Syllabus bites: Visual literacy

Picture books and graphic novels

Suggested texts and websites you could use in classroom activities and tasks.

Stylised sketched illustration of a boy sitting on a ledge looking down over a city

An image from A new kind of alchemy

  • A New Kind of Alchemy - an interactive online story based on a short story by Australian writer, James Roy. The graphics can be downloaded and used to create your own story.

  • Shaun Tan has written a range of picture books, including The Arrival, The Lost Thing and The Rabbits.

  • The Boy from Nine Miles - The Early Life of Bob Marley, Cedella Marley, Gerald, Mariah Fox

  • The Wall: Growing up behind the Iron Curtain, Peter Sis

  • Sin City, Frank Miller

  • The Black Diamond Detective Agency, Eddie Campbell

  • Heavy Rain, David Cage - an interactive psychological thriller video game.

A growing number of publications of traditional graphic novels based on classic literature and nonfiction titles are available. The Manga Shakespeare series continue to grow attracting a new audience.