My First Wonder Woman Book

Downtown Bookworks sent me a copy of another one of their volumes, My First Wonder Woman Book, which is a "Touch and Feel" board book. Inside, you can check out the Amazing Amazon's sparkly blue cape, feel her Magic Lasso, check out her reflective bracelets, and lift a flap to see WW in her secret identity:

Wonder Woman's JLA pals do make an appearance, thanks to this classic group shot by Jose Luis Garcia Lopez (PBHN), which I never tire of looking at:

You can pick the book up now, on Amazon or via any fine seller of books. Thanks again to Downtown Bookworks for making these wonderful little tomes!


Postscript: I gave my copy of the book to a co-worker, thinking his three-year old daughter would enjoy it. Before I even made it home, he informed me she read it five times in a row. Can't ask for a better review of My First Wonder Woman Book!

The Big Book of Girl Power

The fine folks at Downtown Bookworks were kind enough to send the Shrine a preview copy of one of their newest books, The Big Book of Girl Power! Like the other Pre-School books in this series, it features mini-bios of DC characters, heroes and villains alike, complete with bright colorful art that most of recognize as the work of Jose Luis Garcia Lopez (PBHN)! This book features Batgirl, Wonder Woman, Catwoman, Black Canaary, Hawkgirl, Katana and, yes, Mera!

The book goes on sale next Tuesday, October 25, but of course you can pre-order it now! Get it for the li'l superhero fan in your life, and big thanks to Downtown Bookworks for the early glimpse and for making such great little books featuring everyone's favorite heroes.

Aquaman: A Celebration of 75 Years Solicit

CELEBRATE 75 YEARS OF THE KING OF THE SEVEN SEAS!

Though often overshadowed or overlooked, Aquaman is among the greatest and most enduring characters in the DC Universe. The King of Atlantis is one of the few Golden Age characters to survive into the present day. He’s also a founding member of the Justice League, the first DC hero to start a family and soon will star in his own big-screen franchise.

From the lighthearted swashbuckling adventures of Aquaman's early decades, through the loss of his son (not to mention his hand), to his modern reinvention as a formidable master of the sea, this collection provides a crash course in more than seven decades of DC history!

AQUAMAN: A CELEBRATION OF 75 YEARS collects 400 pages of the iconic hero's finest moments--from his first appearance by Mort Weisinger and creator Paul Norris to his modern-day adventures--and features the work of such comics superstars as Geoff Johns, Ivan Reis, Jim Aparo, Steve Skeates, Peter David, Ramona Fradon, Paul Levitz, Nick Cardy and more.

• More Fun Comics #73
• Adventure Comics #s 120, 174, 220, 260, 269, 444, 452, 475
• Aquaman (1962) #s 1, 18, 40
• Justice League of America Annual #2 
• Aquaman (1986) #3
• Aquaman (1991) #2 
• Aquaman (1994) #s 4, 17
• Aquaman (2011) #s 1, 43

On Sale October 25!

My First Book of Superpowers

We've covered this spiffy little board books from Downtown Bookworks before, and they have all been beautifully-produced, filled to the brim with gorgeous DC stock art and eye-popping colors.

My First Book of Superpowers is the newest volume, and as you can see Aquaman is included! Huzzah! While most of the book uses art by Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez (PBHN), the Aquaman section features a pose by Dick Giordano and I think that shot of the Sea King and his whales is by the great Ramona Fradon!

DC Comics Super Heroes Ultimate Sticker Collection

Check this out! It's a new DC Super Heroes sticker book from DK, and it features a generous helping of characters from the Aqua- Family! Behold:

Aquaman stickers by Ivan Reis, Joe Prado, and Paul Pelletier? What more do you want? Pick up a copy today and cover your Trapper Keeper in orange and green!

(h/t: F.O.A.M.er Ilke Hincer)

The Amazing Adventures of Superman!: Bubble Trouble!

There's a new series of chapter books starring The Man of Steel called The Amazing Adventures of Superman!, produced by Picture Window Books, a division of Capstone Publishing. As many of you know, Capstone has been responsible for a great many books featuring DC heroes, including Aquaman!

