American Comic Book Chronicles: 1940-1944

In the interests of full disclosure I've been friends with the author for around 20 years. He and I have haunted the same places online for lo these many years. That said, I don't believe that has swayed my thoughts on the book in any way.This is the first volume in Twomorrows' ACBC series that I've read. Not that I've avoided them. I just haven't found them at the price I wanted to pay. That I paid full price for this is testament to the regard I have for the author. This series not quite the norm for the books I've read from Twomorrows. While it still has a ton of great pictures it is more scholarly and is generally a "deeper cut" than the artist surveys or even the company surveys (MLJ, Quality) that we've seen from the publisher. No long creator interviews here. This is a deep and scholarly look at comic books in the first half of the 1940s. And not just the usual suspects. You're not just going to get the output of DC (at the time two companies Detective and AA), Timely, Fawcett, Dell and the big boys. Mitchell tries to look at all the publishers that were churning out books during a half decade that saw huge expansion comic books. And it's not just the super-heroes (a myopia that tends to appear in books about comics). There's plenty here about every genre from the 40s and those publishers (Fiction House) that really never even delved into super-hero funny books.If there's a complaint to be had in the book it's that it could induce information overload. And I'd recommend that you read it with a computer or smartphone handy because there is a ton of stuff you're going to want to look up, even if it's just to get a better look at some of the characters described in the book. What saves it from that possible downfall is the author's voice. Mitchell is able to distill a huge amount of information in a manner that is both informative and conversational.I'm definitely looking forward to the continuation of the 40s. And a big thanks to Kurt for reminding me of some books I knew about and had forgotten, not least being George L. Carlson's work in Jingle Jangle Comics. I first encountered some of those stories 40 years ago in a book on comics and had largely forgotten about them. It's time to find a way to revisit some long lost gems.

This book is ideally suited for a junior high school library since it provides much respect for its subject matter. When I was a junior high school during the late 1960s comic books were regarded as being mind-numbing trash. Comic book fans and even science fiction fans were generally ridiculed and castigated by their fellow students. Comic book collectors tended to be derided by most teachers to the point where those students were better off reading kiddie porn instead. This book serves as a fine reference when it comes to examining the history of the comic book medium.

Deep dive into early 1940's comic books. Amply illustrated and well researched. May be too "scholastic" for some, but interesting to see the professional start of many of the major talents of the industry that would shape that world for decades to come. Recommended.

This series of books has been absolutely amazing, and this volume covers one of the most important 5 year spans in comic history. I absolutely cannot wait for the continuation of this. This set of books is an absolute must for any fan.

My friend Kurt Mitchell wrote this book

A beautiful book comprehensively exploring the early days of comics. Well written, fully illustrated. The Gold Standard book about the comics industry.

They were good.

As with the other great volumes of comic book history, this one is right on the mark. Written by Kurt Mitchell and (rascally) Roy Thomas, this book has a loving and detailed eye that touches on the comics of the late 30s, and then dives into the first half of the 1940s. Highly recommended. On initial reading, it seems the printers have beaten the issues that plagued the 80s volume. Solid spine and tight glue. It will be a great addition to the previous books.

The book arrived a day early and is in perfect condition can't wait to start learning more about comic books

Le livre à l'air vraiment très bon, comme tous les autres de la collection. Malheureusement Amazon ne prend plus aucun soin avec les livres. 1 fois sur 2, ils arrivent dans un mauvais état, et c'est le cas pour moi cette fois encore. La couverture arrière est en partie "griffée", à défaut d'un meilleur terme. Un livre ça se respecte.