Comics as Literature, or Literature about Comics?

I always approach books like this with caution. The ones that have a little gold medallion on the front and say, "The Pulitzer Prize-Winning Novel," or something like that. You know the type. I like to think it's because I've been disappointed by so-called "classics" in the past, but if I'm being honest with myself, it's often because I'm intimidated by them. And if ever there were an award-winning book worth being intimidated by, it's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay.

The Plot

This sprawling, magnificent book takes us from the tense years between World Wars One and Two to the time of the Korean War; from the streets of Prague to the Jersey shore. The story chronicles the spectacular ups and downs of the lives of two cousins: Sammy Klayman and Josef Kavalier.

Sammy Klayman (or Sammy Clay, the name he later adopts) is an intelligent, inventive teenager, enthralled with the early proliferation of comic books, but without the artistic skills to make one himself. Josef Kavalier is a deadly serious Czech immigrant, trained as an escape artist, spirited from his home in Prague in anticipation of the horrors that Hitler would soon bring to Europe. He also happens to be an enormously talented artist, and he brings to his art an anti-Axis furor that is controversial but embraced by the public. Together, the two spawn Empire Comics, complete with their own line of characters (most notably The Escapist, and later Luna Moth).

The boys' fortunes rise and fall, in business and otherwise. Joe searches desperately for ways to get the rest of his family out of Czechoslovakia, and Sammy hides a dark secret, even from himself. Their lives become intertwined with that of Rosa Luxembourg Saks, a beautiful young socialite.

I don't want to spoil any of the rest of the plot for you all, so I'll leave this section there. If you're going to read the book, you'll want to take it all as it comes.

The Writing

It was very difficult for me to start this book. Chabon's language felt forced to me at first. Pretentious, even. It felt as though he felt he needed to dress up each sentence with flowery language for no other reason than to look smart, or creative. But as I read, that all changed.

Chabon's language, once you get used to it, is elegant and effortless. The ease with which he throws out figurative language, historical references, foreign words, etc., is astounding. It's a pleasure to get wrapped up in such expressive writing, once you know how to do it.

The Characters

In so many books, the characters are all quite obviously caricatures, and all speak as though they were different versions of the author himself. Not only does Chabon write masterful dialogue, he also avoids having his characters become formulaic in any way. Sometimes they may act in unexpected manners, but it's never out of character, and it's always satisfying.

The book felt to me more like the story of Josef Kavalier than anything, with Sammy Clay playing a secondary part, and Rosa Saks bringing up the rear. But Chabon gives Rosa and Sammy both their own voices, not just as plot devices to advance the story of Joe.

Comic Books

The book isn't really about comic books, per se, but they certainly are an important part of the foundation of the story. Some of the most enjoyable parts of the book, for me, were the origin stories of Kavalier and Clay's comic book characters. There are only three of them (The Escapist, Luna Moth, and The Saboteur), but they're done masterfully, and in an exceedingly literate and well-written style. In so doing, Chabon effectively makes the argument for comic books as literature, if they're written well enough. The origin stories are well-written, but it's the power of the stories themselves (the origin stories in the book are representative, as well, of most origin stories that can be found in real comic books) that fills out Chabon's precisely chosen words. In other words, Chabon seems to say, between the lines, that the themes of comic books and superhero stories resonate so deeply that they're just waiting for someone to come along and write them well.

The origin story of the Saboteur, arch-nemesis of the Escapist, is particularly well-done. I'll leave it to you to see exactly why.

In Closing...

Chabon has created a real classic with Kavalier and Clay. It's at once a love story, a thoughtful examination of a young and uniquely American art form, a tale of loss and redemption in the face of war, etc. I could go on and on and on, but you shouldn't take my word for it. Go out and pick it up yourself.


Other Book Reviews!

A Long Way Down, by Nick Hornby
Life of Pi, by Yann Martel
Naked, by David Sedaris