As you can see above, this installment of the series features the Sea King in team-up action with Superman. The story starts in Metropolis, when mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent spots giant bubbles floating over the city! Changing into Superman to investigate, he learns this yet another nefarious plot by the villainous Black Manta.

Manta's bubbles are even picking up various creatures of the sea, so when Superman gets involved, he sees that his old pal Aquaman is already on the case! Together, they team-up to defeat Manta, with everything returned to normal.

"Bubble Trouble!" is written by Benjamin Bird, with art by Tim Levins, whose clean style is perfect for this book, reminiscent of the classic JLU "Timm-verse."

There are a number of books in this series, many of them featuring guest appearances by other members of the DCU. Capstone more than most licensors seem to be devoted to giving Aquaman a spotlight, making them very popular here on the Shrine! If you have kids (or heck, even if you don't), make sure you pick this book up!



Post Script: Yes, the Shrine is still officially on vacation. But since Capstone was nice enough to send me a copy of this (and a few other books), I thought the least I could do was read and review it in a timely manner. Thanks Capstone!

My First Book of Super-Villains

Help your kids learn about good and bad with the help of the heroes and villains in the DC Universe in My First Book of Super-Villains, out now from Downtown Books!

Like the others in this super-fun series, Super-Villains uses classic stock art (mostly by Jose Luis Garcia Lopez, PBHN) to help little kids learn basic concepts--in this case, good and bad. And of course, there's a lot of bad to use as examples:

The only (minor) quibble the Shrine can make about this particular book is that it doesn't feature Aquaman or his villains, except for a brief cameo on the last page, seen above. But the Sea King has been well represented in the other volumes, so it's okay, My First Book of Super-Villains is still a great little primer for the superhero fan in your life. (Maybe Downtown should send some of these books to Washington D.C., it never hurts to brush up on the fundamentals)

Pick up a copy of My First Book of Super-Villains on Amazon today!



Other books in this series:

• DC Super Heroes Busy Bodies
• DC Super Heroes Color, Shapes, and More
• DC Super Heroes My First Dictionary
• My First Book of Girl Power
  
  

DC Super Heroes Busy Bodies

Yet another kids book starring the DC heroes and using the awesome stock art of Jose Luis Garcia Lopez (PBHN), DC Super Heroes Busy Bodies teaches wee ones about their bodies, actions, and clothing! Pick up a copy on Amazon!


(h/t: F.O.A.M.er Ilke Hincer)

My First Book of Girl Power

Last week the Shrine posted pics of a new book, DC Super Heroes My First Dictionary featuring gorgeous stock art by Jose Luis Garcia Lopez (PBHN). Well, I'm happy to report that the dictionary was only one of a whole line of DC-themed board books! Case in point: DC Super Heroes My First Book of Girl Power, which features not only the usual suspects Wonder Woman, Batgirl, and Supergirl, but also Hawkgirl, Mary Marvel...and Mera!

While most of the book is by the aforementioned JLGL, that middle page of just Mera looks like it's by another master, Dick Giordano. Going by just these three pages, this is one beautiful book! Pick up a copy on Amazon!


(h/t: F.O.A.M.er Ilke Hincer)

DC Super Heroes My First Dictionary

Oh man, how cool is this book? Coming out this month is DC Super Heroes My First Dictionary, featuring all your favorite DC heroes drawn by Jose Luis Garcia Lopez (PBHN)! I don't have much else to say about it, other than, judging from these sample pages, it's simply a gorgeous book--go and buy it. And remember, A is for Aquaman and M is for Mera!

By the way (okay, I guess I do have something to say)--I find it interesting that companies that license DC characters for their products are still mostly using JLGL's stock art, which is almost thirty years old at this point. Why isn't there an out-of-New-52-continuity book drawn by this man?

