It's a Bird [Paperback]

Steven T. Seagle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2005

From Maus and American Splendor to Persepolis and Blankets, graphic novels have emerged as a vital forum for memoirs and semi-autobiographical tales. IT'S A BIRD. . . written by Steven T. Seagle (Vertical; Sandman: Mystery Theater) with painted art by European artist Teddy Kristiansen (House of Secrets) is a personal story details one writer's attempt to find his missing father, come to terms with his family's legacy of Huntington's disease, reconcile with his girlfriend, and stave off writer's block. If that sounds like a job for Superman, well, that's the problem.The semi-autobiographical Steve Seagle of IT'S A BIRD. . . should be celebrating. He's been offered a plum assignment: the opportunity to write the ongoing Superman comic book. But when his father disappears, Steve is confronted by his family's history of Huntington's and the possibility that he and his father might have the disease. He is desperate to track down his father and needs to explain to his girlfriend why he might be reluctant to have children. The last thing that he has time for is to put together a proposal for Superman, but his editor keeps calling and needs an answer: can he, will he, write Superman?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The first rule of metafiction: stories about how the author can't think of what to write about are a bad idea. So a story about a comics writer named Steve who's been assigned to write Superman comics but can't come up with a way to write them seems unpromising. (Seagle wrote the Supermancomic for several years.) But Seagle and artist Kristiansen (with whom he collaborated on a couple of excellent House of Secrets books) come through. This isn't a Superman story, exactly; it's an experimental, refracted, semifictional memoir, with Superman-or, rather, the variety of ideas that Superman represents-as its central symbol. Kristiansen's inventive ink-and-watercolor artwork, a bit reminiscent of the Expressionist painter Egon Schiele, gives a crisp, arty look to the sections about Steve's progressively more messed-up personal life and family secret. (The latter has to do with Huntington's disease, the discussion of which here approaches Very Special Episode territory.) Both writer and artist shine on the sections that explore Steve's thoughts about what Superman means: Nietzschean übermensch, synthesizer of primary colors' symbolism, embodiment of benevolent violence, alien who's accepted where others aren't, etc. Kristiansen devises a distinct visual technique for each, often inspired by other 20th-century painters. It's a sweet, clever meditation on what makes the concept of Superman so powerful, and the troubled relationship between powerful concepts and creative narrative.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

A quarter-century after Harvey Pekar began American Splendor, autobiographical comics are more a cliche than a novelty, unless they come from a mainstream comic-book publisher and depict a superhero-comics creator's life. When Seagle was offered the chance to write Superman, his surprising response was to reject the plum assignment, contending that he couldn't relate to the unbelievable character. But the refusal coincided with other crises: his father's disappearance, his girlfriend's desire to have children, and, looming over all, the grim prospect of developing Huntington's disease, which had struck other family members. Kristiansen's expert illustration in a variety of styles adds a polish that smooths over the awkward passages in Seagle's sometimes overearnest script. Hardcore alternative-comics devotees may find this effort too slick and self-indulgent; superhero fans probably won't even bother to pick it up. Comics readers with a foot in both camps, however, will recognize Seagle as facing, albeit more urgently than most others, the kinds of questions every grown-up, including those still open to the adolescent charms of superheroes, confronts. Gordon Flagg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 136 pages
• Publisher: Vertigo (March 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401203116
• ISBN-13: 978-1401203115
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 0.2 x 10.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #277,847 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book for Non-Comic Book People, June 3, 2004

By 

L. Reinhart (LA, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: It's a Bird (Hardcover)

If you haven't tried a graphic novel yet, this one should get you on board with this awesome genre of lit. The story is powerful and very cleverly told, and the art is spectacular. I think it was actually painted with watercolors and oils. I tend toward superhero material and while this has Supes in it I was surprised to find a really sophisticated story with a hero in it that is also intellectually challenging. Maybe this book signals a new direction to relieve some of the exhaustion that old school comics storylines are facing.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Impact with accessibility, June 19, 2004

By 

John (Frederick, MD, United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: It's a Bird (Hardcover)

I have an affection for comic books but haven't kept up with the various graphic novels. I heard a radio spot on this book and was intrigued. The story has a real emotional kick that I suspect will be relevant for many people. I read it for Father's Day and couldn't help but reflect on the message that this has about the decision to have children as well as the many other thoughts that are expressed about how we choose to live our lives. Variously introspective and contemplative about the world condition, the book grabs our interest with both ideas and art. Highly recommended.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars beware intelligent comic reading, November 15, 2006

By 

Mark Eisenman "cartoonist" (anchorage, ak United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: It's a Bird (Paperback)

It amazes me sometimes what you can find amid the mass of superhero spandex in the comic world these days. Don't get me wrong there is a large, and growing larger, area of comics that has nothing to do with superheros. But this book is a mix of both. Steven takes his mostly true tale of having the opportunity to write superman and the trouble he faces trying to write a character that he feels he can't write. He's know for his surreal vertigo work and getting superman seems just beyond him. How does a man that wants to be a serious writer and a serious writer of comics take on the biggest of american comic book icons? well you'll have to read this incredibly drawn and written graphic novel.