According to Eddie Campbell, "anyone who thinks there are more than a few dozen so-called 'graphic novels' worth reading is an idiot." Sorry, Eddie, I beg to differ. Here's my list of 100 Must-Read Graphic Novels. Funny part is, I limited most creators to two or three slots, or Eddie Campbell's oeuvre would have made up a good half-dozen all on their own, and the list would have been closer to 200. 100 - Little Nothings: The Curse of the Umbrella by Lewis Trondheim (NBM)
099 - Reid Fleming: Rogue to Riches by David Boswell (Deep Sea Comics)
098 - Real Stuff by Dennis Eichhorn et al (Swifty Morales Press)
097 - The Norm in Color by Michael Jantze (thenorm.com)
096 - Lost at Sea by Bryan Lee O'Malley (Drawn and Quarterly)
095 - Life's a ***: The Collected Bitchy *** by Roberta Gregory (Fantagraphics)
094 - Swallow Me Whole by Nate Powell (Top Shelf)
093 - Curses by Kevin Huizenga (Drawn and Quarterly)
092 - American Splendor: The Best of American Splendor by Harvey Pekar et al (Ballentine)
091 - War Stories by Garth Ennis et al (two volumes) (DC Comics)
090 - A Treasury of Victorian Murder: Abraham Lincoln by Rick Geary (NBM)
089 - Storeyville by Frank Santoro (Picturebox)
088 - All Star Superman by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (DC Comics)
087 - Spent by Joe Matt (Drawn and Quarterly)
086 - My War with Brian by Ted Rall (NBM)
085 - Mad Night by Richard Sala (Fantagraphics Books)
084 - Late Bloomer by Carol Tyler (Fantagraphics Books)
083 - The Collected Hutch Owen by Tom Hart (Top Shelf)
082 - God's Bosom and Other Stories by Jack Jackson (Fantagraphics Books)
081 - Fred the Clown by Roger Langridge (Fantagraphics Books)
080 - Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko (Marvel)
079 - Ripple by Dave Cooper (Fantagraphics)
078 - Conan: Born on the Battlefield by Kurt Busiek and Greg Ruth (Dark Horse)
077 - City of Glass by Paul Auster, Paul Karasik and David Mazzucchelli (Harper Perennial)
076 - Bone One Volume Edition by Jeff Smith (Cartoon Books)
075 - Black Hole by Charles Burns (Pantheon)
074 - Daddy's Girl by By Debbie Drechsler (Fantagraphics Books)
073 - The Gypsy Lounge: Lunchtime Variety Criminals by Jasen Lex (Aweful Books)
072 - Marvel Boy by Grant Morrison and JG Jones (Marvel Comics)
071 - The Walking Man by Jiro Tanaguchi (Fanfare/Ponent Mon)
070 - Waterwise by Joel Orff (Alternative Comics)
069 - Red Eye, Black Eye by K. Thor Jensen (Alternative Comics)
068 - Good-Bye by Yosihiro Tatsumi (Drawn and Quarterly)
067 - Abandon the Old in Tokyo by Yoshiro Tatsumi (Drawn and Quarterly)
066 - The Push Man - by Yoshiro Tatsumi (Drawn and Quarterly)
065 - Shuck Unmasked by Rick Simth and Tania Menesse (Top Shelf)
064 - Paul Has A Summer Job by Michel Rabagliati (Drawn and Quarterly)
063 - Monkey vs. Robot by James Kochalka (Top Shelf)
062 - Hellboy by Mike Mignola (six volumes to date) (Dark Horse)
061 - Lost Girls by Alan Moore and Melinda Gebbie (Top Shelf)
060 - McSweeney's Quarterly Concern #13 edited by Chris Ware (McSweeney's)
059 - The Legend of Wild Man Fischer by Dennis Eichhorn and J.R. Williams (Top Shelf)
058 - The Fart Party by Julia Wertz (Atomic Books)
057 - Demo by Brian Wood and Becky Cloonan (DC/Vertigo)
056 - The Silver Surfer by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby (Marvel Comics)
055 - Jack Kirby's Fourth World Omnibus by Jack Kirby (four volumes) (DC Comics)
054 - Pizzeria Kamikaze by Etgar Keret and Asaf Hanuka (Alternative Comics)
053 - James Sturm's America by James Sturm (Drawn and Quarterly)
052 - Palestine by Joe Sacco (Fantagraphics Books)
051 - Strangehaven by Gary Spencer Millidge (three volumes to date) (Abiogenesis Press)