(h/t: F.O.A.M.er Ilke Hincer)

Superman: The Man of Steel Sticker Book

Since there are so few bookstores anymore, items like this aren't on my radar much anymore. Luckily F.O.A.M.er Ilke Hincer is on the job, alerting me to this DK sticker book (published last year) that was of course tied into the Man of Steel movie, but also found space to feature Aquaman!
Back when they first starting out on Aquaman, I suggested that the work of Reis/Prado/Reis was so iconic that it wouldn't be long before it started showing up on merch. And here you go, the Aquaman from issue #0 right there among all the Superman stuff.

But something else occurs to me: since this book is mostly Superman, what, exactly, is Aquaman doing here at all? Does it have something to do with the internet rumor concerning the "sabotaged oil rig" scene in Man of Steel? Could Zack Snyder and his team have been this hands on in setting up Aquaman to appear in Dawn of Justice? I guess we'll all know soon enough...

Thanks Ilke!

Filmation Model Sheets

Check out these super-cool Aquaman and Aqulad model sheets for their Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure show. I love seeing stuff like this!

This comes from the TwoMorrows book Lou Scheimer: Creating The Filmation Generation, which is a great read. The Aquaman Shrine recommends you pick it up!

The Official DC Superhero Cookbook

With Thanksgiving just a few days away, now seems like the perfect time to talk about the new Official DC Superhero Cookbook. To do the honors, inaugural F.O.A.M.er Chris Franklin--who provided all the scans--will take us on a tour of the book and its Aqua-Munchies. Take it away, Earth-2 Chris!

In 1981 Warner Books released DC Super Heroes Super Healthy Cookbook. Full of super hero-inspired recipes, it caught my attention via an excerpt inserted in the July 14th 1981 issue of Woman’s Day, which my mother bought on occasion. Even though I never had the book proper, for years afterward, my mother would painstakingly make me Superman insignia burgers, with the yellow shield cut out of cheese, and the red "S" drawn with ketchup (using wax paper to squeeze it out, in the days before squeeze bottles).

Years later my wonderful wife gifted me a copy of the original book. It is chock-full of great, original art by comic veterans (and then DC staffers), Ross Andru and Dick Giordano. For the purposes of the Shrine, I'm said to report that Aquaman makes one token appearance in the volume, in a spread featuring most of the JLA in the finale of the book where Superman presents his team with a birthday cake. Poor Arthur didn’t even rate a dish to himself, when characters like Perry White and Commissioner Gordon did.

Flash-forward to the here and now, and the idea is revisited in The Official DC Super Hero Cookbook by Matthew Mead. This colorful tome features a bevy of classic style guide artwork by the ever-present Jose Luis Garcia Lopez (Praise Be His Name) and goes beyond the usual art offerings to showcase several pieces by Dick Giordano and even Carmine Infantino and Murphy Anderson! To the delight of toy enthusiasts like myself, recent DC action figures are displayed beside the dishes, most prominently, the Mego-like Retro-Action line by Mattel from a few years back.

And this time, the King of the Seven Seas get his due, with no less than five Aqua-related recipes! The bold and daring marine marvel starts his day off with Atlantis Cereal; stops by the Aquacave at noon for a Tuna Wrap (once again raising the question of whether or not he eats his finny friends); meets Mera at the palace for a dinner for two featuring Seven Seas Sauté; and finally, washes it all down with an Aquaman Ice Cream Float!

Amazingly, the secret to his archenemy’s never-ceasing energy is revealed by exposing the recipe to Black Manta Berry Blast! Manta manages to beat out nearly every other DC rogue, with the only other featured villain being the Joker himself!

Not to be left out, Aquaman’s Fire and Water companion, The Nuclear Man gets his own page showcasing Firestorm’s Roasted Corn Salad. Rob will be happy to know Captain Marvel only gets one recipe, a variation on a peanut-butter/banana sandwich. Coincidence, or a sly nod to the King’s supposed love of Captain Marvel, Jr.?

The back of the book features stencils and cut-outs to help decorate the dishes, and both the classic Aquaman and Firestorm logos are present.

This book is beautifully designed, and features the classic version of the characters, not a drop of angst in sight. To me, it’s worth it for the art alone, and some of the recipes look like a lot of fun to try with the kids. My treasured Superman burger is even included! I highly recommend picking this up to the diehard DC fan.