Teen Nonfiction Graphic NovelsLike this list

21 items

• March

  Book One

  Lewis, John, 1940 February 21-

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  Book one in a stunning graphic novel trilogy co-written by the late civil rights activist John Lewis. The pictures bring to life the horrific violence activists were met with but also their courageous nonviolence in the face of it.

• Dragon Hoops

  Yang, Gene Luen,

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  Sports fans, this book is for you! Gene Luen Yang, an author, high school teacher, and not much of an athlete, follows his students' basketball team as they pursue the state championship and surprises himself with how invested he becomes.

• Numb to This

  Memoir of a Mass Shooting

  Neely, Kindra,

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  When Kindra Neely was a freshman in college in 2015, her campus was the site of mass shooting. In the following years, she tries to move forward, but that's made harder as the mass shootings continue and it feels as if nothing is changing.…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Hey, Kiddo

  Krosoczka, Jarrett,

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  Jarrett Krosoczka didn't have a conventional childhood. His mother, addicted to heroin, floated in and out of his life, and he had no idea who his father was. As a result, he was raised by his grandparents, who never expected to be raising…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• ¡Ay, Mija!

  My Bilingual Summer in Mexico

  Suggs, Christine,

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  Christine Suggs recounts their high school trip to visit family in Mexico--their first solo trip, without their mother to serve as translator. As Christine learns more about Mexico and their family's history there, they become more…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• In the Shadow of the Fallen Towers

  the Seconds, Minutes, Hours, Days, Weeks, Months, and Years After the 9/11 Attacks

  Brown, Don, 1949-

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  If you've only learned about 9/11 in school, it can be hard to imagine the impact it had. Don Brown vividly portrays the terrifying period following the attacks, and how the attacks themselves and the government's response to them changed…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Maus I [GRPL Teen Book Club]

  a Survivor's Tale : My Father Bleeds History

  Spiegelman, Art

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  Maus is a classic of the graphic novel genre, and for good reason. It's a powerful account of Spiegelman's father's experience during the Holocaust and how the trauma lingered throughout his life. A two-parter, so make sure to check out…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Persepolis [GRPL Teen Book Club]

  Satrapi, Marjane, 1969-

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  Another widely acclaimed graphic memoir, Persepolis chronicles Iranian history through the lens of the author's childhood, when she saw her country turn from open and international to oppressive and at war.

• Relish

  My Life in the Kitchen

  Knisley, Lucy

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  In this lighthearted memoir, foodie Lucy Knisley looks back at the meals she's enjoyed and the memories that go with them. The book even includes recipes!

• Family Style

  Memories of An American From Vietnam

  Pham, Thien,

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  Like Knisley, Thien Pham uses food as a framework for his story, though it's a much more serious one. He chronicles his family's journey from an overcrowded refugee boat fleeing Vietnam (where he ate rice balls) to America (where he ate…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Victory. Stand!

  Raising My Fist for Justice

  Smith, Tommie, 1944-

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  In 1968, Tommie Smith won a gold medal at the Olympics. On the podium, he and bronze medalist John Carlos raised their fists as a protest against racism and immediately created an image seen around the world. Smith shares what led to his…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Banned Book Club

  Kim, Hyun Sook,

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  Today, South Korea is a democracy that, for many Americans, is best known through K-Pop. But when Kim Hyun Sook was a teen in the 1980s, South Korea had a totalitarian government with a long list of forbidden artwork and harsh punishment…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Welcome to St. Hell

  My Trans Teen Misadventure

  Hancox, Lewis, 1989-

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  An honest but humorous account of Lewis Hancox's youth and his realization that he would never be a "normal girl"...because he wasn't a girl at all. A great book both for trans youth looking for someone like them and for those who want to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Terrorist

  Gavrilo Princip, the Assassin Who Ignited World War I

  Rehr, Henrik,

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  In your history class, you may have learned that World War I started when Gavrilo Princip shot Archduke Franz Ferdinand, but how much did you learn about Princip himself? This book details what drove an ordinary man to commit a…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• 83 Days in Mariupol

  a War Diary

  Brown, Don, 1949-

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  Don Brown turns his eye to current events as he depicts the early days of the war in Ukraine, focusing on the hard-hit city of Mariupol, where thousands of civilians were killed and almost the entire city was destroyed before it fell to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Spinning

  Walden, Tillie, 1996-

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  Tillie Walden spent her adolescence as a competitive figure skater. She also spent it realizing that she was attracted to other girls. This memoir portrays her dedication to the sport, her journey toward self-acceptance, and the times…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Almost American Girl

  An Illustrated Memoir

  Ha, Robin,

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  In 1995, fourteen-year-old Chuna and her mother traveled to Huntsville, Alabama on what Chuna thought was a vacation. Once they got there, her mother revealed she was marrying an American, and they were moving to America permanently. Chuna…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Monstrous

  a Transracial Adoption Story

  Myer, Sarah,

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  Similar to Robin Ha, Sarah Myer grew up as a South Korean in a rural American community with few people who looked like them. Sarah's book is much darker in tone (as you can guess from the title), but there is also hope in the ways Sarah…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Fire Never Goes Out

  a Memoir in Pictures

  Stevenson, Noelle,

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  This memoir from the author of Nimona and showrunner of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power deals with mental health, identity, making it as an artist, and finding the strength to keep going. (Note: while this book was published under the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Our Stories Carried Us Here

  a Graphic Novel Anthology

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  This short story collection is entirely written and illustrated by immigrants and refugees as they tell stories of their fellow immigrants and the difficult journeys they took to the US.