UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — “The Weight,” written by Melissa Mendes and published by Drawn & Quarterly, has won the 2026 Lynd Ward Graphic Novel Prize. Penn State University Libraries sponsors this juried award and its administrator, the Pennsylvania Center for the Book.
In “The Weight,” a gritty saga of a rural family focused on a young girl named Edie, Mendes captures their hardscrabble existence with eloquence and zero sentimentality,” the judges said. “This is an incredibly raw and powerful story that tackles domestic abuse, generational trauma and alcohol addiction while also showing the power of love and hope to empower us in the face of those cruelties. The drawings are rough and muscular, and the narrative is unceasing in its ability to bring us along with it. It has strong characters that feel real and true: It is a haunting story that is honestly told.”
Mendes will receive a $2,500 prize and “Lynd Ward: Six Novels in Woodcuts,” a two-volume boxed-set published by the Library of America, and an engraved commemorative.
2026 Lynd Ward Prize honor books
“Black Cohosh” by Eagle Valiant Brosi, published by Drawn & Quarterly; and Sofia Alarcon’s “Endsickness,” published by Conundrum Press, were named 2026 Lynd Ward Prize honor books. The winning honor book authors will also receive “Lynd Ward: Six Novels in Woodcuts.”
“Eagle Valiant Brosi's tragicomic autobiography misadventures are a real find,” noted the jury. “This is a personal narrative that reflects societal problems including masculinity and conformity. His art style is simple and very effective, with fantastic comedic timing. The drawings have a loose, organic energy that pops off the page and captures his characters’ mostly unpleasant personalities with deadly accuracy. Valiant Brosi accomplishes all of this with little fuss, paring the action and dialogue down to essentials. His story horrifies, amuses, and deeply moves the reader — sometimes all at once.”
The judges wrote, “'Endsickness' is a real gem of a debut from Sofia Alarcon. Each of the vignettes in this eight-story collection of speculative fiction explores their own facet of the same existential issue: climate change and eco-anxiety. Her visuals range from full color to black and white, and the stories zig and zag from weird/satirical to poetic/contemplative (and never didactic). The simple illustrations evoke a level of absurdity that both softens the message and underscores the importance of mitigating man-made climate change. The narrative intersperses looming tragedy with humor and sadness in a way that keeps the reader fully engaged until the end.”
The Lynd Ward Graphic Novel Prize
The Lynd Ward Graphic Novel Prize is presented annually to the best graphic novel, fiction or nonfiction, published in the previous calendar year by a living U.S. or Canadian citizen or resident. It honors Ward's influence in the development of the graphic novel and celebrates the gift of an extensive collection of Ward’s wood engravings, original book illustrations and other graphic art donated to Penn State’s University Libraries by his daughters Robin Ward Savage and the late Nanda Weedon Ward. Between 1929 and 1937, Ward published six groundbreaking wordless novels: "Gods' Man," "Madman’s Drum," "Wild Pilgrimage," "Prelude to a Million Years," "Song without Words" and "Vertigo."
The Lynd Ward Graphic Novel Prize selection jury includes representatives who have significant graphic novel expertise:
- Monica Gingerich has been working in libraries for nearly 20 years. She has worked in public libraries, as well as several years as a k-12 librarian in DC Public Schools, where she used graphic novels in secondary level curriculum, writing reviews of titles from a k-12 educational perspective. She is currently the coordinator for student experience and engagement at Penn State University Libraries.
- Jury Co-Chair Rob Howard is a senior earning a bachelor's degree from Penn State through the G.I. Bill. He spent seven years enlisted and another five as a civilian working for the U.S. Navy and hopes to publish science fiction satire with themes critical of the military industrial complex among other things.
- Rob Kirby has been making comics since 1991. He is the author of “Curbside Boys” and the creator and editor of several anthologies, including the series “THREE,” for which he received the 2011 Prism Queer Press Grant, and the Ignatz Award–winning “QU33R” (2014). His most recent book is the memoir “Marry Me a Little” (2023) published by Graphic Mundi, an imprint of the Penn State University Press.
- Jury Co-Chair Eli Neugeboren grew up reading comics and shopped at the same western Massachusetts comic store as Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird when he was a teen in the early days of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles." He is currently an associate professor at New York City College of Technology focusing on illustration and portfolio work. His graphic novel collaboration with his father, author Jay Neugeboren, "Whatever Happened to Frankie King" was published by Graphic Mundi, an imprint of the Penn State University Press, in December 2024.
- Lale Westvind is a cartoonist and animator based in Centre County, Pennsylvania. Her book “Grip” has been published in four languages and “Grand Electric Thought Power Mother” was on the New York Times Best Graphic Novel list of 2024. Lale teaches illustration and animation at Parsons School of Design.
The Penn State University Libraries, the College of Arts and Architecture, the College of the Liberal Arts, the English Department in the College of the Liberal Arts, and the Graphic Design Department in the College of Arts and Architecture, are co-sponsors of this award.
Pennsylvania Center for the Book
The Pennsylvania Center for the Book, an affiliate of the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress, promotes libraries and literacy, and encourages Pennsylvania's citizens and residents to read, study, and celebrate books. In addition to the Lynd Ward Graphic Novel Prize, it also administers the Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award; A Baker’s Dozen: The 13 Best Children’s Books for Family Literacy; PA Great Reads; and the interactive Literary & Cultural Heritage Maps of Pennsylvania.
For more information about the selection criteria and how to submit books to be considered for the 2027 Lynd Ward Graphic Novel Prize, contact Ellysa Cahoy at ellysa@psu.edu.