There’s some divergence in buying patterns on the Top 20 Author, Manga, and Superhero graphic novels in the book channel, based on Circana (formerly NPD) BookScan data for November (10/29/23 – 11/25/23) provided to ICv2, with a wide range of different titles on the Author and Superhero charts and a very narrow range on the Manga best-seller list.

The Author chart covers an unusually broad range of types of books, including  The Mysteries, Bill Watterson and John Kascht’s dark fable; Roz Chast’s I Must Be Dreaming, the latest of the New Yorker cartoonist’s nonfiction books; and Penny: A Graphic Memoir, Karl Stevens’ 2021 graphic novel about his cat.  This is the first time Stevens’ book has appeared in the Top 20, although his recent gig as the artist for Jamie Lee Curtis’s graphic novel Mother Nature (see "Preview: ‘Mother Nature’") may have brought him some new fans.  More likely responsible for the sales bump is the fact that humor writer David Sedaris is recommending it at every live event he does, and in other venues.

Then there’s a superhero story (Invincible), an action story (Solo Leveling), the graphic adaptation of Watership Down, a Calvin and Hobbes collection, and a whole lot of romance, including several that fall into the new category of "romantasy," plus a boys-love romcom (The Dangerous Convenience Store) and a webtoon collection about polyamory (Boyfriends).

Missing from the chart are frequent Author best-sellers They Called Us Enemy, Gender Queer, Anne Frank’s Diary, and Fun Home.  On the other hand, many November titles are on the chart for a second or third time, so these newer books may be growing legs of their own.

Circana BookScan Top 20 Author Graphic Novels – November 2023 (10/29/23 - 11/25/23)

Rank

Title

Author

Publisher

1

THE MYSTERIES HC

BILL WATTERSON

ANDREWS MCMEEL

2

INVINCIBLE COMPENDIUM VOL. 1

ROBERT KIRKMAN

IMAGE COMICS

3

THE DANGEROUS CONVENIENCE STORE VOL. 1

945

SEVEN SEAS ENT.

4

LORE OLYMPUS: VOL. FIVE HC

RACHEL SMYTHE

INKLORE

5

LORE OLYMPUS: VOL. FOUR HC

RACHEL SMYTHE

INKLORE

6

SOLO LEVELING VOL. 7

CHUGONG

YEN PRESS

7

I MUST BE DREAMING HC

ROZ CHAST

BLOOMSBURY

8

VILLAINS ARE DESTINED TO DIE VOL. 5

GWON GYEOEUL

IZE PRESS

9

LORE OLYMPUS: VOL. FIVE

RACHEL SMYTHE

INKLORE

10

INVINCIBLE COMPENDIUM VOL. 2

ROBERT KIRKMAN

IMAGE COMICS

11

THE CALVIN AND HOBBES PORTABLE COMPENDIUM SET 1: VOL. 1

BILL WATTERSON

ANDREWS MCMEEL

12

SOLO LEVELING, VOL. 1

CHUGONG

YEN PRESS

13

PENNY: A GRAPHIC MEMOIR

KARL STEVENS

CHRONICLE BOOKS

14

LORE OLYMPUS VOL. FIVE (B&N EXCLUSIVE)

RACHEL SMYTHE

INKLORE

15

LORE OLYMPUS: VOL. ONE

RACHEL SMYTHE

INKLORE

16

7FATES: CHAKHO VOL. 1

HYBE

HACHETTE BOOK GROUP

17

WATERSHIP DOWN: THE GRAPHIC NOVEL HC

RICHARD ADAMS

TEN SPEED PRESS

18

BOYFRIENDS VOL. ONE

REFRAINBOW

WEBTOON UNSCROLLED

19

A STEPMOTHER'S MARCHEN VOL. 1

SPICE&KITTY

SEVEN SEAS ENT.

20

INVINCIBLE COMPENDIUM VOL. 3

ROBERT KIRKMAN

IMAGE COMICS

Source: Circana

The Superhero chart is similarly varied, with a manga-style spinoff of The Nightmare Before Christmas topping the chart for the third month in a row, followed by two TMNT graphic novels, Jeffrey Brown’s latest all-ages take on Star Wars, and a manga-style Rick and Morty graphic novel.  There are classics such as Watchmen and brand-new stories such as Vol. 2 of Batman: Wayne Family Adventures, which originally ran as a webtoon.  Like the Author chart, it’s a real mix of styles and genres, although there are more older books in the Superhero category.

Circana BookScan Top 20 "Superhero" Graphic Novels – November 2023 (10/29/23 - 11/25/23)

Rank

Title

Author

Publisher

1

DISNEY MANGA: TIM BURTON'S THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS - THE BATTLE FOR PUMPKIN KING

DAN CONNER

TOKYOPOP

2

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: THE LAST RONIN HC

KEVIN EASTMAN

IDW PUBLISHING

3

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: THE LAST RONIN—LOST YEARS HC

KEVIN EASTMAN

IDW PUBLISHING

4

THE MANDALORIAN AND CHILD HC

JEFFREY BROWN

CHRONICLE BOOKS

5

RICK AND MORTY: THE MANGA VOL. 1 — GET IN THE ROBOT, MORTY!

