No one wanted it but 2021 continued to present a lot of challenges for everyone due to the pandemic. Thankfully, though, it was a great year for Australian comics with a wide range of titles being published.
We had some great works by established creators like Mirranda Burton, Matt Stanton, Nicola Scott and Renee Treml. We also had a whole lot of newcomers publishing excellent graphic novels. Safdar Ahmed, Jason Pamment, Remy Lai, Lee Lai, Alyssa Bermudez and Jessica Walton, for example, are great talents to watch.
We’re also very happy to see that Remy Lai’s Pawcasso and Lee Lai’s Stone Fruit are two outstanding debut graphic novels that have received international recognition and have made it to the ALA’s Graphic Novels and Comics Round Table’s Top 10 for Children and Adult.
And, of course, prolific creators like Aaron Blabey, Stephen Kok and Tom Taylor have continued to give us plenty to read. This should be a big year for Bad Guys with the animated movie from Dreamworks coming out soon.
As part of our commitment to raising the profile of Australian creators in libraries, ALIA Graphic Novels and Comics have compiled a list of notable comics and graphic novels by Australian creators published in 2021.
Please note, in order to be eligible for the list, all these titles are widely available for purchase through library suppliers.
We’re happy to share with you the long list and we look forward to announcing the short list in March.
Junior
- Bad Guys Episode 13: Cut to the Chase by Aaron Blabey (Scholastic)
- Bad Guys Episode 14: They’re Bee-Hind You by Aaron Blabey (Scholastic)
- Big Apple Diaries by Alyssa Bermudez (MacMillan)
- The Mapmaker by Ben Slabak, Francesca Carita (Scout Comics)
- The Odds 2: Run Odds Run by Matt Stanton (HarperCollins)
- Ollie and Bea: It’s Owl Good by Renee Treml (Allen & Unwin)
- Ollie and Bea: Squeals on Wheels by Renee Treml (Allen & Unwin)
- Pawcasso by Remy Lai (Allen & Unwin)
- Treasure in the Lake by Jason Pamment (Allen & Unwin in Australia, Harper Alley in the U.S.)
- Word Smith Volume 3: Fear and Honour by Stephen Kok, PR Dedelis (TL Creative)
Young Adult
- The Camelot Gang by Zach Beckert, JC Grande, Es Kay (TL Creative)
- Exo Dimensions by Seraphina Newberry (Pan Macmillan)
- Mixed Feelings by Declan Miller (Pan Macmillan)
- Nightwing Vol. 1: Leaping Into the Light by Tom Taylor, Bruno Redondo (DC Comics)
- Seven Secrets: Volume 1 by Tom Taylor, Daniele Di Nicuolo (Boom!)
- Stars in their Eyes by Jessica Walton, Aśka (Fremantle Press)
- Storm Warning by Lauren Boyle, Alyssa Mason (Pan Macmillan)
- Suicide Squad: Bad Blood by Tom Taylor, Bruno Redondo, Daniel Sampere, Adriano Lucas (DC Comics)
General Adult
- Black Magick Volume 3: The Ascension by Greg Rucka, Nicola Scott (Image Comics)
- DCeased: Dead Planet by Tom Taylor, Trevor Hairsine, Gigi Baldasini, Rain Beredo (DC Comics)
- DCeased: Hope at World’s End by Tom Taylor, Various(DC Comics)
- Crisis Zone by Simon Hanselmann (Fantagraphics)
- Hellblazer: Rise and Fall by Tom Taylor, Darick Robertson, Diego Rodriguez (DC Comics)
- Injustice Gods Among Us: Year Zero by Tom Taylor, Antonio Roge, Cian Tormey, Rain Beredo (DC Comics)
- Still Alive by Safdar Ahmed (Twelve Panels)
- Stone Fruit by Lee Lai (Fantagraphics)
- Underground: Marsupial Outlaws and Other Rebels of Australia's War in Vietnam by Mirranda Burton (Allen & Unwin)