It's 1939, in New York City. Joe Kavalier, a young artist who has also been trained in the art of Houdiniesque escape, has just pulled off his greatest feat - smuggling himself out of Hitler's Prague. He's looking to make big money, fast, so that he can bring his family to freedom. His cousin, Brooklyn's own Sammy Clay, is looking for a partner in creating the heroes, stories, and art for the latest novelty to hit the American dreamscape: the comic book.

Inspired by their own fantasies, fears, and dreams, Kavalier and Clay create the Escapist, the Monitor, and the otherworldy Mistress of the Night, Luna Moth, inspired by the beautiful Rosa Saks, who will become linked by powerful ties to both men. The golden age of comic books has begun, even as the shadow of Hitler falls across Europe.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay is a stunning novel of endless comic invention and unforgettable characters, written in the exhilarating prose that has led critics to compare Michael Chabon to Cheever and Nabokov. In Joe Kavalier, Chabon, writing "like a magical spider, effortlessly spinning out elaborate webs of words that ensnare the reader" (Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times), has created a hero for the century.

A witty and sometimes touching story of two talented Jewish cousins--one a writer, the other an artist. At the beginning of WWII they collaborate and create comic book action heroes who battle Hitler and his minions. Novelist Michael Chabon and reader David Colacci also are a dynamic duo. Chabon's writing is imaginative and articulate, and Colacci's reading is glib, powerful, and passionate. Despite all the wit, there is some serious stuff lurking below the surface and human tragedy around the corner. This is the first abridgment sampled--6 tapes--that was complete enough not to have lost the flavor of the original writing, over 700 pages. This thoughtful and entertaining work is so well presented by Colacci--even down to the Yiddish accents--that his performance a truly memorable experience. A.L.H. (c) AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine

 

In the days of pulp fiction, genre magazines, and comic books, two creative cousins, Sam Clay(man) and Joseph Kavalier, think up and bring to life "The Escapist," who rescues the weak and endangered from the evil people in this world, including Hitler. David Colacci brings Kavalier & Clay to life. Chabon mixes the make-believe comic book characters, complete with hair-raising adventures, with Clay and Kavalier's trials and successes, also providing glimpses of the pulp fiction industry in its infancy. As Colacci smoothly switches from Czech accented English, to Brooklynese, he disappears from the listener's consciousness and the characters take on a life of their own, just as the Golem who makes two cameo appearances in this novel. And then the story ends all too soon, so the listener must await the next installment in the lives of heroes, real & imagined. M.B.K. (c) AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine

 

Michael Chabon is the author of Wonder Boys, which won universal critical acclaim and was made into a feature film starring Michael Douglas. Entertainment Weekly included his latest, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, on its list of the best books of 2000. Both are available from Brilliance Audio. He received his B.A. from The University of Pittsburgh and his M.F.A. from the University of California at Irvine. He lives with his wife and two children in California.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon
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