"Another remarkable work from Jess Nevins, exposing and exploring the roots of the forms of weird adventure fiction that continue to dominate 21st-century culture. Essential archaeology." -- Warren Ellis, Author of Gun Machine, Transmetropolitan, and Normal "A deep and fascinating dive into the origins of the superhero. Everything you could want to know about the roots of the genre, delving back into myth, folklore, epic poetry, pulp fiction, and more, exhaustively researched and organized. A dream book for anyone interested in superhero history-this is a book I'll find myself consulting again and again." -- Kurt Busiek, New York Times best-selling author of ASTRO CITY, MARVELS and more "As always, Jess Nevins is the ultimate historical source for pulp fiction. This book is like if Encyclopedia Brown had grown up obsessed with superheroes and made the ultimate guide to them." -- Ed Brubaker, Best-selling author of CRIMINAL, KILL OR BE KILLED, and THE FADE-OUT
Jess Nevins is reference librarian at Lone Star College in Tomball, TX.
"A well-researched and utterly captivating book offering the
complete history of the superhero and how the concept has evolved
over time. . . . [T]here are hundreds of other superheroes that
Nevins explores in-depth and with remarkable insight. The thrill of
reading a book like The Evolution of the Costumed Avenger is
that, aside from being educational and interesting in itself, it
inspires readers to seek out more superhero stories." - Kirkus
Reviews
"To trace these multitudinous precursors to Superman, Batman and
Wonder Woman is obviously a job that only super-researcher Jess
Nevins could undertake. . . . Jess Nevins has now mapped the DNA
that links ancient Enkidu to our own Wolverine. He convincingly
shows that the superheroes of today's page and screen got their
start long before baby Kal-El was sent rocketing toward Earth as
the planet Krypton exploded." - Wall Street Journal
"A solid contribution to the literature on a phenomenon that today
commands so much time, attention, and money. Summing Up:
Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty." -
Choice
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