Reinhard Kleist

Reinhard Kleist was born in 1970 in Hürth, near Cologne. Since 1996, he has been living in Berlin, where he works as a comic book creator and illustrator. He studied graphic design at the University of Applied Sciences in Münster. In 1994, he gained public recognition with the book "Lovecraft," and in 2006, he released his biographical graphic novel "Johnny Cash: I See a Darkness," his first international success. Both books received the Max and Moritz Award. The latter was also nominated for the Eisner Award in America. In 2013, Kleist was honored with the Best German Book Award and the German Youth Literature Award for the biographical graphic novel "Der Boxer." In 2016, his biographical graphic novel "Der Traum von Olympia" was also nominated for the German Youth Literature Award. In the same year, he received the Luchs-Buchpreis, the Catholic Children's and Young People's Book Prize, and the Gustav-Heinemann Peace Prize. His comics and graphic novels have been translated into many languages.