This was the title of Scott Hulme’s article from the latest edition of The School Librarian magazine (volume 73, Number 4, Winter 2025). With our focus on reading in all its forms, it naturally caught our eye here in the More House School library.
In a nutshell he describes manga as books that ‘are the bricks that build bridges between shelves‘ connecting younger readers to the classics, history, or even Shakespeare. He rates them equally alongside study guides and chapter books and believes they should not be hidden in a ‘lowbrow‘ corner away from the ‘proper books‘.
We have always celebrated the benefits of graphic novels here at More House School and we see their positive effect in the library every day. Students come together in their free time to discuss a new plot twist, race to get the latest new in edition, or just sit side by side reading them quietly. If you scroll down to the ‘Reading Rocks’ section of the main library page The Library – More House School you will see our top tips for reading in all its forms and how the contribution graphic novels can play is significant. As Scott says, graphic novels can promote empathy, build vocabulary, support comprehension of the development of character and plot, and even develop ‘visual literacy skills similar to those you’d use to interpret a painting‘. Some students are then able to study chapter books with less apprehension. Scott described it so well saying it is ‘easy to forget how much stress reading can induce for those who feel they’re behind everyone else…and some young readers dread that…very obvious demotion to a younger book so that they can keep up’.
This National Year of Reading (National Year of Reading 2026 | National Literacy Trust) try out a graphic novel. Alongside our ever-popular fantasy manga series, we have constantly growing graphic novel collections of classics like The War of the Worlds and To Kill a Mockingbird, favourite authors like Percy Jackson and Anthony Horowitz as well as non-fiction graphic novels on history, science and geography. With all their benefits, graphic novels can be an inclusive choice for everyone.