Rating:  -
Tom DeHaven's novel "It's Superman!" is a slightly revisionist, somewhat satirical and all around entertaining retelling of the early days of the Man of Steel. Set in 1935, DeHaven's version has many of the characters that comics fans have known for decades, but he places them in a more realistic setting. Eighteen-year-old Clark Kent is a seemingly ordinary high school student coming of age in Smallville, Kansas. He longs to get away, but he doesn't want to abandon his ailing parents, who we are told adopted him under mysterious circumstances. Meanwhile, in the sprawling metropolis of New York City, plucky young reporter Lois Lane is trying to save her sometimes boyfriend Willi Berg from the clutches of corrupt city Alderman Lex Luthor, who has plans that can only be called megalomaniacal. Willi, on the lam, ends up in Smallville, where he befriends Clark. After living as hobos for a while, they briefly settle in Hollywood. Clark, who has long noticed that he has powers far beyond those of mortal men, becomes a movie stuntman, where he acquires a costume meant for some B-movie "scientifiction" serial. Before long, New York, and destiny, beckons.
DeHaven's main contribution to the Superman mythos, aside from the character of Willi Berg (a New York Jew who basically "conceptualizes" Clark's alter ego--something like Supe's real-life inventors, jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster), is to fill in the blanks from the original comic book stories. He puts in a lot of detail about the time period, in particular the politics and pop culture. This can sometimes be grating, as when he simply lists personages of the day, as if to say "look, I've done my research! Aren't you impressed?" Still, it's interesting to see how he weaves the problems of racism and the depression into what's usually viewed as escapist fantasy. The book also adds in satirical elements, sometimes playing with the characters (Superman has a hard time keeping his costumes intact!), but usually their circumstances (Clark's misadventures in Hollywood and Luthor's political machinations). Although the overall tone is light-hearted, DeHaven tries to make some point out of it. He clearly loves the comics; this novel is an attempt to try to appreciate them anew from a more adult perspectiive (while it's definitely meant for grown-ups, with its bursts of bloody violence and hints of sex and booze, it's not entirely inappropriate for kids--they'd probably be bored, though, since it's pretty light on superheroic action).
It's interesting to compare this novel with the latest film version of Our Hero's exploits, Bryan Singer's "Superman Returns." While I'd love to see the novel realized as a film, it's unlikely to happen for a variety of reasons, mainly the book's lack of huge action set-pieces, which Singer's film provides in spades. Of course, the Superman presented in the movie is not only larger-than-life, he's downright messianic--even Christlike. DeHaven's Superman is a guy unsure of his powers and disturbed by his responsibilities. He just wants to fit in. This is a Superman so down to earth he's even an agnostic! If you found the movie to be a little (a lot?) overblown, this book is the perfect antidote.
Rating:  -
It's Superman by Tom De Haven is not as much a Superman novel as a novel with Superman. It may be a peculiar distinction, but I think it applies. A Superman novel is merely a Superman story put in the form of a novel; this is something more than that. It is first and foremost a novel; Superman is just one of many characters.
Actually, the main character is Clark Kent, who does not assume his alternate identity until late in the story. The book opens in Depression-era Smallville, Kansas, where Clark is a rather morose kid in his late teens. Clark knows he has strange talents, but he doesn't revel in them but instead feels embarrassed by them. When a local thief tries to shoot him, the ricochet winds up killing the shooter, making Clark even more depressed.
Meanwhile, in New York, the highly gifted Lois Lane is going for her graduate degree (at age 18!). Her boyfriend Willi Berg winds up on the wrong side of alderman Lex Luthor; Willi's seriously wounded after he takes a potentially incriminating photo and winds up being framed for murder. He escapes and goes on the run, where he eventually meets Clark and the two go wandering the country. It is Willi who will eventually convince Clark to be more heroic.
In comic book terms, this is an origin story, and as such, Clark as Superman is in the novel only minimally. Indeed, Clark himself shares the spotlight with other characters: Willi and Lois in particular, but also Luthor who is a truly vile sociopath with dreams of conquest; perhaps the best that can be said about him is he's not prejudiced: he treats everyone with equal contempt. All this is told against a historically realistic backdrop of 1930's America. Smallville, for example, is no idyllic town, but is filled with petty crooks and racists. New York (standing in for the fictional Metropolis) is a city of great wonders but also corrupt politicians and powerful gangsters.
What we get is a novel that is faithful to the story of Superman but is also a thoroughly original story. De Haven's writing is slightly reminiscent of Michael Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, which is a good thing. It also fits well as a companion piece to Isabel Allende's Zorro, a similar type of origin story for a different hero. But even if you have not read either of those works, this can stand alone. If you ever were a Superman fan, this will be a pleasure to read.
Rating: -
This book is a retelling of the early days of Superman. It takes place in 1935, and takes several liberties with the Superman mythos. For example, there is no Metropolis, instead there is New York City. And the characters have different personalities, with Clark being more unsure of himself and Lois being more promiscuous. But there have been many different interpretations of Superman over the years, and this is a valid one, in my opinion. I liked this book a lot, but I can see how some Superman "purists" might not like it.
Rating:  -
Superman throughout the years has always possessed honesty, intelligence, and the moral center that made him one of the greatest superheroes ever. Comic fans laughingly refer to him as the "big blue boy scout" even as they admire his steadfast stand for truth, justice, and the American way. Batman is darker and more complex, but the simplicity of Superman keeps you coming back. There's something we all see in Superman that we wish we saw in yourselves. That said, the Clark Kent/Superman in this book is NOT ANYTHING like that. This Clark Kent is a moron, lacks a moral compass, and has all the appeal of asphalt. Lois Lane comes off like a 1950's good girl gone bad. If you want to experience the real Superman, watch one of the good movies (Superman 1 & 2, and Superman Returns), the animated series, or even "Smallville". Listen to "It's Not Easy To Be Me/Superman" by Five For Fighting or "Kryptonite" by Three Doors Down. But whatever you do, avoid this book like green kryptonite!
Rating: -
Where to start. As the other posts have indicated, Superman hardly appears in the book.
"It's Superman" is the author's self-indulgent attempt at a book written in the pulp or film-noir(book-noir?) style. Consistent name dropping for no other reason than to show off. Some Jazz musicians have more time in the book than Superman.
Save your money.
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