Article first published asBook Review:Superman: The Unauthorized Biographyby Glen Weldonon Blogcritics.
About:
Superman: The Unauthorized Biography by Glen Weldon is a non-fiction book chronicling the fictional history of the Man of Steel in comic books, radio, TV, theater, music and movies. Mr. Weldon is a contributor to NPR’s podcast Pop Culture Happy Hour.
The publisher is giving away one copy of this book –to enter fill out the Rafflecoptter form at the end of the post.
- 352 pages
- Publisher: Wiley
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1118341848
My rating for Superman: The Unauthorized Biography – 4
Buy this book in paper or electronic format*
Thoughts:
A short disclaimer: I stopped reading the comics several years ago. I simply couldn’t keep up with the complicated storylines which ran across multitudes of titles. One storyline I could still keep track of, but once every Superman title (they were 5 at the time) started their own, that was it for me. I do, however, get the graphic novels (which collect the storyline from all the titles in one volume) and enjoy them very much. Readers of my blog and twitter feed know that I post about them as well.
I have been a Superman fan for many years, I was hooked when I was 8 years-old and my mom took me to see “Superman: The Motion Picture” in the big city – that was it! Ever since I try to read as much as I can about the Man of Steel, comics, novels and non-fiction work. So when I saw Superman: The Unauthorized Biography by Glen Weldon (tumblr | @ghweldon), I knew I had to read it.
The book is well researched with some excellent observations by the author. Mr. Weldon traces the origins of Superman, both in the publication world and the mythology created around him. He identifies the two elements which are consistent with all the incarnations of Superman (Bryan Singer’s movie Superman Returns broke them and it’s one of the reasons it didn’t work) as well as his evolution both physically and emotionally.
The author celebrates the silliness which is a man-in-tights flying around, but at the same time is humbled by the ideals Superman represents. Not just “truth, justice and the American way” but the way Superman, over the last 75 years, embodied what’s good about society, paved a way to solve our dilemmas and became a symbol we aspire to be.
The book does not include any pictures; I can only assume that this is because of the unauthorized nature of the publication. Mr. Weldon does an awesome job describing the artwork, but I still had to put the book down and try to find the images he is talking about. It would have been much more enjoyable if I had the pictures on the next page or somewhere in the book, but with the Internet at our fingertips, I would say it’s not much of a big deal.
While the narrative sometimes gets a bit bogged down I thought it was a fascinating glimpse into an icon which came to represent America and inspired millions. Mr. Weldon’s lively commentary and irreverent remarks make the book fun to read and remind us that after-all, the absurd is what makes superheroes wonderful.
Related Reads:
Superman: The High-Flying History of America’s Most Enduring Hero by Larry Tye
Absolute Kingdom Come by Mark Waid and Alex Ross
The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller
Buy this book in paper or electronic format*
Giveaway
Giveaway ends: May 18, 2013
US Shipping Addresses Only
No PO Boxes
Winners will have 24 hours to write back with their address, otherwise an alternate winner will be picked
Congratulations: garnet1377@
Zohar — Man of la Book
Disclaimer:I got this book for free.
*Amazon links point to an affiliate account
2 Comments
I’m trying to read more and enter less (at least until my TBR pile shrinks a little) BUT this caught my eye!!
Thanks Zohar. Once again you’ve come up with a real winner. Superman forever.