Headed to college this fall? Wish you were still in school? Totally over school but still want to read about it? Live vicariously through some strong ladies starting college in these sometimes fun, sometimes dangerous graphic novels about starting something new, growing up, and overcoming challenges… and sometimes supervillains.
This Canadian comic follows three friends (Susan, Esther and Daisy) through their first weeks in college. Although all three have totally different backgrounds and personalities, they have made fast friends with each other and engage in some very fun adventures. There is facing down the chauvinist ex, a little experimentation with alcohol and drugs and oh, occasionally they go to class – but really it all comes down to friendship and support during a time of growth. Also – it’s pretty funny and relatable, even if they are Canadian. It’s also part of an ongoing series if you feel like following our new friends through their University years.
Artist and writer Ramsey Beyer completely captures the thrill and scariness of leaving a small town in Michigan for the big city of Baltimore and art college. Using her own notebooks and diaries from that time she takes us on a first-person journey through all the changes and new friendships and growth that starting a new chapter in your life entail. Bonus points – Ramsey now calls the Philadelphia area home which I think shows exceptionally good taste!
Wolverine, Deadpool, Doctor Doom, Thanos—there's one hero that's beaten them all and now she's got her own ongoing series! (Not that she's bragging.) That's right, you asked for it, you got it, it's Squirrel Girl! (She's also starting college this semester.) It's the start of a brand-new set of adventures starring the nuttiest and most upbeat superhero in the world!
She was a Young Avenger. She leads the Ultimates. And now she officially claims her place as the preeminent butt-kicker of the entire Marvel Universe! But what's a super-powered teenager to do when she's looking for a little personal fulfillment? She goes to college! Not just any college – but Sonia Sotomayor University! America just has to stop an interdimensional monster or two first and shut down a pesky alien cult that's begun worshipping her exploits before work can begin. Then she can get on with her first assignment: a field trip to the front lines of World War II... with Captain America as her wingman!
The whole world loves Riri Williams a.k.a. Ironheart! Well, that is, except for those people who have a bone to pick with how she's doing the job. Oh, and the new villain who'd like to take a piece out of her. You know, come to think of it, that's a whole lot of people who aren't that fond of Riri Williams! What's a girl to do? As she strikes out on her own, her idealism will be put to the test by a world she does not yet understand. How far is Riri willing to go to do what she knows is right? And how can she handle coming face-to-face with the biggest threat she will ever encounter—a headstrong Tony Stark A.I. that's decided it knows what's best for the world?! I know she doesn't go to MIT until the second volume, but you've gotta start at the beginning, right?
It's Batgirl as you've never seen her before! Big changes are here for Barbara Gordon as she moves across Gotham City to begin a new chapter in her ongoing fight against crime as Batgirl—new roommate, new start at college, new "friends". (Spoiler alert—they are not friends!)
That’s a lot of college for both normal folks but also the superheroes among us! Did I miss any of your favorites? Let me know in the comments!
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