The short lists for the 2026 Excelsior Awards – the only fully independent, nationwide book award for graphic novels and manga, where kids aged 9-18 decide the winner, have been announced. They include a wide variety of titles, from Hilda and the Twig by Luke Pearson, to Spider-man and Star Wars collections.
Launched by Paul Register back in 2011, originally known as The Stan Lee Excelsior Award, the short lists are categorised over four age-appropriate categories by rating each book as they read it. The award now regularly attracts over two hundred schools from all over the UK and Ireland.
For 2026, twenty graphic novels/manga have been selected for the four age-appropriate shortlists.
“The overall goal of this scheme is to encourage reading amongst teenagers, Paul explains. “However, its secondary target is to raise the profile of graphic novels and manga amongst school librarians and teachers. This storytelling medium has been a largely underused resource within education for many years.
“The Excelsior Award attempts to highlight some of the amazing books that are out there – books that fully deserve to be in our school libraries alongside regular fiction!”
Last year’s overall winner was Lord of the Flies, published by Faber & Faber, as chosen by the students of the UK.
“Although quite a thick graphic novel (over 350 pages!),” Paul noted, “published in a hardback format, and an adaptation of a novel originally written in 1954, Lord of the Flies just goes to show how the teenagers of the UK should never be underestimated when it comes to being able to appreciate beauty and quality in their graphic novels.”
Each shortlist consists of five books (graphic novels and/or manga) that will cost no more than £75.
The 2026 Short Lists are as follows (all links below to publisher web sites). The final deadline for the return of ALL Rating Forms is Friday 17th April 2026 – full details about the Award Guidelines here
Excelsior Award White
For students aged 9 and over (Key Stage 2)
• Hilda and the Twig
Written and Drawn by Luke Pearson
Published by Flying Eye Books | ISBN: 978-1838742928
• Tales of the Emotosphere
Written by Russ Daff & Dr. Susannah Redhead | Artist: Russ Daff
Published by ZunTold | ISBN: 978-1915758293
• MineCraft: The Manga
Written and Drawn by Kazuyoshi Seto
Published by Viz Media | ISBN: 978-1974747146
• Almost Sunset
Written and Drawn by Wahab Algarmi
Published by Harper Collins | ISBN: 978-0063355668
• Unfairies
Written and Drawn by Huw Aaron
Published by Penguin | ISBN: 978-0241683767
Excelsior Award Blue
For students aged 11 and over (Key Stage 3)
• Cat + Crazy, Volume 1
Written and Drawn by Wataru Nadatani
Published by Dark Horse | ISBN: 978-1506747088
• Star Wars: Jango Fett – Trail of Lost Hope
Written by Ethan Sacks | Artist: Luke Ross
Published by Marvel | ISBN: 978-1302958671
• DC x Sonic the Hedgehog
Written Ian Flynn | Artist: Adam Bryce Thomas
Published by DC Comics | ISBN: 978-1799505686
• When the Sky Falls
Written by Phil Earle | Artist: Fred Fordham
Published by Andersen Press | ISBN: 978-1839135620
• Symbiote Spider-Man 2099
Written by Peter David | Artist: Roge Antonio
Published by Marvel | ISBN: 978-1302949969
Excelsior Award Red
For students aged 14 and over (Key Stage 4)
• Stranger Things and Dungeons & Dragons: The Rise of Hellfire
Written by Jody Hauser | Artist: Eric Campbell
Published by Dark Horse | ISBN: 978-1506737126
• Cosmos, Volume 1
Written and Drawn by Ryuhei Tamura
Published by Viz Media | ISBN: 978-1974754649
• The Uncanny X-Men: Red Wave
Written by Gail Simone | Artist: David Marquez
Published by Marvel | ISBN: 978-1302959296
• Astral Panic
Written and Drawn by Katie Hicks
Published by Flying Eye Books | ISBN: 978-1838742089
• Kneel Before Zod
Written by Joe Casey | Artist: Dan McDaid
Published by DC Comics | ISBN: 978-1779528605
Excelsior Award Black
(Sponsored by AccessIt Library), for school librarians, teachers, and other Grown-Ups
The Excelsior Award Black (sponsored by AccessIt Library) shortlist is different this year – because it is now aimed entirely at school librarians, teachers and other school staff! It’s now an award for Grown-Ups.
“When I have given talks and done workshops for school librarians over the years, I often encourage people to read one for themselves.” says Paul, “as a way of understanding how graphic novels and manga work and why they chime so strongly with so many of our students. The Excelsior Award Black is now an invitation for you to read something new and different and to play a greater part in the Excelsior Award as a whole.
“Your choices will not affect the overall winner (because I still wish for students to be choosing the winning books), but grown-ups will be able to fill in their own Rating Form if they so wish. There will be no obligation to read all the books on the new shortlist either. If you want to pick one, read it and then rate it (using the form) then that’s absolutely fine! However, reading as many of them as you can would be awesome!”
• Low: Bowie’s Berlin Years
Written and Drawn by Reinhard Kleist
Published by SelfMadeHero | ISBN: 978-1914224287
• Dry Cleaned
Written by Joris Mertens (translated by Julia Blackburn & Sandra van Beek) | Artist: Joris Mertens
Published by Jonathan Cape | ISBN: 978-1787334816
• The Bank, Volume 1
Written by Pierre Boiserrie & Philippe Guillaume (translated by Jerome Saincantin) | Artist: Julien Maffre
Published by Cinebook | ISBN: 978-1800441668
• It Rhymes with Takei
Written by George Takei, Steven Scott & Justin Eisinger | Artist: Harmony Becker
Published by Top Shelf | ISBN: 978-1603095747
• The Once and Future Riot
Written and Drawn by Joe Sacco
Published by Jonathan Cape | ISBN: 978-1787334328
• More details at excelsioraward.co.uk | 2026 Shortlists
The final deadline for the return of ALL Rating Forms is Friday 17th April 2026 – full details about the Award Guidelines here
- About the Author
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John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.
He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.
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