This week’s blog post is a little different than what I’ve usually been posting. What I usually write about are collections and displays in the library that are permanently located within the library. The Graphic Novels Collection is a little different.  Unlike the previous collections, this collection can be checked out by students. Many people do not know this, but the library houses a collection of graphic novels located on the first floor.

My exposure to comics is limited and probably how most people became familiar with them: through screen adaptations. Comics are a rich source of content for movies and television to pull from. The number of screen adaptations graphic novels have influenced is insurmountable. As a film production major, I find this collection an incredible resource to dive into and find stories that I haven’t seen on screen, such as The Sandman series. Being a storyteller, it is great to constantly be taking in stories and graphic novels are a nice balance between books and movies!

I find it compelling to see how many comic books have been translated into movies and television. Did you know the musical Annie was based on a comic called “Little Orphan Annie”? Or that the TV show Sabrina the Teenage Witch was a comic book before it became a show? The medium is a unique mix of visual as well as literary entertainment. Unlike regular novels, graphic novels lend a hand in establishing the visuals of the piece. Some of the highest-grossing movies of all time are adaptations of comic book movies. Out of the top ten biggest box offices, four are adaptations of comic books. Avengers: Endgame is the highest-grossing movie of all time and the story’s origins come from the comics. 

As well as big-screen success, television also has its share of comic book adaptations. One of these comics that have recently transitioned to television is a show called Stumptown. The show and comics center around a sharp-witted military veteran, Dex Parios, who struggles to take care of herself and her younger brother. She becomes a private investigator and solves problems when the police cannot. If you’re like me, whenever you hear “comic book,” you immediately picture superheroes in spandex and capes, but that’s only a fraction of the stories in graphic novels. As I was skimming through our graphic novel collection, many of them are stories other than superhero stories.

Our newest addition to the graphic novel collection is the entire anthology of the Stumptown graphic novels. If you are curious about how the creators were able to adapt a graphic novel into a series, check out the graphic novels of Stumptown as well as the show on ABC! You will be able to witness, firsthand, how graphic novels have worked their way into all facets of entertainment. 

Located in the back of the first floor, the graphic novel collection rests under a giant painting of a graphic novel character named Fatima. Who is Fatima you might ask? In 2014, Dr. Shams al-Din Tantawy, an architect and graphic designer, visited Chapman’s campus to teach a master class in graphic novels. From his workshop, a graphic novel entitled Fatima was produced. He donated the large portrait of her and now it hangs proudly above the other graphic novels. The graphic novel collection in the library is a great resource for those who want to explore a medium of entertainment other than film and television. 

The graphic novels collection located on the first floor of the Leatherby Libraries.