Catwoman: The Visual Guide to the Feline Fatale [Hardcover]

Scott Beatty (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 3, 2004 | Age Level: 1 and up

She has been called the Princess of Plunder, the Queen of Crime, and the Feline Fatale. Her real name is Selina Kyle, but she has had more aliases than a cat has lives-and more schemes than almost any other criminal in Gotham. Catwoman: The Visual Guide to the Feline Fatale reveals every possible aspect of this fascinating, enigmatic she-rogue as she has appeared in DC comic books for more than six thrill-packed decades.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School–With images taken from the original DC Comics books, this montage spans more than 60 years of the femme fatale's career, beginning with her first appearance as "The Cat" in Batman #1. In classic DK style, each oversized spread highlights a different aspect of Catwoman's world, including family and friends, weaponry, her crimes, homes, modes of transport, her catsuit, and her on-again/off-again relationship with Batman. Also included is a six-page time line that covers, in depth, all the major events of her career. Fans of Catwoman, as well as Batman, will be asking for this guide. Keep in mind that, unlike previous books in the series, this title has overtly sexual images.–Karen T. Bilton, Somerset County Library, Bridgewater, NJ
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Reviewed with Simon Furman's Transformers.

Gr. 6-12. What kind of equipment does Catwoman carry? Where did the Transformers come from? How did Catwoman become who she is? These two oversize, illustration-rich books, on slick paper typical of DK, have all the answers, allowing new readers to come into an established comic character's world without wondering what they have missed. They are also a great way for fans to revisit or understand more about a character's background. In Catwoman the art is lush and varied, covering nearly 65 years of history. transformers uses art to great effect to provide "technical" specs of the robots that readers know and love or want to learn about. Tina Coleman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 1 and up
  
• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: DK CHILDREN (May 3, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0756603838
• ISBN-13: 978-0756603830
• Product Dimensions: 12 x 10.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #733,647 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Light, Not for Kitties, October 3, 2004

By 

Savant11 "Savant11" (Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Catwoman: The Visual Guide to the Feline Fatale (Hardcover)

This book provides a light overview of Catwoman. And I mean light overvwiew. I noticed that most of the examples used by the author, Scott Beatty, to outline Selina's life and who she is comes from stories by Jeph Loeb. Primarily Batman: The Long Halloween, Batman Dark Victory and Batman Hush.

Please note Jeph Loeb has to have done one of the worst portrayals Catwoman ever. His portrayal of her is very unflattering...he writes her as if she belongs in an adult movie. Trust me Catwoman is much more than that.

If you are really interested in Catwoman I suggest that you pick up "Catwoman, The Life and Times of a Feline Fatale" by Suzan Colon. Then you'll get the real deal on who Selina "Catwoman" Kyle is.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Overview of Character, May 23, 2004

By 

J. Smith "JThree" (Williston, North Dakota United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Catwoman: The Visual Guide to the Feline Fatale (Hardcover)

Looking through this book made me all too aware of how comics have changed since I was a kid. As a tie-in to the upcoming Halle Barre movie, Dowling Kindersley has released this visual companion. The latest in their comic book and cartoon volumes; most of which have been fun to read and a pictorial treat.

While the research has always been first-rate, and I can't fathom the hours that were spent selecting the pictures; I have to confess that all the different interpretations of Catwoman would be confusing to the first time reader, and I'm not really referring to the character's different outfits.

For me the most fun is looking at the time, and I wish Mr. McCloud would spend a few more pages on it. For Catwoman, I would have loved a bit more discussion of the pre-Crisis (no longer in continuity) Helena Wayne/Huntress character that was Catwoman and Batman's daughter in another reality. And I would have appreciated a few panels from the Marshall/Englehart seventies storylinea, and more from the animated series version

Mr. Brubaker, current writer of the Catwoman comic book, does a great job with his introduction to the text. And again Mr. McCloud shows his editoral talent and research ability. But I find myself missing the brigher colors and storylines of my youth in contrast to today's issues.

After reading several of this DK visual guides, I have to confess I'm still looking forward to a few more volumes in the future. They can be fun.

(...)

4.0 out of 5 stars Not enough information, April 30, 2011

By 

Michael Patrick Boyd (Waukesha, WI) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Catwoman: The Visual Guide to the Feline Fatale (Hardcover)

Catwoman: The Visual Guide to the Feline Fatale by Scott Beatty has 64 pages of information about the Catwoman and was copyrighted in 2004. The book measures one foot long by 10¼ inches wide. This is basically an idiot's guide to the Catwoman with a time line about her in the back of the book. You learn about the change of her costume, her sad childhood the lead her to become a thief, and some of the gadgets she has used over the years. Also included are tidbits of her life, love, friends, and enemies of the Catwoman. This book is more geared towards the children then the adults. Catwoman: The Visual Guide to the Feline Fatale gets a B for the nice pictures it has.