ALISSA M. SALLAH

ONI PRESS

6

THE SANDMAN BOOK ONE

NEIL GAIMAN

DC COMICS

7

WATCHMEN: THE DELUXE EDITION HC

ALAN MOORE

DC COMICS

8

BATMAN: YEAR ONE

FRANK MILLER

DC COMICS

9

BATMAN: THE KILLING JOKE DLX. ED. HC (NEW EDITION)

ALAN MOORE

DC COMICS

10

WATCHMEN (2019 EDITION)

ALAN MOORE

DC COMICS

11

STRANGER THINGS GRAPHIC NOVEL BOXED SET (ZOMBIE BOYS, THE BULLY, ERICA THE GREAT)

GREG PAK

DARK HORSE

12

THE SANDMAN BOOK TWO

NEIL GAIMAN

DC COMICS

13

BLUE BEETLE: GRADUATION DAY

JOSH TRUJILLO

DC COMICS

14

BODIES (NEW EDITION)

SI SPENCER

DC COMICS

15

BATMAN: WAYNE FAMILY ADVENTURES VOL. TWO GN

CRC PAYNE

DC COMICS

16

THE RIDDLER: YEAR ONE

PAUL DANO

DC COMICS

17

THE WITCHER OMNIBUS

PAUL TOBIN

DARK HORSE

18

V FOR VENDETTA

ALAN MOORE

DC COMICS

19

MOON KNIGHT BY LEMIRE & SMALLWOOD: THE COMPLETE COLLECTION

JEFF LEMIRE

MARVEL COMICS

20

BATMAN '89 HC

SAM HAMM

DC COMICS

Source: Circana

The Manga chart, on the other hand is pretty uniform: All the series in the Top 20 are seinen or shonen, although there’s a mix of humorous and darker stories, and all are series that have been around for a while, with enough fans picking up the first volume, the newest volume, and the occasional box set to keep them on the chart most of the time.

Circana BookScan Top 20 Manga Graphic Novels – November 2023 (10/29/23 - 11/25/23)

Rank

Title

Author

Publisher

1

ONE PIECE VOL. 104

EIICHIRO ODA

VIZ MEDIA

2

JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 21

GEGE AKUTAMI

VIZ MEDIA

3

CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 12

TATSUKI FUJIMOTO

VIZ MEDIA

4

SPY X FAMILY VOL. 10

TATSUYA ENDO

VIZ MEDIA

5

BERSERK DELUXE VOL. 14 HC

KENTARO MIURA

DARK HORSE

6

JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 1

GEGE AKUTAMI

VIZ MEDIA

7

JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 0

GEGE AKUTAMI

VIZ MEDIA

8

BERSERK DELUXE VOL. 1 HC

KENTARO MIURA

DARK HORSE

9

MY DRESS-UP DARLING VOL. 10

SHINICHI FUKUDA

SQUARE ENIX

10

DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 1

KOYOHARU GOTOUGE

VIZ MEDIA

11

CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 1

TATSUKI FUJIMOTO

VIZ MEDIA

12

JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 20

GEGE AKUTAMI

VIZ MEDIA

13

SPY X FAMILY VOL. 1

TATSUYA ENDO

VIZ MEDIA

14

ONE PIECE VOL. 103

EIICHIRO ODA

VIZ MEDIA

15

[OSHI NO KO] VOL. 4

AKA AKASAKA

YEN PRESS

16

KAIJU NO. 8 VOL. 8

NAOYA MATSUMOTO

VIZ MEDIA

17

DEMON SLAYER COMPLETE BOX SET

KOYOHARU GOTOUGE

VIZ MEDIA

18

ONE PIECE VOL. 1 (OMNIBUS EDITION)

EIICHIRO ODA

VIZ MEDIA

19

JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 3

GEGE AKUTAMI

VIZ MEDIA

20

MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 35

KOHEI HORIKOSHI

VIZ MEDIA

Source: Circana

For charts of November 2023 graphic novel sales from Circana:
November 2023 Circana – Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels
November 2023 Circana – Top 20 Kids Graphic Novels

For the charts with the actual sales numbers from Circana, see these articles on the ICv2 Pro site:
November 2023 Circana – Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels with Actual Sales
November 2023 Circana – Top 20 Author, Manga, and Superhero Graphic Novels with Actual Sales
November 2023 Circana – Top 20 Kids Graphic Novels with Actual Sales


Circana collects weekly point-of-sale data on print books from over 16,000 locations including e-tailers, chains, mass merchandisers, independent bookstores, and more.  Circana covers approximately 85% of the U.S. trade print book market.  The ranks on this chart are based on piece sales.  Some publishers classify titles that are primarily text, or art books, as graphic novels; we've removed those titles from the ranking above.

For past Top 20 Graphic Novel lists, see the "Top 20 GN Index."