LA Times Graphic Novel Shortlist

Works by Michael DeForge, Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, Hiromi Goto and Ann Xu, R. Kikuo Johnson, and Lee Lai made the shortlist.

The Los Angeles Times has announced the shortlists for its annual book prizes, and the finalists in the Graphic Novel category are

  • Heaven No Hell, by Michael DeForge (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • The Waiting, by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, translated by Janet Hong (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • Shadow Life, by Hiromi Goto and Ann Xu (First Second)
  • No One Else, by R. Kikuo Johnson (Fantagraphics)
  • Stone Fruit, by Lee Lai (Fantagraphics)

All these titles will likely be familiar to Smash Pages readers. Stone Fruit won two Ignatz Awards last year, as did DeForge’s Birds of Maine, and Gendry-Kim’s earlier graphic novel, Grass, made the 2020 LA Times shortlist, as did DeForge’s Leaving Richard’s Valley.

The judges for the Graphic Novel section were Sloane Leong, Joel Christian Gill, and Cathy G. Johnson.

Drawn + Quarterly announces four new titles for Fall 2021

New titles by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, Philippe Girard, Rutu Modan and more will arrive next year.

Drawn + Quarterly has been slowly revealing their Fall 2021 line-up ove rthe past several weeks, including new titles by Michael Dumontier and Neil Farber, Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, Philippe Girard and Rutu Modan.

Here’s a rundown of what to expect next year:

Continue reading “Drawn + Quarterly announces four new titles for Fall 2021”

Comics Lowdown: Can Disney stop cops from using the Punisher symbol?

Plus: News on Al Jaffe, Uncivilized Books, awards and more.

With police brutality once again in the public eye, many fans on social media have called out Disney/Marvel to put their litigious muscles to work and prevent cops from using the Punisher logo — a popular emblem with some members of law enforcement, despite the fact that Frank Castle is a criminal and a killer.

First, you can find some history of both the character and its popularity with police here. That piece’s writer, Brian Cronin, is not only a contributor to CBR, but also a lawyer, and he offers his thoughts on why he doesn’t think Disney would have much success in an article titled “There’s Not Much Marvel Can Do About Cops Using Punisher’s Logo.” Cronin writes:

Continue reading “Comics Lowdown: Can Disney stop cops from using the Punisher symbol?”

L.A. Times announces 2020 Book Prize nominees

Works by Eleanor Davis, Michael DeForge, Jaime Hernandez, Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, Mariko Tamaki and Rosemary Valero-O’Connell received nominations.

The Los Angeles Times has announced the nominees for their annual Book Prize awards, which includes a graphic novel category. Three Drawn and Quarterly releases received nominations, along with one each from Fantagraphics and First Second.

The L.A. Times has given an award in the graphic novel category since 2009, when Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli won the award. Other previous winners include The Love Bunglers by Jaime Hernandez, Duncan the Wonder Dog by Adam Hines and Beverly by Nick Drnaso. Tillie Walden’s On a Sunbeamwon the award last year.

The nominees in the “Graphic Novel/Comics” category are:

Continue reading “L.A. Times announces 2020 Book Prize nominees”

Drawn + Quarterly announces 2019 titles

At Comic-Con International, Drawn and Quarterly announced new titles by Lynda Barry, Vanessa Davis, Eleanor Davis, Yoshiharu Tsuge and more.

Canadian publisher Drawn and Quarterly announced many of their upcoming 2019 graphic novels in San Diego earlier this month, revealing new titles from Lynda Barry, Yoshiharu Tsuge, Kevin Huizenga, Vanessa Davis and more.

Take a look at what they have planned below, and note that none of the cover art is final …

Continue reading “Drawn + Quarterly announces 2019 titles”