In 1940, DC Comics created the concept of the super-team by bringing together Green Lantern, Hawkman, Wonder Woman, and many others to battle powers that threatened the entire world.

The sweeping story of cartoons, comic strips, and graphic novels and their hold on the American imagination. Comics have conquered America. From our multiplexes, where Marvel and DC movies reign supreme, to our television screens, where comics-based shows like The Walking Dead have become among the most popular in cable history, to convention halls, best-seller lists, Pulitzer Prize–winning titles, and MacArthur Fellowship recipients, comics shape American culture, in ways high and low, superficial, and deeply profound. In American Comics, Columbia professor Jeremy Dauber takes readers through their incredible but little-known history, starting with the Civil War and cartoonist Thomas Nast, creator of the lasting and iconic images of Uncle Sam and Santa Claus; the golden age of newspaper comic strips and the first great superhero boom; the moral panic of the Eisenhower era, the Marvel Comics revolution, and the underground comix movement of the 1960s and ’70s; and finally into the twenty-first century, taking in the grim and gritty Dark Knights and Watchmen alongside the brilliant rise of the graphic novel by acclaimed practitioners like Art Spiegelman and Alison Bechdel. Dauber’s story shows not only how comics have changed over the decades but how American politics and culture have changed them. Throughout, he describes the origins of beloved comics, champions neglected masterpieces, and argues that we can understand how America sees itself through whose stories comics tell. Striking and revelatory, American Comics is a rich chronicle of the last 150 years of American history through the lens of its comic strips, political cartoons, superheroes, graphic novels, and more. FEATURING… • American Splendor • Archie • The Avengers • Kyle Baker • Batman • C. C. Beck • Black Panther • Captain America • Roz Chast • Walt Disney • Will Eisner • Neil Gaiman • Bill Gaines • Bill Griffith • Harley Quinn • Jack Kirby • Denis Kitchen • Krazy Kat • Harvey Kurtzman • Stan Lee • Little Orphan Annie • Maus • Frank Miller • Alan Moore • Mutt and Jeff • Gary Panter • Peanuts • Dav Pilkey • Gail Simone • Spider-Man • Superman • Dick Tracy • Wonder Wart-Hog • Wonder Woman • The Yellow Kid • Zap Comix … AND MANY MORE OF YOUR FAVORITES!

The wisdom of Solomon. The strength of Hercules. The stamina of Atlas. The power of Zeus. The courage of Achilles. The speed of Mercury. Put them together and they spell ... SHAZAM! By speaking that magic word, newsboy Billy Batson was instantly transformed into the incredible Captain Marvel, The World's Mightiest Mortal ... and one of the most popular comic book heroes of the 1940s Golden Age of Comics.

Joe Kubert is one of the great comic book artists. His career literally traverses the history of comics, beginning in 1938 when he became a professional at age 12, to today as one of the greatest draftsmen working in the field. Kubert is known and respected as much for his sinewy, passionate drawing as he is for his consummate storytelling skills. Over his 70-year career in comics, he has worked as an artist, an editor, a publisher, an entrepreneur, and a cartooning auteur. The Art of Joe Kubert is a deluxe, full-color book that honors this legendary creator with beautifully reproduced artwork from every phase of his career as well as critical commentary by the book’s editor, comics historian and Kubert biographer Bill Schelly.

When gangster Eel O'Brien was double-crossed by his partners during a heist, he fell into a vat of chemicals that would forever change his body and life. These are the original stories of a common thief who turned into the world's wackiest super-hero. With the ability to stretch his body into any shape and length, Plastic Man has become one of the most colorful and comical icons of all time.

A remarkable exploration of Wonder Woman’s creation, mysterious identity, and evolution—and her extraordinary impact on her legions of fans. For generations, Wonder Woman has been a symbol of equality and female empowerment, her complex saga deeply rooted within the feminist movement. A staple of the comic book industry, she is arguably the best-known female superhero of all time. In Wonder Woman: Warrior, Disrupter, Feminist Icon, Regina Luttrell details this legendary superhero’s origins, history, and evolution, from an ambassador of peace and love to the fiercest warrior in the DC Universe. Luttrell reveals how Wonder Woman’s journeys are a reflection of each wave within the feminist movement and how her impact on culture and society continues to be felt today. Wonder Woman has become the epitome of technological sophistication, globalization, and modern-day feminism. She is truly a warrior, a disrupter, and a feminist icon. Luttrell’s fascinating history includes the perspectives of famed feminist Gloria Steinem in her essay “Wonder Woman,” as well as personal interviews with creator William Moulton Marson’s surviving family members. Featuring a captivating examination of the oft-overlooked contributions of Marston’s life partners and inspirations Elizabeth Holloway Marston and Olive Byrne, Wonder Woman is an incredible, in-depth exploration of this iconic feminist superhero.

Sonic battles his nemesis, Robotnik, as the villain traps him with plants, attacks him with a mechanical bomb-throwing monkey, and kidnaps Sally.

Written by SHELDON MAYER Art and cover by SHELDON MAYER DC's cult favorite comic about a pair of precocious babies is collected at last in this volume. Hot-tempered Sugar Plumm and shy Cecil "Spike" Wilson may be toddlers, but they know more about getting into trouble than most grown-ups. And while they can understand each other perfectly, all their parents seem to hear when they speak is "Glx sptzl glaah!" Now, DC Comics collects their classic series for the first time, starting with issues #1-10, in this hardcover showcasing stories and art by the talented Sheldon Mayer, inspired by the hijinks of his own children. ADVANCE SOLICITED - On sale AUGUST 31 240 pg, FC

"Offers early Super-Man stories in which the Man of Steel deals with corrupt officials, blackmarketeers, and costumed villains with occasional help from Lois Lane." -- Amazon.com.