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5 reasons graphic novels are the next big thing at your library

The book format is everywhere, from ESL classrooms to Ivy League libraries.

5. Circulation and patronage

  • By Husna Haq Correspondent

Graphic novels are the “superhero” of the library, swooping in and saving some libraries from oblivion by attracting patronage and boosting circulation. We already reported that they are among the “most circulated categories.” Case in point: Two libraries interviewed for the Publishers Weekly story reported that graphic novels made up a fraction of their collections but a huge chunk of their circulation, evidence of their value to libraries. (Libraries get more funding when circulation rises so dramatically.) 

Mike Pawuk of the Cuyahoga County Public Library in Ohio reported that graphic novels made up about 10 percent of his collection but 35 percent of his circulation in 2011. And Esther Keller, school media specialist at JHS 278 in Marine Park, Brooklyn, N.Y., said graphic novels comprised 3 percent of the collection and 30 percent of the circulation.

Most surprising? Comics are even in high demand at Ivy League academic libraries. “Graphic novels are the most frequently requested material in our Ivy League request system,” Karen Green, librarian for ancient and medieval history and graphic novel selector at Columbia University, told PW.

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Mark Sappenfield
Editor

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