Boys of Steel: The Creators of Superman

Jerry Siegel wasn't crazy about school. He would much rather be home with his imaginary friends, Tarzan, Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers. His father was dead, everyone was looking for a job, the Great Depression was in full tilt, but even so his superheroes kept him going. Every night he would read these fantastic stories about them. He also would sit up in the attic in front of a window, one in which he could see his other young men his age playing, typing his "own adventure and science fiction stories." He was shy and most likely no one even knew he existed, except for one other person. His name was Joe Shuster, a guy who looked and acted so much like him they "could've passed for brothers. The only difference was that Joe's passion was not writing, but drawing . . . all the time. These guys became fast friends and had a plan, one that once they got going, no one could tell them they were wasting their time. It was a "science fiction story in cartoons." At first they were heartbreakingly rejected by a publisher, but then Jerry's mind lit up like Broadway one night. He had an idea and this time Joe and Jerry would persevere until they were published. They would leap tall buildings in a single bound, or at least climb hundreds of stairs until someone wanted their Superman comic strip. I loved this biography of two young men who, in spite of numerous rejections, persevered and went on to amazing heights. The writing captures the spirit of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster and the art work brings them to life. This book will have wide appeal to young dreamers with big imaginations because like the authors, who once dreamed and acted out their superhero fantasies, know how to render a tale any reluctant reader will snap up!

Any Superman fan will be proud of this clever homage to the two creative guys who created the original Kal-El/Clark Kent/Superman...arguably America's greatest pop culture icon. In its simplicity, this thin volume will appeal to the freshman comic fan but true historians and buffs will instantly recognize, appreciate and celebrate the honorific narrative of the Jerry & Joe's story and also of the beautiful illustrations that pay tribute to the original artwork found in the early Action Comics. Kudos to the creative forces behind this powerful little memoir. Somewhere in the heavenly portion of the Phantom Zone, Siegel & Schuster are smiling.

Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster are two teens in Depression-era Cleveland who are mild and meek, escaping into fictional worlds of adventure fantasy. The two made up their own stories - and thus Superman was born. This is the first picture book about how these two created the largest superhero of them all, and is a pick for any picturebook nonfiction holding. Ross MacDonald provides a blend of full-page color illustrations and comic-like panels for further attention.

Marc Tyler Nobleman has done a masterful job at telling the story of two underdogs who captured the spirit of their time and the imaginations of generations. While more of a Batman and Wonderwoman woman myself, I could not help but root for Jerry and Joe, the painfully shy but brilliant duo who would not give up on their dream creation. Superman was not just a story to them; he was an emblem of goodness and hope. I came away from this deceptively simple text with an appreciation of the ultimate superhero having been birthed during the Great Depression, when many were in need of saving and many more believed in the possibility of such salvation. Illustrations by Ross MacDonald are understated yet fun, reflective of the time period and subject matter. Younger children will follow the text, which is readable for slightly older children and entertaining for adults. As a bonus, a more detailed, young-adult level narrative of the struggle Jerry and Joe went through in fighting for the rights to their work can be found in the back of the book. In short, Boys of Steel is for everyone who loves comics, Superman or artistic triumph. Let Boys of Steel take you up, up and away!

Time was when a comic book wouldn't have had a snowball's chance in Hades of getting into a library's collection. And while some library systems have grown more open to the notion of comic book heroes leaping about their hallowed halls, there's still a great deal of resistance to the idea. Now Marc Tyler Nobleman and Ross MacDonald have found another way to get a fella like Superman into a library, and it's definitely a slick idea. Until now the story of Superman's creators Jerry ...more Time was when a comic book wouldn't have had a snowball's chance in Hades of getting into a library's collection. And while some library systems have grown more open to the notion of comic book heroes leaping about their hallowed halls, there's still a great deal of resistance to the idea. Now Marc Tyler Nobleman and Ross MacDonald have found another way to get a fella like Superman into a library, and it's definitely a slick idea. Until now the story of Superman's creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster has never been told in a format accessible to children. Now in Boys of Steel: The Creators of Superman, Nobleman and MacDonald pay homage to the fellas that brought to life "the greatest superhero of all time," in such a way that no library in the world could object to the book's style and panache. And though I've a quibble with it here and there, the next time you have a seven-year-old moaning about needing to read a biography make sure that this book is the ace up your sleeve. Dateline: Cleveland, Ohio - The 1930s. Jerry Siegel had many interests but what he really liked to do was escape from the world around him. By reading the tales of Tarzan, Buck Rogers, and other fantastical heroes, Jerry could find high adventure and this was an interest he shared with Joe Shuster. Shy like Jerry, Joe loved to draw, and together the two came up with all kinds of interesting ideas. But it wasn't until a hot night in 1934 that Jerry found his inspiration. What if this hero looked like a normal dweeby guy (a guy like Joe and Jerry) but was really a superhero in disguise? That night Superman was born and in his own Action Comics he found his audience. An Afterword to the book discusses how Jerry and Joe sold their Superman rights for a pittance and fought over the years to get them back. There were little details in Boys of Steel that did the old heart good to see. For example, it would have been the easiest thing in the world for Nobleman to say that Superman was meant to fly. Yet anyone who has ever read the earliest Superman comics will note that he didn't begin his existence flying. Rather he had, "a habit of leaping so high that it would look as though he were flying." Remember that line, "Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound"? That's where that came from. The author walks the fine line between the original Superman and the one we all recognize today, and does so while still remaining factually accurate. No small task. Anyone who has ever read Michael Chabon's