins of the Dark Knight in the Batman: Year One storyline. This storyline has been collected a few times over the years in trades celebrating the gritty art style that helped it become one of DC's most influential modern superhero comics.
- Published: October 1988 by DC Comics
The story explores Bruce Wayne's return to Gotham City to fulfill his decision to become a vigilante. It also followed young cop James Gordon, who transferred to Gotham to make a name for himself and help clean up the city. Batman: Year One is one of the Dark Knight's most celebrated stories and is the character's definitive origin.
16 Blankets
Craig Thompson
An autobiographical novel written and drawn by Craig Thompson, Blankets is a coming-of-age story that details his life from his childhood in a Christian family to his early adulthood and first loves. Blankets became a widely acclaimed hit, and it is regarded as one of the best comics ever written.
- Published: July 2003 by Top Shelf Productions
- Awards: 2004's Harvey Award for Best Artist, 2004's Harvey Award for Best Cartoonist, 2004's Harvey Award for Best Graphic Album of Original Work, 2004's Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album, 2004's Eisner Award for Best Writer/Artist, 2004's Ignatz Award for Outstanding Artist, 2004's Ignatz Award for Outstanding Graphic Novel or Collection, and 2005's Prix de la critique.
The graphic novel won numerous awards, including Eisner and Harvey awards. Many have praised Blankets for its incredibly strong storytelling, its art style, and its exploration into the author's exit from his family's religion.
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