My Favourite Graphic Novels of All Time

What is a graphic novel? It's a story told in sequential art that's fairly thick (at least 80 pages), bound like a book (as opposed to a saddle-stitched comic book), and which has a beginning and an end. In many cases "graphic novels" are simply a half dozen or more individual comics issues collected into a book. These are legitimate graphic novels if the main plot starts and ends in the issues collected in the book in question.

1. Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, Watchmen - in my view, nothing comes close to Moore and Gibbon's masterwork. Fingers crossed on the movie version.

2. Terry Moore, Strangers in Paradise (actually a series of graphic novels) - a very extended romantic and everyday life narrative with lively characters & expressive art.

3. Daniel Clowes, Ghost World - Enid's travails in the society of the spectacle.

4. Frank Miller, The Dark Knight Returns - Miller's libertarian laments.

5. Alan Moore and David Lloyd, V for Vendetta - the dangers of Thatcherism and beyond.

6. Frank Miller, "The Hard Goodbye," Sin City - Fredric Wertham, where are you now?

7. Marjane Satrapi, Persepolis - growing up in theocratic Iran. 

8. Mark Millar, Superman: Red Son - what if everyone's favourite Kryptonian crash landed in the Soviet Union?

9. Chris Claremont and John Byrne, The Dark Phoenix Saga.  

10. Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, Batman: The Long Halloween - film noir Batman mystery. 

11. Art Spiegelman, Maus - not all cats are Nazis, Mr. Spiegelman!

12. Howard Cruse, Stuck Rubber Baby.

13. Jason Lutes, Berlin, City of Stones.

14. Alan Moore and Brian Bolland, Batman: The Killing Joke.