And the final big award of the year is rolling out with the announcement of the 2020 Harvey Awards nominations. Like other awards, these have gone virtual this year, with a ceremony that will be livestreamed during ReedPOP’s New York Comic-Con Metaverse in October.

The Harveys are presented in a concise format with a mere six awards (although Hall of Fame awards are also presented.) Nominees and winners are chosen by industry professionals. More information on how the nominees are selected and winners chosen is below.

And the nominees are:

Book of the Year

  • Are You Listening? by Tillie Walden (First Second)
  • Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang (First Second)
  • Grass by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim (Drawn and Quarterly)
  • The Hard Tomorrow by Eleanor Davis (Drawn and Quarterly)
  • Invisible Kingdom Vol. 1 by G. Willow Wilson and Christian Ward (Dark Horse Books/Berger Books)
  • Little Bird: The Fight for Elder’s Hope by Darcy Van Poelgeest and Ian Bertram (Image Comics)
  • Making Comics by Lynda Barry (Drawn and Quarterly)
  • Reincarnation Stories by Kim Deitch (Fantagraphics)
  • Rusty Brown by Chris Ware (Pantheon Graphic Library)
  • Something is Killing the Children Vol. 1 by James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera (BOOM! Studios)

Digital Book of the Year

Best Children or Young Adult Book

  • Almost American Girl: An Illustrated Memoir by Robin Ha (HarperCollins / Balzer + Bray)
  • Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang (First Second)
  • Guts by Raina Telgemeier (Scholastic Graphix)
  • Stargazing by Jen Wang (First Second)
  • Superman Smashes the Klan by Gene Luen Yang and Gurihiru (DC Comics)

Best Adaptation from Comic Book/Graphic Novel 

  • Blacksad: Under the Skin video game by Microïds, based on Blacksad (Dark Horse Comics)
  • I Am Not Okay With This by Netflix, based on I Am Not Okay With This (Fantagraphics)
  • Joker by Warner Bros. Pictures, based on Batman (DC Comics)
  • Legion: Season 3 by FX Productions and Marvel Television, based on X-Men (Marvel Comics0
  • Locke & Key: Season 1 by Netflix, based on Locke & Key (IDW Publishing)
  • The Old Guard by Netflix, based on The Old Guard (Image Comics)
  • The Sandman audio drama by Audible, based on The Sandman (DC Comics/Vertigo)
  • Stumptown: Season 1 by ABC, based on Stumptown (Oni Press)
  • The Umbrella Academy: Season 2, by Netflix, based on The Umbrella Academy (Dark Horse Comics)
  • Watchmen by HBO, based on Watchmen (DC Comics)

Best Manga 

  • H.P. Lovecraft’s At Mountains of Madness by Gou Tanabe (Dark Horse Manga)
  • The Man Without Talent by Yoshiharu Tsuge (New York Review Comics)
  • The Poe Clan by Moto Hagio (Fantagraphics)
  • The Way of the Househusband by Kousuke Oono (VIZ Media)
  • Witch Hat Atelier by Kamome Shirahama (Kodansha Comics)

Best International Book

Note: This category has been reconfigured for 2020 from 2019’s “Best European Book” to be more inclusive of other works. 

  • Grass by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim (Drawn and Quarterly)
  • The House Paco Roca (Fantagraphics)
  • Portrait of a Drunk by Olivier Schrauwen, Florent Ruppert and Jérôme Mulot (Fantagraphics)
  • Stay by Lewis Trondheim and Hubert Chevillard (Magnetic Press)
  • Year of the Rabbit by Tian Veasna (Drawn and Quarterly)

 

Nominees for this year’s awards were once again selected by a committee of diverse industry voices including creators, publishing professionals, retailers, educators, and librarians. This nominating committee was curated by this year’s Harvey Award’s coordinators: Eden Miller along with Camilla Di Persia and Chris D’Lando of ReedPop with the desire to represent all corners of the comics publishing industry. Creator and industry professionals who have been previously approved for a Professional or Artist Alley badge at any ReedPop comic convention between 2016 – 2020 are automatically eligible to cast their ballot.

Select professionals have been preapproved to vote on this year’s awards and have received their invites already. If you’d like to apply to participate in selecting this year’s Harvey Awards, please visit the Harvey Awards Apply to Vote page. Voting will conclude on September 21.

“With the Harvey Awards, ReedPop is thrilled to be a partner in helping honor the life and work of the great Harvey Kurtzman and spotlight the best of the best within the industry. We are grateful to be championing this diverse group of creators, especially during the pandemic which has impacted this industry so deeply,” says Lance Fensterman, Global President of ReedPop. “While this year’s awards may take a different shape, the goal remains the same to celebrate all of the wonderful nominees via New York Comic Con’s Metaverse, a digital gathering place for fans and professionals alike.”

The Harvey Awards honors books and creators working in sequential art across a variety of categories and represents one of the industry’s longest-running annual events. The awards are named after Harvey Kurtzman, the legendary creator who is best remembered for creating MAD.

The annual gala celebrating the Harvey Awards will be going digital this year and livestreamed during New York Comic Con’s Metaverse.  More information about this year’s Harvey Awards ceremony event and an announcement regarding this year’s Harvey Awards Hall of Fame class will be released at a later date.

For more information about Harvey Kurtzman and the Harvey Awards, please visit harveyawards.com or the Harvey Awards social media pages (Facebook and Twitter). The Harvey Awards Steering Committee is co-chaired by Nellie Kurtzman, John Lind, and Chip Mosher. Chris D’Lando and Camilla Di Persia of ReedPop and Eden Miller are coordinating this year’s awards.

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