Following my best and worst books of 2019 posts, I wanted to spotlight some graphic novels that I ADORED last year.
Heartstopper Volume 2
This series has my heart. Honestly, it’s so S O F T, sweet and gently queer, that I make heart eyes every time I read it.
The exploration of sexuality and burgeoning love is done so well and Alice Oseman’s art style is candid and adorable.
Volume 3 releases in February 2020 and you can bet your tophats that I’m pre-ordering it.
Pumpkinheads
I’d been looking forward to this for months before it released and it didn’t disappoint.
Set in a pumpkin patch on Halloween, it follows two friends as they visit each part of the patch to try and find a girl.
It’s cute, it’s really funny, and the art is beautiful.
Bloom
I honestly can’t recommend this one enough. It’s about two boys working in a bakery over the summer as they each decide what they want out of life.
The hesitant and curious way that they start to explore their feelings for each other feels innocent and sweet.
The colour palette for this graphic novel is all in cool blue tones; it’s unique and suits the art style very well.
The Best We Could Do
This book will probably stay with me for the rest of my life. It’s that poignant and important.
The story follows three generations of a Vietnamese family as they try to find their place in the world, understanding their identities and connections to one another.
This is one of the most emotionally wrought and raw graphic novels I’ve read in a while and it stunned me beyond words.
I’m pretty sure I cried at the end because it was simultaneously so sad and so uplifting.
Ms Marvel
This series was a surprise for me. I expected to like it because I like superhero stories, but I didn’t expect to be wowed by some volumes.
Ms Marvel tackles issues such as family struggles, racism, identity, romance, friendships, good and bad intentions, and (of course) the dreaded school work.
Similar to Pumpkinheads, one of my favourite things about this series is that the panels often make me roar with laughter.
Moonstruck
This series is wonderfully diverse and great fun. It follows a werewolf and her girlfriend, as they try to help their non-binary friend after they’re put under a nasty spell.
The setting for this story is a world where humans and magical creatures coexist and I liked the casual inclusion of centaurs and magic.
The pastel colour palette is gorgeous and I can’t get enough of the art style.
Mooncakes
This standalone graphic novel is about a witch and a werewolf who are trying to navigate their magic, while figuring out who’s hunting down werewolves, and why.
Similar to Moonstruck, supernatural creatures and humans coexist in this story, and the exploration of found families is really well done.
There’s f/f and non-binary rep and an endearing queer romance.
Which graphic novels did you enjoy in 2019? Have you read any of these, or do you have any recommendations for others I should pick up?
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I also read Pumpkinheads and Mooncakes in 2019! 2019-wise, I also read by Jen Wang’s Stargazing, which was such a cute MG about friendship, family, and culture. 2020-wise, Bloom and the Check, Please! Vol. 2 are on my graphic novel TBR.
I also just read Nora Krug’s graphic memoir, Belonging, and really enjoyed it! The format is definitely different than most graphic novels, complied of family photos and letters, historical documents, and other mediums, but I really liked the way her story unfolded.
Ooh I might check out Stargazing at some point, as I’ve heard it’s very sweet 😀 Bloom and Check!Please are both amazing, so I hope you enjoy them 🥰 I’m going to look up Belonging on Goodreads!
Definitely want to read Heart Stopper, Pumpkinheads and Moonstruck, I’ve had my eye on mooncakes and I really need to just read more graphic novels, loved seeing which ones you’ve enjoyed!
I honestly can’t recommend all three enough! They’re so uplifting and cute 🥰 So glad you enjoyed the post!
I loved Pumpkinheads when I read it last year. I still want to read Mooncakes sometime soon, it sounds like a great graphic novel.
Mooncakes is really sweet and innocent, with a few darker moments. It has so much LGBTQIA+ rep, too, and the colours are just lovely. I hope you enjoy it when you pick it up 😀
Thanks!
All these sound so good! I don’t read much graphic novels but really want to. I’ll definitely be checking these out first!
Aww yay! So happy to hear that!
I loved Heartstopper, Mooncakes, and Pumpkinheads, all were so wholesome and had great art! I’m really trying to get more into graphic novels, so I’ll check out your other recommendations as well 🥰
Wholesome is the perfect word to describe them! And they all have such good art 🥰 Oh yay! Let me know if you decide to pick any up!
So many of these are graphic novels that I ALSO loved in 2019! 😀 I just ordered my copy of Heartstopper volume 3, in fact. Pumpkinheads was such a fun book to read during the fall, and I really want to read Mooncakes at some point too 🙂
Yay! Sounds like we have very similar taste 😀 Funnily enough, my copy of Heartstopper just arrived at my local bookshop, so I’m going to go and pick it up today!
i read ms marvel the other year and its great! 🙂
ive yet to read moonstruck but mooncakes was fab!!!!!!
o h please read Taproot!
Oooh not heard of this one! Is it in paperback or online? *searches Goodreads*
Ms Marvel is just great! Jess let me borrow the rest of the series (vols 6-10) from her, so I’m going to get through them over the next few months 😀 I feel like you’d enjoy Moonstruck, it’s very queer and cute!
Heart stopper is everything!
It truly is! I can’t wait to read vol 3 😀