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May 26, 2026: On Comic Books!

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May 26, 2026: On Comic Books!

I wrote the following in response to someone who claimed that graphic novels do not improve a child’s reading ability:

Comic books were my gateway to reading. I would buy stacks of them on release and devour them throughout the week. I eventually expanded to the science fiction novels my mother would gift me: Asimov, Clarke, Ellison, Blish. In elementary school, I read The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, filling a spiral notebook with assiduous notes on every act of every play (That notebook still sits on a shelf in my parents’ basement). As an adult, I read hundreds of books a year. I’m a professional writer with over 350 hours of produced television to my credit. And it all traces back to comic books.

Someone asked if comic/graphic novels could actually accomplish this.  My response: 

Will do what exactly? Introduce youngsters to the joy of reading? Serve as a launch pad to other forms of reading: short stories, novels, fiction and non-fiction? Continue to entertain, provoke, and stimulate readers well into their later years? I’d say all of the above.

The same individual voiced skepticism, insisting current graphic novels and Manga were, in fact, NOT gateways for many.  My response:

I would argue that former comic book readers are more likely to graduate to novels than kids who don’t.

“Research shows reading graphic novels leads to improved reading and comprehension skills for all students. And studies demonstrate that children and teenagers who read graphic novels have improved, more positive attitudes towards reading.” theconversation.com/does-your-chil

This report demonstrates how comics allow young readers to build the reading skills that make them more likely to graduate to bigger books. unitedthroughreading.org/the-benefits-o Teachers and librarians say that kids who discover comics are more likely to move on to other books.

The presence of graphic novels in libraries resulted in a 30% increase in overall books being checked out. literacyworldwide.org/blog/literacy-

Are any of you comic book or graphic novel enthusiasts?  If so, what have been some of your favorite reads?

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8 responses

  1. baterista9 AKA gildermcc Avatar
    baterista9 AKA gildermcc

    I agree. I started with my elder sibs’ illustrated reading material, including Little Golden Books, Disney fairy tales, classic DC comics, and even MAD magazine!

    Reply
  2. Barbaro Avatar
    Barbaro

    I remember reading comic books way back when I was very young but I don’t remember what they were anymore. I quickly found novels through the Scholastic Book Service, I think it was called, and expanded my reading from there.

    Reply
  3. gforce Avatar
    gforce

    That poster sounds like someone who was deprived of comic books in their childhood. Sad.

    Reply
  4. thebigbuddy Avatar
    thebigbuddy

    I read X-Men, Spider-Man and Iron Man as a kid when guys like Jim Lee, Todd McFarlane and Whilce Portacio were penciling those books. Originally I wanted to be an artist like those guys, and I could do some nice static sketches, but had trouble sketching full narratives, so eventually I became more interested in writing.

    During one summer staying at college to earn extra money as an RA, a friend loaned me his copy of 300, which was pretty cool, but I came by Gates of Fire on the USMC commandant’s recommended reading list, and that retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae (and the events leading up to it) was like a religious experience. For a while I was tearing through everything I could get my hands on related to classical Greece, including the old Penguin classics versions of Plutarch, Herodotus, etc.

    Mostly I credit my early reading interest to fantasy novels, then later I got heavily into David Mitchell, Haruki Murakami, and SF novelists like Peter Hamilton, Alastair Reynolds, Iain Banks, Larry Niven, Robert Forward, Isaac Asimov, etc.

    I don’t see why anyone would discourage kids from reading, and if comics/graphic novels are the entry point, then great. The point is that they’re reading. With kids, you gotta meet them on the topics they’re interested in. Once they become readers, they’ll find their own way.

    Reply
  5. Cristina Graziella Avatar
    Cristina Graziella

    You are right! RIGHT! More than right! Comic books ( and generally all.kind of graphic books are indispensable! Essential!

    Reply
  6. Michael Honig Avatar
    Michael Honig

    I was an early reader at about 4 yo. By the time I was 5 or 6, I knew words like “molecular” from reading SUPERMAN comics. ALL reading improves reading.

    I once had this very discussion with a parent of a kid I was tutoring. She wanted him to read “better” books. I asked, what would be the point if he didn’t want to read them?

    Reply
    1. Joseph Mallozzi Avatar
      Joseph Mallozzi

      Great point

      Reply
  7. Michael Honig Avatar
    Michael Honig

    Since my last comment, I’ve been reflecting even more on what you wrote.

    I do a weekly radio show on KPFT in Houston where I read and discuss stories I’ve run across, and I’ve decided to lead with this piece.

