The author lineup for the San Antonio Book Festival (SABF) came out on March 4, and it highlights a heavy lean in children’s literature towards graphic novels over traditional prose books.
Let me start by saying that I understand the book business is a difficult one. In a population where less than 50% of adults regularly read, the notion of a festival devoted to books seems ludicrous. But there is what I would consider a strong niche among the understandably small portion of the population who do read. We are passionate and fanatical. That said, I understand one of the chief concerns for a successful festival is attendance, so some considerations need to be made to achieve those attendance goals.
Choosing to lean into a graphic novel trend might attract young readers in the short term, but it betrays the thousands of traditional books that are worth reading.
The trend towards graphic novelization in YA and middle-grade, on the surface, seems like a fun way to draw in more readers. I love anything that can be a gateway to get kids into reading. Graphic novels can help transition kids from picture books to chapter books. That’s a good thing, and I would never shame someone away from picking up a book in any form. But let’s be honest about this trend. First, it is a trend. Second, at least in the case of graphic novelizations of popular books, it is a grab for money. I don’t fault anyone for hustling, finding new ways to express their art, or finding new ways to find fans for their books. But we need to see this trend for what it is. That doesn’t make it evil per se, but let’s call a spade a spade. It’s not about reading, it’s about money.
Let me say, I harbor no ill will toward the authors and artists who were selected for the SABF. I congratulate them all on their accomplishments. I know how hard one has to work to produce a book. The hours that go into writing and rewriting and editing. I don’t fault them one bit.
What I find troubling with the selection of middle-grade books in the 2026 lineup for the SABF is that out of the five selected books, ALL of them are graphic novels.
One is a graphic novel series for 5-8 year olds (which I would not consider middle-grade).
Two are graphic novel series.
Two are graphic novelizations of popular middle-grade series.
Not a single one is a traditional chapter book. One book isn’t even being represented by the author of the original book the graphic novel is based on (it’s a pair of artists for the graphic novel). So out of six middle-grade selections, there are really only three middle-grade authors. I know middle-grade often gets the short end of the stick, but this seems an egregious slight to the entire category that is rich with content and which is an extremely vital transition area of fiction.
We already have a problem with reading in this country. And this is a book festival. The goal should be to promote reading. That should start with books first, in my opinion. The balance should lean towards traditional books, with maybe a couple of graphic novel outliers. We should certainly not be seeing ALL graphic novels for the middle-grade category.
Not just a disappointing outcome. It is a slap in the face of all the fine authors who submitted full chapter books to the festival.
I question the selection committee of the SABF for not picking even a single middle-grade chapter book. This is a critical juncture for reading, a transitional period that can determine the difference between building a lifetime of reading habits and becoming part of the 50% of America that doesn’t regularly read. I feel like selecting only graphic novels is sending some kind of signal, bending to a trend, when they can (and I would argue should) be pushing, supporting, and advancing the act of reading full books.
Featuring graphic novels is fine, but maybe there should be a graphic novel category. I think it was a profound misstep to not support chapter books with at least one or two selections in the lineup. But to me, the bulk of the choices should have been chapter books.
SABF couldn’t find a single submitted middle-grade entry to uphold as exemplary? I don’t believe that was due to a lack of adequate submissions. Something seems to have failed in the review process.