The Will & Ann Eisner Family Foundation announced today the second annual Will Eisner Graphic Novel Award for Libraries. For the second year, the award will be presented to three libraries at the American Library Association's Annual Summer Conference, which is being held this year in Chicago from June 27th to July 1st.

Each winning library will receive graphic novels nominated for the prestigious Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the entire Will Eisner Library of books, a $2,000 voucher for the purchase of additional graphic novels, and an additional $1,000 grant for the library to hold a graphic novel or comics themed event. The collection of titles comprises over 250 graphic novels making the total value for each award approximately $6,000.

Carl Gropper, President of the Foundation said, "We developed this award as a way recognize the importance of graphic novels in education; the role that librarians have played in the growth of the graphic novel format; and to show Will Eisner's many contributions to the comics industry. While Will Eisner helped to create the foundation for graphic novels, librarians have championed the benefits of the graphic novel format and the comics medium to the world's readers.

Gropper continued, "The addition of the Eisner Award-nominated titles to the prize reflects the spirit of inclusion that Will Eisner was known for. He would have loved to have participated in the convergence of the comics and library communities. The Eisner Awards are announced each year at San Diego Comic-Con and are considered the Oscars of the Comics Industry. The list of nominated titles is created by a committee of independent industry experts, which has included a librarian since 2005.

"We thank all the publishers of the Will Eisner Award Nominated graphic novels, who have donated their books, and we especially thank our partners, the publishers of the Will Eisner Library: Abrams ComicArts, Dark Horse Comics, DC Entertainment, IDW Publishing, and W.W. Norton for their ongoing support and contribution of Will Eisner's graphic novels and textbooks. The Brodart Company is our library wholesaler-partner and a sponsor for this year's prize. They will handle the cataloging and shipping of the graphic novels to the winning libraries."

Librarians attending the ALA Conference in Chicago can register to win the award at Booth 2645 in the Graphic Novel Pavilion. The three winning libraries will be announced at 3pm on Sunday, June 30th on the Graphic Novel Stage in the Convention Hall. The winners or their representatives must be present to win.

About WILL EISNER (March 6, 1917 - January 3, 2005)

Will Eisner was an acclaimed American comics writer, artist and entrepreneur. He is considered one of the most important contributors to the development of the medium and is known for the cartooning studio he founded; for his highly influential comic series The Spirit; for his use of comics as an instructional medium; for his leading role in establishing the graphic novel as a form of literature with his groundbreaking 1978 graphic novel, A Contract with God and Other Tenement Stories; and for his educational work in the medium as exemplified by his three textbooks. In a career that spanned nearly seven decades - from the dawn of the comic book to the advent of digital comics - Will Eisner was truly the 'Father of the Graphic Novel' and the 'Orson Welles of Comics'.

Visit www.willeisner.com for more information.