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compiled/edited by B. Munn

Last week we linked to a few other lists that use the numbers from Booknet. Most of these lists ranked the Watchmen graphic novel differently (or not at all). This week, Quill and Quire weighs in with their own BookNet-sourced list, with Watchmen at #4. At the time of this writing, Watchmen is #8 on Amazon.ca At Chapters/Indigo, it is #7 overall. On the BookManager list, Watchmen is #10 overall. And now:

The Top 30 Graphic Novels in Canada, courtesy of BookManager. The full list by BookManager is available, with some work, here. The list is compiled by BookManager based on sales through over 400 independent bookstores. Sales through comic shops and larger retailers like Chapters-Indigo are not reflected in this list. For balance, you might want to try the Amazon.ca and Chapters-Indigo lists. This list has two parts, the top 30 overall and (at the bottom) the top 30 by Canadian creators. See here for last week’s list.

Top 30 Comics and Graphic Novels in Canada

1. (1) Watchmen, Moore/Gibbons (DC)
2. (-) Vampire Knight 6, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
3. (2) Naruto 34, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
4. (-) Bleach 26, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
5. (4) Naruto 35, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
6. (23) Naruto 40, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
7. (7) Naruto 37, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
8. (15) What It Is, Lynda Barry (D+Q)
9. (6) Naruto 36, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
10. (11) Naruto 38, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
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11. (-) Maximum Ride 1, James Patterson/NaRae Lee (Orbit/Yen)
12. (20) Naruto 39, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
13. (-) Naruto 32, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
14. (8) V for Vendetta, Moore/Lloyd (DC)
15. (17) Watchmen Hardcover, Moore/Gibbons (DC)
16. (12) Naruto 41, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
17. (-) Rosario+Vampire 2, Akihisa Ikeda (VIZ)
18. (9) Rosario+Vampire 6, Akihisa Ikeda (VIZ)
19. (14) Naruto 33, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
20. (24) Pokemon: Diamond and Pearl Adventure! 2, Ihara Shigekatsu (VIZ)
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21. (-) Rosario+Vampire 1, Akihisa Ikeda (VIZ)
22. (10) Skim, Mariko Tamaki/Jillian Tamaki (Groundwood)
23. (30) Vampire Knight 5, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
24. (-) Garfield Spills the Beans, Davis (Random House)
25. (-) Simpsons Treehouse of Horror, Groening et al (Harper Collins)
26. (-) Naruto 4, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
27. (-) Naruto 3, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
28. (16) Hobbit GN, Tolkien et al (Harper Collins)
29. (13) Persepolis 1, Satrapi (Pantheon)
30. (19) Maus II, Spiegelman (Knopf)


Standard explanation:
The pattern that emerges from looking at these lists over a period of weeks is that certain books, especially manga series, continuously jostle with each other, sliding up and down the longer list on the strength of a new volume or a spate of purchases for the kiddies. This week: Going into March Break, Narutomania continues.

Canadian Content: You have to wade through an awful lot of translated Japanes manga, U.S. superhero titles, and collected editions of Sherman’s Lagoon to come up with a list of 30 bestselling books created by Canadians. In total, BookManager lists over 4000 graphic novels, trades, and strip collections, the vast majority of which are not by Canadians.

Sequential’s All-Canadian Top 30 from BookManager

1. (1) Skim, Mariko Tamaki/Jillian Tamaki (Groundwood)
2. (3) Louis Riel, Chester Brown (D+Q)
3. (2) The Burma Chronicles, Guy Delisle (D+Q)
4. (5) Scott Pilgrim 5, Bryan Lee O’Malley (Oni)
5. (8) Big Foot, Graham Roumieu (Plume)
6. (11) Plain Janes, Castelucci/Rugg (Minx/DC)
7. (4) Home Sweat Home, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
8. (6) Ojingogo, Matt Forsythe (D+Q)
9. (7) Senior’s Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
10. (10) Scott Pilgrim 4, Bryan Lee O’Malley (Oni)
—–
11. (-) Paul Goes Fishing, Rabagliati (D+Q)
12. (9) Scott Pilgrim 3, Bryan Lee O’Malley (Oni)
13. (12) Drop-In, Dave Lapp (Conundrum)
14. (20) Spirit 1, Darwyn Cooke (DC)
15. (21) the great hopeful someday, Elizabeth Belleveau (Condundrum)
16. (22) Essex County 1, Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)
17. (27) Scott Pilgrim 1, Bryan Lee O’Malley (Oni)
18. (28) Family Business, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
19. (13) Baloney, Pascal Blanchet (D+Q)
20. (15) Pyonyang, Guy Delisle (D+Q)
—–
21. (16) Witness My Shame, Shary Boyle (Conundrum)
22. (17) Milk Teeth, Julie Morstad (D+Q)
23. (18) Essex County 3, Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)
24. (23) Dramacon Ultimate Edition, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
25. (24) Middle Age Spread, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
26. (25) Essex County 2, Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)
27. (26) The Big 5-0, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
28. (-) Shenzhen, Guy Delisle (D+Q)
29. (14) I Never Liked You, Chester Brown (D+Q)
30. (-) Nil, James Turner (Slave Labor)

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Please feel free to comment or email about these lists.

1 Comment

  1. it’s so interesting how the numbers can be so different depending on what factors are taken into account.

    Thanks Bryan. this site is astounding and inspiring.

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