Graphic Novels & Manga Books

Book SynopsisWATCH SEASONS ONE AND TWO OF HILDA THE ANIMATED SERIES NOW ON NETFLIX!Luke Pearson is one of the best cartoonists working today. Hilda is utterly brilliant!—Raina Telgemeier, creator of SmileHilda may be grounded, but that won’t stop her from heading off on another daring adventure! But everything is thrown off course when her mother catches her and is dragged along for the ride. Furious with each other, the bickering pair find themselves lost in the land of the trolls, forced to embark on a dangerous journey to make their way home. And to make matters even more difficult, Hilda has to do so . . . as a troll? Buckle your seatbelts for a crazy body-swapping adventure!

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Book SynopsisA moving, often very funny graphic memoir about what it is like to grow up with an illness that no one can diagnose. When the headaches started, Sarah Lippett would stand alone on a different side of the playground from the other children. When she started to drag one of her legs, her parents took her to hospital, and so began the visits to many different doctors, each one more bewildered by her illness than the last. Initially schooled at home, when Sarah went back to school she was placed with the struggling kids, and still so often ill, she felt even more alone. But although Sarah's parents often despaired of the stream of appointments and no cure, they never showed it and she grew up in the midst of a boisterous, loving family and found good friends at last, as well as venturing into bands, art, boys, books and records. Finally, when Sarah turned sixteen, she was admitted to Great Ormond Street Hospital where the doctors diagnosed her with the rare disease, Moyamoya. The book ends with Sarah waking up after brain surgery.Trade ReviewIf this doesn’t make you cry, you may be a robot rather than a human being… But there is joy here, too, and not only in [Lippett’s] wonderful illustrations. As those who loved her first book, Stan and Nan, will know, she is so deft when it comes to the details of time, place and family life… She can also be very droll… [A Puff of Smoke] is deeply affecting – and not a little chastening, too. -- Rachel Cooke * Observer, *Graphic Novel of the Month* *The panels grab you in an emotional, immediate way. There’s no polish, just pure feeling… it is a credit to Lippett’s creation that you want more of it. Intimate and deeply personal, with a healthy dose of humour thrown in, A Puff Of Smoke is a moving account of a childhood marked by love, pain and confusion. Vital reading for anyone who’s had their own tumultuous path towards getting an all-important diagnosis. -- Chloe Walker * CULTUREFLY *A Puff Of Smoke – all scratchy lines and splashy colour – is a journey from innocence to experience, and from hospital ward to hospital ward... One more thing. It's very funny. -- Teddy Jamieson * Herald Scotland *A heartbreaking journey. * It's Nice That *[A] movingly recounted saga * Strong Words *

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Book SynopsisLittle Arthur Brownstone is the town oddity, until he is tasked with defeating the horrendous giant wolf Fenrir, who is terrorizing the Icelandic countryside and has extinguished the warming fire that keeps Arthur's town thriving. Join Arthur on this journey through Norse mythology as he meets Thor, defeats Fenrir, and becomes a legend in his own right--the first in a series about the adventuring Brownstone family as they explore folklore from around the world.Trade ReviewA real treat for kids that love adventure, exciting mythical characters and quick reads. * BookTrust *A beautiful, immersive introduction to Norse mythology. * The Guardian *

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Book SynopsisNow in paperback! See what perils await our beloved blue-haired adventurer in the sixth book of Luke Pearson's widely praised series.We rejoin our heroine for her latest adventure just as she awakes to find herself... in the body of a troll! Her mum is worried sick, and is perplexed by the strange creature that seems to have taken Hilda's place. Now, both of them are in a race to be reunited before Ahlberg and his safety patrol get the chance to use their new secret weapon to lay waste to the trolls, and Hilda along with them!Trade ReviewHilda is now on Netflix! Season 1 is the WINNER of the BAFTA Children's Award for Best Animated Series 2019! Season 2 is out now! "...a charming, and surprisingly cozy, Nordic myth–inflected world full of trolls and giants and strange beasts."—Publishers Weekly "Luke Pearson is one of the best cartoonists working today. Hilda is utterly brilliant!"—Raina Telgemeier, creator of Smile"Plain smart and moving. John Stanley's Little Lulu meets Miyazaki."—Guillermo Del Toro"Luke Pearson's Hilda stories are beloved in our house, and they will surely be enjoyed by audiences for many years to come." —Kazu Kibuishi, creator of Amulet"In Hilda, Luke Pearson has created a truly odd and amazingly beautiful world—Stunningly personal and original. I am in awe of his imagination. He is a real inspiration."—Mike Mignola, creator of Hellboy“Pearson thinks kids can handle a lot: visually, emotionally, thematically. That’s why they like his work, and why I do too. Simplicity can be a virtue, but there’s also something to be said for embroidery, and he takes just enough from each of those attributes to make strong books […] The panel structure of Mountain King is as visually complex as the range of emotions in the story, and yet neither is hard to read. It feels cinematic without leaving comics behind.”—Hillary Brown, The Comics Journal"This is an adventurous and delightful story that follows Hilda as she wakes up a troll and seeks to become human again. With lots of action, a tenacious heroine, and fantastic illustrations, children are sure to enjoy following the latest graphic novel installment of HILDA AND THE MOUNTAIN KING. Highly recommend for reluctant readers and/or anyone who wants to enjoy a thrilling and engaging fantasy adventure."—Olivia Farr, YA Books Central

