HERO - a superb gay superhero novel
November 1st 2009 09:14
Massive thanks go to Paul for word of mouthing me this book to read. Apologies to the fine author, Perry Moore, as I borrowed the book as opposed to buying my own.
I had actually seen the book in Bookshop Darlinghurst, Sydney Australia, and picked it up to read the blurb and thought it was a great idea for a book and that the cover art was very sexy. Not having money at the time I added it to my list and then Paul turns up with a copy. Woot.
Thom Creed is used to being on his own. Even as a high school basketball star, he has to keep his distance because of his father. Hal Creed had once been one of the greatest and most beloved superheroes of The League, until the Wilson Towers incident. After that Thom's mother disappeared and his proud father became an outcast.
The last thing in the world Thom would ever want is to disappoint his father. So Thom keeps two secrets from him: First is that he's gay. The second is that he has the power to heal people. Initially, Thom had trouble controlling his powers. But with trail and error he improves, until he gets so good that he catches the attention of the League and is asked to join. Even though he knows it would kill his dad, Thom can't resist. When he joins the League, he meets a motley crew of other heroes, including tough-talking Scarlett, who has the power of fire from growing up near a nuclear power plant; Typhoid Larry, who makes everyone sick by touching them, but is actually a really sweet guy; and wise Ruth, who has the power to see the future. Together these unlikely heroes become friends and begin to uncover a plot to kill the superheroes. Along the way, Thom falls in love, and discovers the difficult truth about his parents' past.
This is moving, funny, and wonderfully original novel shows that things are not always what they seem, and love can be found in the unlikeliest of places.
I should clarify that this is much more than a "gay superhero" book. It is a look into the battle all homosexuals face when coming out, keeping their secret identity before they are comfortable to show their real self to the world. It also deals with homophobia, how the parental units deal with finding out their only child is gay and how love can blossom from unexpected sources. It also highlights the importance of friendships and that total assholes may be that way for a reason and that healing this hurt can have wonderful self fulfilling effects.
Gays cop a hiding in the comic world and Moore says he wrote the book after being upset by a Marvel Comic in 2005. In X-Men: Age of Apocalypse #2, the gay superhero Northstar was killed by Wolverine. Moore believed that having one of Marvel’s biggest superheroes murder its most prominent gay character sent the wrong message to readers. Moore subsequently created a list of GLBTQ superheroes who have met with torture, rape, disembowelment, decapitation, had their genitalia disfigured or removed, or retconned as heterosexual. His growing awareness of the poor treatment of GLBTQ superhero characters led him to write Hero to present a more positive image.
Moore told The New York Times that a series of book sequels featuring Thom Creed are planned, and a motion picture adaptation is in the early stages. The first adaptation will be for the television, Moore announced "It looks like we’re going to do a TV series with Showtime. There were two networks that we pitched, and we got two offers." The coming TV show and future movie are being made with the assistance of world comic and superhero genius Stan Lee and I cannot wait to see them. I just hope they get mainstream treatment.
The book has copped a bit of critical attack for cliche ridden superhero and gay themes but I loved every bit of it with many characters that are not two dimensional and are all lovable. It borrows ideas from Watchmen and many other heros with the ultimate hero of the book, Justice, being a majority copy of Superman but this is his way of not breaking copyright and using every type of hero possible in this tale. Thom is so lovable you want to hug him and tell him everything will be alright during his darkest moments and his relationship with his father is handled brilliantly. I hope this book is not written off by the general public as a "gay" book as I think it is universal and can be enjoyed by all. It took me 6hrs of reading where I got burnt to a crisp without realising it as I could not put the book down while sitting next to the pool and enjoying the day.
It should also be noted that besides this being Moore's first novel he is in fact also the executive producer of the Narnia movies. Yay Moore, now bring on Caspian!!!
This book can be purchased online from all good bookstores, it will also be available in all gay friendly bookstores. I hope you get to enjoy it as much as I did.