050 - The Outer Space Spirit by Will Eisner, Jules Feiffer and Wallace Wood (Kitchen Sink)
049 - Top Ten by Alan Moore, Zander Cannon and Gene Ha (two volumes) (America's Best Comics)
048 - The Placebo Man by Tomer Hanuka
047 - We3 by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (DC/Vertigo)
046 - David Boring by Dan Clowes (Pantheon)
045 - Cages by Dave McKean (NBM)
044 - Bottomless Belly Button by Dash Shaw (Fantagraphics Books)
043 - Crecy by Warren Ellis and Raulo Caceres (Avatar Press)
042 - The Maakies by Tony Millionaire (Fantagraphics Books)
041 - The Book of Leviathan By Peter Blegvad (The Overlook Press)
040 - Fantastic Butterflies by James Kochalka (Alternative Comics)
039 - B. Krigstein Comics by Bernard Krigstein (Fantagraphics Books)
038 - Jay's Days: Rise and Fall of the Pasta Shop Lothario by Jason Marcy (Hairy Bald Guy Books)
037 - Gødland by Joe Casey and Tom Scioli (Image Comics)
036 - Scott Pilgrim by Bryan Lee O'Malley (four volumes to date) (Oni Press)
035 - The Filth by Grant Morrison and Chris Weston (DC/Vertigo)
034 - The Complete Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson (Andrews McMeel)
033 - Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons
032 - Marbles in My Underpants by Renee French (Oni Press)
031 - Catwoman Volumes One through Four by Ed Brubaker, Darwyn Cooke, et al (DC Comics)
030 - Bluesman by Rob Vollmar and Pablo Callejo (NBM)
029 - The Castaways by Rob Vollmar and Pablo Callejo (NBM)
028 - DC: The New Frontier by Darwyn Cooke (DC Comics)
027 - Mad Love by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm (DC Comics)
026 - The Journal Comic by Drew Weing (Self-published)
025 - 32 Stories by Adrian Tomine (Drawn and Quarterly)
024 - The Amazing Remarkable Monsieur Leotard by Eddie Campbell and Dan Best (First Second)
023 - It's A Good Life If You Don't Weaken by Seth (Drawn and Quarterly)
022 - Street Angel by Jim Rugg and Brian Maruca (SLG)
021 - Batman: Year One by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli (DC Comics)
020 - Daredevil: Born Again by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli (Marvel Comics)
019 - Criminal by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (three volumes to date) (Marvel/Icon)
018 - Sleeper by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (four volumes) (DC/Wildstorm)
017 - Fun Home by Alison Bechdel (Houghton Mifflin)
016 - The Complete Peanuts by Charles Schulz (Fantagraphics Books)
015 - King-Cat Classix by John Porcellino (Drawn and Quarterly)
014 - Locas by Jaime Hernandez (Fantagraphics Books)
013 - The Frank Book by Jim Woodring (Fantagraphics Books)
012 - The Ticking by Renée French (Top Shelf)
011 - Bob and Harv's Comics by Harvey Pekar and R. Crumb (4 Walls 8 Windows)
010 - Palomar by Gilbert Hernandez (Fantagraphics Books)
009 - Alec: How to be an Artist by Eddie Campbell (Top Shelf)
008 - Hey, Wait... by Jason (Fantagraphics Books)
007 - Ghost World by Dan Clowes (Fantagraphics Books)
006 - Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth by Chris Ware (Pantheon)
005 - American Elf: The Collected Sketchbook Diaries of James Kochalka (Top Shelf)
004 - Ice Haven by Dan Clowes (Pantheon)
003 - Louis Riel by Chester Brown (Drawn and Quarterly)
002 - Diary of a Teenage Girl by Phoebe Gloeckner (Frog LTD)
001 - From Hell by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell (Top Shelf)
What do you think? Is Eddie Campbell right, or are there more than a few dozen graphic novels worth reading? I think every book on this list demands the attention of anyone that loves good comics and wants to know all the very best works the artform has to offer, and I think this list is just a beginning.
What's on your list?
