Michael Chabon's first "Children's" novel. A knowledge of baseball helps, but is not essential.
A great biography of one of the true masters of the comic book art form; Steve Ditko.
An engrossing trip though the troubled relatinship between the creator of Spiderman, the industry that milked his talent, and the fans who adored his early work, abused his generosity, and eventually abandoned him.
Beautifully illustrated, with wonderful black-and-white full page repros of Strange Tales splash pages, and even featuring a complete reprint of his first ever published story, making you realise that the Ditko talent hit the industry fully formed and as mature as the greats of the fifties.
Moving from the pupil to the master.
The earliest stories in the career of Hornblower, Cornwell's model for his own Napoleonic era character, but written to meet the demand for more stories of the hero, and thus perfectly polished. Not only did Forester have the voice off pat, but also knew exactly who Hornblower was going to grow into, so there are no false notes here (compare with Richard Sharpe who starts off a Cockney and then becomes the Sheffield blade). Essentially a series of short stories, and familiar to anyone who watched the TV series with Mister Fantastic stretching himself into the role of a seventeen year old, seasick midshipman.
You wonder why simple seafaring tales are still on the shelves more than fifty years after they were originally published, then you open one of the Hornblower books and you understand; great writing, great story-telling, transcends time and fashion and remains eternally readable.
Another century, another battle, another job for Richard Sharpe... oops! I mean some other person with a sharp sounding name; Hook, yes, that's it, Hook.
Like Michael Moorcock's Eternal Champion, Cornwell's soldiers all seem to be re-incarnations (pre-incarnations) of the same man, and it is almost impossible to read this book without hearing Sean Bean's voice. I mean to say - I watch "Lord of the Rings" and I think Bernard Corwell wrote it.
If you like Cornwell, and battles, and mad religious fanatics, and glimpses of historical characters with their trousers round their ankles, and women in peril, this'll pass the time of day more than adequately.
Oh, and final sentences with exactly three beats in them...
Then this one is for you.
See my review on bookersatz
http://bookersatz.blogspot.com/
