Who can save us now? : brand-new superheroes and their amazing (short) stories

Twenty-two of today's most talented writers (and comics fans) unite in Who Can Save Us Now?, an anthology featuring brand-new superheroes equipped for the threats and challenges of the twenty-first century — with a few supervillains thrown in for good measure. Edited and with contributions by Owen King (We're All in This Together) and John McNally (America's Report Card), Who Can Save Us Now? enriches the superhero canon immeasurably. With mutations stranger than the X-Men and with even more baggage than the Hulk, this next generation of superheroes is a far cry from your run-of-the-mill caped crusader. From the image-conscious and not-very-mysterious masked meathead who swoops in and sweeps the tough girl reporter off her feet; to the Meerkat, who overcomes his species' cute and cuddly image to become the resident hero in a small Midwestern city; to the Silverfish, "the creepy superhero," who fights crime while maintaining the slipperiest of identities; to Manna Man, who manipulates the minds of televangelists to serve his own righteous mission, these protectors (and in some cases antagonizers) of the innocent and the virtuous will delight literary enthusiasts and comic fans alike. With stunning illustrations by artist Chris Burnham, Who Can Save Us Now? offers a vibrant, funny, and truly unusual array of characters and their stories. Publishers Weekly This mostly tepid anthology, edited by King (son of Stephen King and author of We're All in This Together ) and McNally ( America's Report Card ), has a few stimulating moments amid a flood of formulaic stories about inept people who are given powers that serve only to spotlight their insecurities. There are a few standouts: Stephanie Harrell's "Girl Reporter" reveals the origins of a Superman-like hero through the first-person narration of a Lois Lane-like reporter. For Jim Shepard, in "In Cretaceous Seas," the "superhero and super villain all in one" is "a shitty son, a shitty brother, a lousy father, a lazy helpmate, a wreck of a husband" who means well but hates himself for not doing better. Sam Weller's "The Quick Stop 5" is a hilarious story about five people at a gas station who are turned into superheroes after biofuel spills from a truck. Weller's presentation of "super-power" as a subjective term resonates as one flips through the pages of this anthology. Readers who can't get enough of superheroes will get the most out of this. (July) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Edited and with contributions by Owen King (We're All in This Together) and John McNally (America's Report Card this anthology enriches the superhero canon immeasurably. Twenty-two of today's most talented writers (and comics fans) unite in Who Can Save Us Now?, an anthology featuring brand-new superheroes equipped for the threats and challenges of the twenty-first century — with a few supervillains thrown in for good measure. With mutations stranger than the X-Men and with even more baggage than the Hulk, this next generation of superheroes is a far cry from your run-of-the-mill caped crusader. From the image-conscious and not-very-mysterious masked meathead who swoops in and sweeps the tough girl reporter off her feet; to the Meerkat, who overcomes his species' cute and cuddly image to become the resident hero in a small Midwestern city; to the Silverfish, "the creepy superhero," who fights crime while maintaining the slipperiest of identities; to Manna Man, who manipulates the minds of televangelists to serve his own righteous mission, these protectors (and in some cases antagonizers) of the innocent and the virtuous will delight literary enthusiasts and comic fans alike. With stunning illustrations by artist Chris Burnham, Who Can Save Us Now? offers a vibrant, funny, and truly unusual array of characters and their stories. Girl reporter / Stephanie Harrell The oversoul / Graham Joyce Nate Pinckney-Alderson, superhero / Elizabeth Crane The horses are loose / Cary Holladay The Quick Stop 5 / Sam Weller Remains of the night / John McNally The Pentecostal Home for Flying Children / Will Clarke The meerkat / Owen King When the heroes came to town / Michael Czyzniejewski The thirteenth egg / Scott Snyder In cretaceous seas / Jim Shepard Roe #5 / Richard Dooling The snipper / Noria Jablonski Man oh man it's Mamma Man / George Singleton My interview with the Avenger / Tom Bissell The rememberer / J. Robert Lennon The Sisters of St. Misery / Lauren Grodstein Mr. Big Deal / Sean Doolittle The somewhat super / David Yoo Bad Karma Girl wins at bingo / Kelly Braffet League of Justice (Philadelphia division) / Jennifer Weiner The lives of ordinary superheroes / David Haynes. Jennifer Weiner, Joe Hill, Tom Bissell, Elizabeth McCracken, and more of today's most talented and original writers unite to fight the forces of evil in this vibrant, imaginative anthology of tales about modern-day superheroes