As we were closing our fourth annual Graphic Lit Issue, news came that Marjane Satrapi had died in Paris at age 56. Satrapi was a giant of graphic literature whose memoir Persepolis, published first in France, then in two volumes in the United States in 2003 and 2004, was stunning proof of what the genre could do—telling a very personal story (restricted childhood, teen rebellion) framed by a larger social history (Iran during the revolution). It was one of several books that showed how graphic novels—aka comics—could address serious subjects as well as make us laugh. (The best can do both.)

Persepolis was a massive bestseller, translated into numerous languages and selling millions of copies around the globe. In 2007, it was made into an animated film, written and directed by Satrapi with Vincent Paronaud, which was nominated for an Academy Award. Readers and moviegoers have embraced Satrapi’s story—testament to the power of her visual storytelling.

Australian creator Shaun Tan, who appears on the cover of the issue, crossed over into filmmaking, too, with The Lost Thing, an Oscar winner for Best Short Film in 2011. (The short was based on his 2005 children’s book.) Tan doesn’t make comic books in the traditional sense—no speech bubbles here—but works like Hometown, out from Levine Querido on Sept. 1, combine gorgeously detailed paintings with text to stretch the definition of what a graphic novel can be. As he tells young readers’ editor Mahnaz Dar in the cover story, “The fascinating thing about illustrated stories for me, [is] that constant electric charge that comes from [separating] pictures and images. They’re just buzzing against each other.”

One of the subgenres of graphic literature that has given me the most delight in recent years is the graphic adaptation, whereby a novel is transformed into a comic book. The resulting work might offer entrée for more reluctant readers or provide bonus content for superfans. Here are a few to seek out:

Wicked: The Graphic Novel, Part II by Gregory Maguire, adapted and illustrated by Scott Hampton (Morrow/HarperCollins, June 6): This beloved Wizard of Oz spinoff is a multiverse all its own at this point: a novel, a musical, a two-part movie. Why not a graphic novel, too?

Virginia Woolf’s Orlando, adapted by Jules Scheele (Avery Hill Publishing, June 18): This adaptation of the genderbending, time-traveling classic by the author of Mrs. Dalloway looks colorful and sumptuous, with plenty of “hot ruff action,” in the words of musician Dickon Edwards, who wrote the introduction.

Call Me by Your Name by André Aciman, adapted and illustrated by Sarah Maxwell-McNicol (Faber & Faber, Aug. 11): If you can get the image of Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer from the 2017 film out of your head, this swoony and sexy graphic novel captures the vibe of Aciman’s original book in its own right.

In the Time of the Butterflies: The Graphic Novel by Julia Alvarez, adapted and illustrated by Krystal Quiles (Algonquin, Sept. 1): If you’ve never read this 1994 novel about the lives and resistance of four sisters under the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic—or if it’s time for a reread—this is a “visually striking” adaptation, according to our review.

Tom Beer is the editor-in-chief.