Graphic Novels in Your Media Center

Book excerpt: Graphic novels have recently exploded in popularity. Using them to encourage reading and support the curriculum, then, is a natural step for teachers and librarians. This useful guide to collecting and using graphic novels contains lesson plans linked to school curriculums for all ages, helping educators to harness the instructional potential of these books. The authors also discuss how graphic novels can be important learning tools, particularly for reluctant readers. The guide features lists for collection development and helpful information, including reviews, jobbers, Web sites, publisher information, tips for partnering with local comic book stores, and interviews with librarians who use graphic novels. Including illustrated pages from popular graphic novels, this is an invaluable resource to help you select quality graphic novels for students while providing helpful justification for the use of graphic novels in schools, both to advance students' pleasure reading and to support instruction. This ultimate guide to collecting and using graphic novels in a school library is written by an elementary librarian who uses graphic novels in her library media center for instruction and to advance pleasure reading. The book contains lesson plans linked to school curricula for all ages, plus a discussion of why graphic novels are useful with certain types of readers, particularly boys and reluctant readers. It features helpful information and lists for collection development-- including reviews, reviewing sources, jobbers, Web sites and publisher contact information--and posits reasons to help the librarian defend the use of graphic novels with students.