Word Poll

[Poll #1150854]

Books: Batman & Wonder Boys

Batman: The Sunday Classics 1943-1946

Batman has had his own newspaper strip many times over the past 70 years, but his first run in the Sundays was '43 to '46. My reaction on reading this book was, "Oh yeah, that's the stuff." There are many legitimate interpretations of Batman, and I enjoy Adam West as much as I do Frank Miller, but something about this Batman taps into my first childhood impressions of the character. (Which is odd, given that not only wasn't I around in the mid-40s, but my parents were only just being born . . . )
While there are stories in here about Catwoman, Two-Face, the Joker, and the Penguin, the vast majority show Batman in conflict with suit-wearing gangsters, jewelry thieves, and the occasional cattle rustler. The citizens of Gotham idolize them. They themselves have fun while punching villains on the snoot. The writing is swift and entertaining. The art (though stylized; Batman is so square-jawed you'd think he shaves with a belt sander) is wonderfully detailed and evocative. Highly recommended.

Wonder Boys by Michael Chabon

While I greatly enjoyed the movie based on this book, partway through the novel I just got tired of reading about smart people doing stupid things. When you want to smack the protagonist on every single page, it makes a book a bit of a chore. I highly rcommend the movie; the book, not so much.