The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay

‘Perfection. There are perhaps four other books I’ve loved this much, and none of them has made me cry more.’

1. Daily Telegraph

It is 1939, and Adolf Hitler casts a long shadow over Europe. Josef Kavalier has fled to New York, finding a kindred spirit in his comics-loving cousin Sammy Clay. Filled with dreams of liberty for those left behind, Josef and his new partner create the Escapist, a masked hero who can take the fight to the Nazis even as America remains reluctant to get involved. Yet in the real world, Joe’s family remain in enormous danger. Can the comic book hero deliver a near impossible feat: escape from the nightmare that is Nazi occupied Europe?

‘Absolutely gosh-wow, super-colossal’ 

1. Washington Post

‘One of the three great books of my generation’ 

1. Bret Easton Ellis

Michael Chabon’s pre-war New York is a place of optimism and art, of big band music and sharp suits – in his hands the city becomes a transformative place, taking lost souls and making them Americans taking broken children and making them superheroes. By intertwining the stories of two Jewish boys with that of their liberty-inspired comic hero, Chabon tells not only the story of a fledgling art form, but that of America itself, as seen through the eyes of its immigrants.

In his introduction for this special collector’s edition, author Michael Moorcock describes The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay as ‘a modern classic worthy of its Pulitzer Prize as only a handful can be’. Having worked in the very ink-stained offices Chabon describes, Moorcock praises this visionary novel’s authenticity, noting that it creates a world so compelling it leaves us wanting to ‘remain in its aura just a little while longer’. Since its publication in 2000, the fictional superhero has escaped the confines of the novel, appearing in his own series of comics published by Dark Horse.

With comics art as the foundation of the book, it was vital that the right artist be chosen to illustrate this collector’s edition. With the author’s approval, Eisner award-winning Chris Samnee has taken on the world of the Escapist. Having worked on iconic heroes such as Thor, Spider-man, Batman and Daredevil, Samnee brings a touch of ’30s noir to the page, deftly conveying the smoky, frantic world of the comic book studio. This majestic edition features six double-page spreads, and a blocked and die-cut slipcase, making it an essential volume for any devotee of American literature.