Poster by Fiona Smyth.

The finalists have been announced for the Doug Wright Awards, honouring the best in Canadian comics.

Winners will be announced at a ceremony in Toronto on June 6.

The winners in each of the four categories will receive a small cash prize, with an additional prize for the winner of The Nipper, who will receive a week-long retreat at the Valleyview Artist Retreat, in Caledon, Ontario.

Best Book 

• Holy Lacrimony by Michael DeForge (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Muybridge by Guy Delisle (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Cannon by Lee Lai (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Salt Green Death by Katarina Thorsen (Conundrum Press)
• The Last Band on Earth by Elaine M. Will (Renegade Arts Entertainment)

The Nipper (Emerging Talent)

• Mollie Cronin for Future Me Is Fat (Conundrum Press)
• Jordana Globerman for Soul Machine (Annick Press)
• Stefano Jun for Modern Asian Family: Straight Outta Busan (Renegade Arts Entertainment)
• Alex Swift for The Connoisseurs (Frog Farm)
• Lis Xu for Layover and Mad (Self-published) & Raccoon Rescue (Gytha Press)

The Pigskin Peters (Best Small- or Micro-Press Book)

• Life After Life by Joshua Barkman (Self-published)
• Soft Serve & Nosferatu by Matthew Daley (Self-published)
• Old Souls by Jackarais (Cloudscape Comics Society)
• Mobile Gang Fortress by Alexander Laird (Frog Farm)
• Pass Me By: Lily by Kat Simmers and Ryan Danny Owen (Renegade Arts Entertainment)

The Egghead (Best Kids’ Book)

• Way off Track by Carl Brundtland and Claudia Dávila (Kids Can Press)
• Howler Reef by Mike Deas and Nancy Deas (Orca Book Publishers)
• Fantastic Lou by Qin Leng (Tundra Books/Penguin Random House Canada)
• Paisley & Peck: Jurassic Farm by J. Torres and Mike Deas (Owlkids)
• My Sister the Werebeast by Alina Tysoe (First Second)

The judges for this year’s awards are Patrick Allaby, Aaron Costain, Kurtis Findlay, Jaleen Grove, Luiza Junqueira, Dylan Magwood, Frances Reilly, Joan Steacy, J.J. Steeves, Alyson Lee, Hartley Lin, and Blaise Moritz.