The Small Press Expo (SPX) has announced that the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System (PGCMLS) is the 2014 recipient of the Small Press Expo Novel Gift Program.

This program is an outright gift of graphic novels to the library as selected by the library’s Collections Specialists, and comprises 334 individual books. Including this gift, the Small Press Expo Graphic Novel Gift Program has provided 1,092 comics and graphic novels to libraries in the Washington, DC area since 2011.

On Saturday, September 6, there will be a formal presentation of the books to the the library by Small Press Expo Executive Director Warren Bernard and Graphic Novel Gift Program Director Catherine Fraas. The event will be held at the Spauldings Branch of the PGMLS.

The books were selected by the library’s collection staff from the offerings of publishers Fantagraphics, Top Shelf, Drawn & Quarterly, Adhouse Books, Toon Books, and Koyama Press, all of whom support this program.

The artist Eleanor Davis designed a special bookplate that has been placed in all of the books donated by SPX.

SPX’s Graphic Novel Gift Program is an expansion of the philanthropic and charitable endeavors that are part of its corporate charter, and is in addition to SPX’s annual support to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. The targets of this program are public and academic library systems in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan area as selected by the Small Press Expo.

The goals of this program are:

• Facilitate the availability of graphic novels to readers of all ages utilizing public and school libraries.
• Promote learning and literacy through the availability of graphic novels at local libraries.
• Provide library systems with additional resources by which they can purchase graphic novels and comics.

SPX will be held Saturday, September 13 from 11am-7pm EDT and Sunday, September 14, Noon-6pm EDT at The North Bethesda Marriott Convention Center in North Bethesda, Maryland. Admission is $10 for a single day and $15 for both days.