    It will post on Sunday about noon CT, and will broadcast for the first time on Sunday at 1PM CT

    Here’s how it will appear:

    I ran across a discussion of the virtues, or lack thereof, of letting kids read comic books, which today are given the grander title of “graphic novels”. I have opinions on this subject, and once even had this discussion with the parent of a kid I was tutoring. From Joseph Malozzi, a well-known producer of TV and film, mostly but not entirely in the science fiction & fantasy genres, there’s this piece. It’s called — On Comic Books!; Joseph Mallozzi’s Weblog | May 26, 2026. TAGS: Reading, Literacy, Comic Books, Graphic Novels, Gateway Reading, Reading Skills,
    A. [Mallozzi] wrote the following in response to someone who claimed that graphic novels do not improve a child’s reading ability: Comic books were my gateway to reading. I would buy stacks of them on release and devour them throughout the week. I eventually expanded to the science fiction novels my mother would gift me: Asimov, Clarke, Ellison, Blish. In elementary school, I read The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, filling a spiral notebook with assiduous notes on every act of every play (That notebook still sits on a shelf in my parents’ basement). As an adult, I read hundreds of books a year. I’m a professional writer with over 350 hours of produced television to my credit. And it all traces back to comic books.
    B. Someone asked if comic/graphic novels could actually accomplish this. [Mallozzi’s] response: Will do what, exactly? Introduce youngsters to the joy of reading? Serve as a launch pad to other forms of reading: short stories, novels, fiction and non-fiction? Continue to entertain, provoke, and stimulate readers well into their later years? I’d say all of the above.
    C. The same individual voiced skepticism, insisting current graphic novels and Manga were, in fact, NOT gateways for many. [Mallozzi’s] response: [Mallozzi] would argue that former comic book readers are more likely to graduate to novels than kids who don’t.
    D. “Research shows reading graphic novels leads to improved reading and comprehension skills for all students. And studies demonstrate that children and teenagers who read graphic novels have improved, more positive attitudes towards reading.” https://theconversation.com/does-your-child-only-read-graphic-novels-thats-ok-its-helping-them-build-literacy-skills-280373
    E. This report demonstrates how comics allow young readers to build the reading skills that make them more likely to graduate to bigger books. [Mallozzi then provides a link, which I’m sharing]: https://unitedthroughreading.org/the-benefits-of-graphic-novels-why-they-count-as-reading/
    F. Teachers and librarians say that kids who discover comics are more likely to move on to other books. The presence of graphic novels in libraries resulted in a 30% increase in overall books being checked out. https://literacyworldwide.org/blog/literacy-now/2018/12/20/the-power-of-comics
    G. [Mallozzi then asks,] Are any of you comic book or graphic novel enthusiasts? If so, what have been some of your favorite reads?
    H. MIKE: This piece got me thinking and reflecting about the subject of comic book reading, which is a reason I thought I would share this discussion with you.
    I. MIKE: I used to read tons of comics in the 1950s and 1960s. They varied from DC’s Superman-themed and other comics under various titles, to Archie, Marvel, and MAD Magazine, among others.
    J. MIKE: I was a precocious reader, beginning at about 4 years old. Because of comics, by the time I was 5 or 6, I knew words like “molecular” and “dimensions” and “ridiculous”. At this point in my life, I’ve probably read in the neighborhood of a thousand books or more, simply for pleasure.
    K. MIKE: Malozzi’s comment that, “Research shows reading graphic novels leads to improved reading and comprehension skills for all students. And studies demonstrate that children and teenagers who read graphic novels have improved, more positive attitudes towards reading,” really resonated with me.
    L. MIKE: This got me thinking about people I’ve known for a very long time who are very smart and well-educated, but who don’t like reading just for pleasure. And for the life of me, I don’t recall them being readers of comic books to any extent I can remember. Is a failure to simply enjoy reading a cause of an effect? Darned if I know, but it’s a potential graph plot point.
    M. MIKE: For a while, there were several people that I was tutoring, mostly in reading and writing. They ranged from middle school adolescents to college students, to a bank employee who wanted to improve her writing skills in order to achieve career advancement. A couple of these people spoke English as a second language.
    N. MIKE: I always encouraged any kind of reading that they enjoyed because, like Malozzi, I believe that any reading automatically results in improved reading skills, and that reading is a gateway skill to more reading, and more complex reading.
    O. MIKE: I even had the very same discussion as Malozzi recounts with an Asian mother. She was concerned that her son liked to read comic books and she really wanted him to read stuff that was more ‘’educational’. I encouraged her to let him read what he wants, as long as he enjoys the reading, and for basically the same reasons that Malozzi puts forward.
    P. MIKE: Some of you might be wondering why I’m leading off the show with a discussion of the virtues of reading comic books or ‘graphic novels’.
    Q. MIKE: Well, it’s because I have felt for a long time that America is now, and historically has been, a profoundly anti-intellectual country. This, in spite of the fact that Americans brag about our technological prowess, almost like it happens in spite of so-called ‘educated elites’.
    R. MIKE: I feel like we are now living through a period in our history where, thanks to one political party whose educated elites ironically keep using ‘ivory tower elites’ and our ‘educated classes’ as whipping boys and girls, and that makes it even more important than ever to encourage any form of reading that people enjoy, because all reading is a potential gateway to further self-education.

    Reply

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