I had actually seen the book in Bookshop Darlinghurst, Sydney Australia, and picked it up to read the blurb and thought it was a great idea for a book and that the cover art was very sexy. Not having money at the time I added it to my list and then Paul turns up with a copy. Woot.
Thom Creed is used to being on his own. Even as a high school basketball star, he has to keep his distance because of his father. Hal Creed had once been one of the greatest and most beloved superheroes of The League, until the Wilson Towers incident. After that Thom's mother disappeared and his proud father became an outcast.
The last thing in the world Thom would ever want is to disappoint his father. So Thom keeps two secrets from him: First is that he's gay. The second is that he has the power to heal people. Initially, Thom had trouble controlling his powers. But with trail and error he improves, until he gets so good that he catches the attention of the League and is asked to join. Even though he knows it would kill his dad, Thom can't resist. When he joins the League, he meets a motley crew of other heroes, including tough-talking Scarlett, who has the power of fire from growing up near a nuclear power plant; Typhoid Larry, who makes everyone sick by touching them, but is actually a really sweet guy; and wise Ruth, who has the power to see the future. Together these unlikely heroes become friends and begin to uncover a plot to kill the superheroes. Along the way, Thom falls in love, and discovers the difficult truth about his parents' past.
This is moving, funny, and wonderfully original novel shows that things are not always what they seem, and love can be found in the unlikeliest of places.
Credit for this artowrk goes to Kimball Gray - he has a website at www.deviantart.com
I should clarify that this is much more than a "gay superhero" book. It is a look into the battle all homosexuals face when coming out, keeping their secret identity before they are comfortable to show their real self to the world. It also deals with homophobia, how the parental units deal with finding out their only child is gay and how love can blossom from unexpected sources. It also highlights the importance of friendships and that total assholes may be that way for a reason and that healing this hurt can have wonderful self fulfilling effects.
Gays cop a hiding in the comic world and Moore says he wrote the book after being upset by a Marvel Comic in 2005. In X-Men: Age of Apocalypse #2, the gay superhero Northstar was killed by Wolverine. Moore believed that having one of Marvel’s biggest superheroes murder its most prominent gay character sent the wrong message to readers. Moore subsequently created a list of GLBTQ superheroes who have met with torture, rape, disembowelment, decapitation, had their genitalia disfigured or removed, or retconned as heterosexual. His growing awareness of the poor treatment of GLBTQ superhero characters led him to write Hero to present a more positive image.
Moore told The New York Times that a series of book sequels featuring Thom Creed are planned, and a motion picture adaptation is in the early stages. The first adaptation will be for the television, Moore announced "It looks like we’re going to do a TV series with Showtime. There were two networks that we pitched, and we got two offers." The coming TV show and future movie are being made with the assistance of world comic and superhero genius Stan Lee and I cannot wait to see them. I just hope they get mainstream treatment.
The book has copped a bit of critical attack for cliche ridden superhero and gay themes but I loved every bit of it with many characters that are not two dimensional and are all lovable. It borrows ideas from Watchmen and many other heros with the ultimate hero of the book, Justice, being a majority copy of Superman but this is his way of not breaking copyright and using every type of hero possible in this tale. Thom is so lovable you want to hug him and tell him everything will be alright during his darkest moments and his relationship with his father is handled brilliantly. I hope this book is not written off by the general public as a "gay" book as I think it is universal and can be enjoyed by all. It took me 6hrs of reading where I got burnt to a crisp without realising it as I could not put the book down while sitting next to the pool and enjoying the day.
It should also be noted that besides this being Moore's first novel he is in fact also the executive producer of the Narnia movies. Yay Moore, now bring on Caspian!!!
This book can be purchased online from all good bookstores, it will also be available in all gay friendly bookstores. I hope you get to enjoy it as much as I did.
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The idea for the book is great, I love what inspired Moore to write it also. Totally original idea, light reading and worth every page.