Tom Taylor and Jon Sommariva's Neverlanders was already one of the best-reviewed new graphic novels of 2022, but now it's achieved something no other comic book has. Neverlanders is now the first comic to win the prestigious Book of the Year award from the Children’s Book Council of Australia.
Neverlanders recently took home the award in the "Book of the Year for Older Readers" category, making it the first comic book to win an award in the CBCA's 77-year history.
Neverlanders is a Peter Pan sequel set years after Pan himself has gone missing. Neverland is beset by civil war, and the last remaining Lost Boy recruits a group of runaway children to fight alongside Tinker Bell's fairy army against a new pirate villain. The book is published through Random House's Razorbill imprint in the US.
"I'm so excited that, for the first time in its 77-year history, a comic book has won the Book of the Year for Older Readers," Taylor said in a statement. "To me, comics are the greatest storytelling medium on the planet, and potentially the most powerful educational tool available for reluctant readers. Knowing that our graphic novel will be in more libraries and schools, and in the hands of more people across the country, makes me very happy. Neverlanders is a story for now. It feels like the exact right time for an epic tale of young people fighting for their future and standing against short-sighted, greedy adults.”
‘It's truly amazing to receive this award from the CBCA," added Sommariva. "It’s an honour to have the work recognised at the top level within our own country. I already feel so lucky to draw comics for a living and to have had the opportunity to collaborate and co-create this book with Tom. Reimagining the world of Neverland has been a career highlight. Graphic novels are such a wonderful way to tell a story – they inspired me to read and to draw and tell my stories as a kid. I hope people of all ages will enjoy the pages of Neverlanders as much as we enjoyed making them. Perhaps we might even light a little fire of inspiration within future generations of Aussie comic book makers."
This isn't the only prestigious award Taylor has earned recently. Taylor and artist Bruno Redondo's Nightwing series also won "Best Continuing Series" at the 2023 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards.
Elsewhere in the world of comics, Keanu Reeves' BRZRKR is getting another prequel, and Marvel just revealed a very unlikely new Green Goblin.
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.
