The Dreamer: A Graphic Novella Set During the Dawn of Comic Books [Paperback]

Will Eisner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2000

An extraordinary autobiography story from a legend in American comics.

A roman à clef about Eisner's early years in the thriving comics industry prior to World War II—featuring new annotations that reveal comics pioneers such as Bob Kane and Jack Kirby who appear under pseudonyms.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Will Eisner was born William Erwin Eisner on March 6, 1917 in Brooklyn, New York. By the time of his death on January 3, 2005, Will Eisner was recognized internationally as one of the giants in the field of sequential art, a term he coined.

In a career that spanned nearly eight decades—from the dawn of the comic book to the advent of digital comics—Will Eisner was truly the 'Orson Welles of comics' and the 'father of the Graphic Novel'. He broke new ground in the development of visual narrative and the language of comics and was the creator of The Spirit, John Law, Lady Luck, Mr. Mystic, Uncle Sam, Blackhawk, Sheena and countless others.

During World War II, Will Eisner used the comic format to develop training and equipment maintenance manuals for the US Army. After the war this continued as the Army's P.S. Magazine, which is still being produced today. Will Eisner taught Sequential Arts at the New York School of Visual Arts. The textbooks that he wrote based on his course are still bestsellers. In 1978, Will Eisner wrote A Contract with God, the first modern graphic novel. This was followed by almost 20 additional graphic novels over the following 25 years.

The "Oscars" of the Comic Industry are called The Eisner Awards, and named after Will Eisner. The Eisners are presented annually before a packed ballroom at Comic-Con International in San Diego, America's largest comics convention.

Wizard magazine named Eisner "the most influential comic artist of all time." Michael Chabon's Pulitzer-prize winning novel The Adventures of Kavalier and Clay is based in good part on Eisner. In 2002, Eisner received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Federation for Jewish Culture, only the second such honor in the organization's history, presented by Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Art Spiegelman. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 56 pages
• Publisher: DC Comics (June 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1563896788
• ISBN-13: 978-1563896781
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.4 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,497,746 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

WILL EISNER was born William Erwin Eisner on March 6, 1917 in Brooklyn, New York. By the time of his death on January 3, 2005, Will Eisner was recognized internationally as one of the giants in the field of sequential art, a term he coined.

In a career that spanned nearly eight decades -- from the dawn of the comic book to the advent of digital comics - Will Eisner was truly the 'Orson Welles of comics' and the 'father of the Graphic Novel'. He broke new ground in the development of visual narrative and the language of comics and was the creator of The Spirit, John Law, Lady Luck, Mr. Mystic, Uncle Sam, Blackhawk, Sheena and countless others.

During World War II, Will Eisner used the comic format to develop training and equipment maintenance manuals for the US Army. After the war this continued as the Army's "PS Magazine" which is still being produced today. Will Eisner taught Sequential Arts at the New York School of Visual Arts. The textbooks that he wrote based on his course are still bestsellers. In 1978, Will Eisner wrote "A Contract with God," the first modern Graphic Novel. This was followed by almost 20 additional graphic novels over the following 25 years.

The "Oscars" of the Comic Industry are called The Eisner Awards, and named after Will Eisner. The Eisners are presented annually before a packed ballroom at Comi-Con International in San Diego, America's largest comics convention.

Wizard magazine named Eisner "the most influential comic artist of all time." Michael Chabon's Pulitzer-prize winning novel "Kavalier and Clay" is based in good part on Eisner. In 2002, Eisner received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Federation for Jewish Culture, only the second such honor in the organization's history, presented by Pulitzer-prize winning cartoonist Art Spiegelman.

You can always find more information about Will Eisner at www.willeisner.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The dawn of comics' Golden Age, September 24, 2000

By 

Jason R. Tippitt (Jackson, TN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Dreamer: A Graphic Novella Set During the Dawn of Comic Books (Paperback)

Will Eisner offers a revealing look at the early days of comics in this semi-autobiographical tale of a young comics artist's early shot at stardom and some of his stumbling blocks (such as the copyright suit he was involved in as a young man over a Superman rip-off he was paid to draw).

The humanity of all Eisner's books is in strong evidence here, as we meet the other artists in the workshop where our dreamer goes to work: people with flaws and strengths, weaknesses and dignity, who just may be based on Jack Kirby, Alex Toth, Joe Kubert, and others from the dawn of the medium. Names are changed to protect Eisner's cohorts, however.

If you're a fan of comics' Golden Age, this is a book very worth checking out. This could be the story of any creator who worked for National, Atlas, Dell, or any of the other publishing houses of the time and dreamed of striking out on his own.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars essentially an autobiography, May 21, 2002

By 

Yakov Hadash (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Dreamer: A Graphic Novella Set During the Dawn of Comic Books (Paperback)

it's not difficult to figure out the pseudonyms. eisner's decision to write his autobiography using code names for everyone (who is completely and obviously specific people), especially in this era of tell-all comics, is something of a head-scratcher. nevertheless, this is a thoroughly interesting and entertaining insight into Eisner's early career: his work at a printing press, his infamous encounter with the mafia and tijuana bibles, the decline of pulps and the rise of comic books, and the start of the Eisner/Iger production shop, with some nice cameos by Alex Toth (i think), Jack Kirby (i'm sure), and a writer who i don't recognize.

And, as ever, Eisner's storytelling, renderings, design, and particularly his breakdowns are excellent, regardless of any flaws in the story or, in Eisner's style, excessively emotive and kinetic characters.

The book is short, probably a 20-30 minute read the first time you go through it.

-yakov.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Dreamer, May 18, 2009

By 

Avrum M. Fine (West Chester, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Dreamer (Paperback)

Will Eisner, creator of the Graphic Novel, shows why he remains unchallenged in his field.