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Book SynopsisAn original graphic novel based on the IVF stories of its husband-and-wife authors and the 1-in-50 couples around the world like them. Conrad and Joanne met in their final year of university and have been virtually inseparable since then. For a while, it felt like they had all the time in the world. Yet now, when they are finally ready to have kids, they find that getting pregnant isn’t always so easy. Ahead of them lies a difficult, expensive, and emotional journey into the world of assisted fertility, where each ‘successful’ implantation is followed by a two-week wait to see if the pregnancy takes. Join Joanne and Conrad, their friends, their family, their coworkers, and a stream of expert medical practitioners as they experience the highs and the lows, the tears and the laughter in this sensitive but unflinching portrayal of the hope and heartbreak offered to so many by modern medicine.Trade Review‘The Jacksons, married educators and parents of two, partner with artist Wild to tell a compassionate story about the struggle to conceive based on their own experiences and interviews with other couples who have dealt with fertility issues … Wild’s loose, fluid, warmly coloured pencil art perfectly complements the script; in swooping curves and simple shapes, she draws emotive characters in domestic settings that look lived-in. Gentle and empathetic, this enters a growing trying-to-conceive graphic medicine genre, recalling Sarah Glidden’s and Lucy Knisley’s work, and offers a touchstone for any reader dealing with IVF.’ * Publishers Weekly *‘Full of honesty and vulnerability … Two-Week Wait will appeal to readers of memoir and graphic novels alike.’ -- Adam Ford * Books+Publishing *‘The book demystifies the technical processes of IVF for readers, and tracks the ups and downs … The drawings, by the talented German illustrator Mara Wild, are full of light and air … It is a beautifully drawn, heartfelt, real- feeling examination of the struggle to become parents.’ -- Bernard Caleo * Readings *‘Compelling, harrowing … proof that comics can be much more than superhero stories — they are a dexterous art form that can effectively communicate complex, serious topics.’ -- Giselle Au-Nhien Nguyen * The Guardian *‘In this lovely volume, you’ll encounter heartache, hope, humour, and a very true and personal exploration of the physical, emotional, and financial roller-coaster of IVF. You’ll also see the graphic novel form at its finest: where every dot and line has nuance and meaning, and where big ideas and feelings are conveyed with great subtlety through spare, elegant illustrations working hand-in-hand with great dialogue.’ -- Nicki Greenberg‘Readers who have never experienced IVF may find this book educative, while readers who have may be pleased to see their experience reflected with so much empathy.’ -- Kerryn Goldsworthy * Sydney Morning Herald *‘Luke C. Jackson and Kelly Jackson have created a beautiful and gut-wrenching story of infertility, relationships, and hope centred around the two-week period waiting to find out if the implantation resulted in a successful pregnancy … Accompanied with the Jackson’s narrative is Mara Wild’s beautiful illustrations. Wild has drawn in a digital, minimalist style with a simple powder-blue, navy, grey, red, white, and peachy orange colour palette. The simplicity of their illustration style leaves room for emotion to burst off the page. The happiness, pain, love, and dejection that the character’s experience comes across so clearly in Wild’s illustrations; readers will become emotionally invested within the first chapter. Once you pick up Two-Week Wait it’ll be incredibly hard to put it back down again … Two-Week Wait captures many facets of the IVF experience, hence making it an excellent graphic novel to educate people and start a healthy conversation around the highs and lows of IVF. Moreover, the language and illustrations within are very easy to understand and follow, making Two-Week Wait an accessible text which could be used in a high-school-aged educational setting.’ -- Lauren Pratt * Underground Writers *‘The intimate struggles of a husband and wife desperate to become parents might not be universal literary fare, but with millions of couples worldwide attempting conception via IVF, Two-Week Wait will surely, deservedly find sympathetic audiences… an insightful, moving tale.’ -- Terry Hong * Shelf Awareness *‘Readers are taken along their journey through the process, through the anxiety of waiting for answers, and then finding out nope, nothing is clear cut as they thought … I found myself immersed in their story, in their heartache and their joy during the process … I can see just how well the format of a graphic novel can lend itself to all sorts of different stories.’ * pop.edit.lit *‘I really enjoyed Two-Week Wait. I thought it was a well-written book that handled an incredibly sensitive topic very well and did a great job showing how the difficult and expensive process of IVF works … I thought Mara Wild did a great job illustrating the character's emotions and the mental and physical strain that the IVF process puts on them. I liked her use of soft colours and sweeping shapes and lines. She was able to put a lot of emotion into scenes with just the stroke of a pencil. I think this book would be great for couples who are going through IVF or who are considering it.’ -- Marisa Quinn-Haisu * Weekend Notes *‘Anyone looking for the thoughts of someone who has gone through the journey of trying to conceive, infertility testing, of deciding what treatments to pursue, of determining to continue the path, and IVF or is looking for tips on what to do and not to do when talking about infertility and IVF will find a good resource in this book … Mara Wild does a fantastic job at providing context to the story and illustrating the invisible emotions and pain … It gives the reader an empathetic look at the experience. I recommend this to anyone wanting to know more about the infertility and IVF process, especially from a mental health perspective.’ -- Alice Jaggers * Graphic Medicine *‘Two-Week Wait is as much a medical text as it is a depiction of the emotional, corporeal and financial vicissitudes, that are commonplace in patient descriptions of assisted reproductive technologies.’ -- Jennifer Takhar * Graphic Medicine *

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Book SynopsisThe Eisner and Harvey Winner The third volume of this epic graphic novel send Siddhartha further into a world mired in pain and suffering. The journey to peace and enlightenment looms far but bright. Prince Siddhartha quickly learns that the monk's path is covered in thorns and self-abuses much more profound than shaving your head. His new companions Dhepa and Assaji accompany him to plague-ridden town, ruled by the ravishing Visakha. On a different path filled with as many vagaries is Devadatta, an orphan who learns only that bad almost always gets worse. To strange cities, and dire prophecies...

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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