July 2021 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels

For the first time in four months, there’s something other than manga in the top 20 Adult Graphic Novels in the book channel, based on NPD BookScan data for July 2021 (7/4/21-7/31/21) provided to ICv2.

The three non-manga titles are all July 2021 releases: both the paperback and hardcover editions of The Adventure Zone: The Crystal Kingdom, and Volume 2 of the manhwa Solo Leveling.

The presence of a new Adventure Zone graphic novel on the chart should be no surprise: A new volume comes out every July and it usually does well. What’s a surprise is that it’s not at the top of the chart.  When the last volume came out, the paperback and the hardcover debuted at number 1 and 2, respectively (see “July 2020 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels“).  And in the two previous years, at least one edition was in the number one spot.

As for Solo Leveling, the first volume was literally the last non-manga graphic novel on the list before the manga wave of the past three months hit (see “March 2021 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels“).  It was the only non-manga title on that chart, and as we wrote then, it’s “manga-adjacent.”  There’s a lot of manga that doesn’t hit the top 20, though, so Solo Leveling is clearly delivering something that fans want.

All the remaining 17 titles in the Top 20 are manga, and one of them is a July release:  Volume 10 of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes.  This series hasn’t performed particularly well in the past, but with new volumes of My Hero Academia coming out less often than previously (the next one is due in September), fans may be turning to the spinoffs for their weirdly-powered-superhero fix. Four volumes of My Hero Academia, including the two most recent ones, did make this month’s chart, although Volume 1, which usually is not only on the chart but close to the top, is absent.

Despite the presence of Volume 1 of Chainsaw Man, a relatively recent release, at the top of the chart, there’s reason to believe that readers are turning to older series, with first volumes of Attack on Titan, Death Note, Hunter x Hunter, Toilet-Bound Hanako-Kun, One-Punch Man, and Naruto all in the Top 20.

For the charts with the actual sales numbers from NPD BookScan, see these articles on the ICv2 Pro site:
July 2021 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels with Actual Sales
July 2021 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Kids Graphic Novels

For the charts with the actual sales numbers from NPD BookScan, see these articles on the ICv2 Pro site:
July 2021 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Kids Graphic Novels with Actual Sales

NPD BookScan collects weekly point-of-sale data on print books from over 16,000 locations including e-tailers, chains, mass merchandisers, independent bookstores, and more.  NPD BookScan covers approximately 85% of the U.S. trade print book market.  The ranks on this chart are based on piece sales.  Some publishers classify titles that are primarily text, or art books, as graphic novels; we’ve removed those titles from the ranking above.

For past BookScan Top 20 Graphic Novel lists, see the “BookScan Top 20 GN Index.”

Source: ICv2