From cave walls to stained glass, humans have shared their experiences though art. Comics, graphic novels, and manga are part of this long history of humans telling stories with pictures. In America specifically, comics really took off with the first issue of Superman in 1938. The industry has only grown from there, expanding into movies, television shows, and all the merchandise a person can get their hands on. Most recently, publishers have translated this success to turn novels and plays into graphic novels.
What is a graphic novel anyways?
A graphic novel is essentially a long-form version of a comic. Graphic novels are usually self-contained narratives that go further into character development with story arcs that get wrapped up by the novel's end. Whereas an issue of a comic is usually only an excerpt or "episode" in the world of the main character or characters that will get continued in the next issue. Read more about how comics and graphic novels took shape here!
Why read a graphic novel adaptation?
Because it's fun! Look at the pictures! But seriously, graphic novel adaptations offer a lot of great benefits for readers. They can help someone visualize the world of the story. This is especially helpful for science-fiction, a genre that usually takes place in a world so unlike our own that it can be hard to picture what the author is writing about. Graphic novel adaptations can also make the text easier to follow. Reading something like Macbeth becomes a lot more enjoyable when you can see and keep track of all the political players in the game. They're also a great way to get reluctant readers into the habit of reading without staring at pages filled with paragraphs of words, which can be intimidating.
Isn't that kind of cheating though?
Not really. Unlike a movie adaptation, graphic novels keep the majority of the text in place and don't change the characters or plot at all. Graphic novels might not include the text word-for-word from the source material though, so we're not saying they are English teacher approved for that next essay. But are they better than chatGPT or SoBrief or other AI options that are in fact stealing from authors? You bet they are!
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