Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

What are super-devoted fans of comic books really like? What draws them together and energizes their zeal? What do the denizens of this pop-culture world have in common?This book provides good answers as it scrutinizes the fans whose profiles can be traced at their conventions, in pages of fanzines, on websites, in chat-rooms, on electronic bulletin boards, and before the racks in comic-book stores. They are a singular breed, and an absorbing interest in comic books (sometimes life-consuming) unites them.

Studies have shows that the clustering, die-hard disciples of Star Trek have produced a unique culture. The same can be said of American enthusiasts of comic books. These aficionados range from the stereotypical ""fanboy"" who revels in the minute details of mainstream superhero titles like X-Men to the more discriminating (and downright snobbish) reader of idiosyncratic alternative comics like Eightball. Literate comics like Watchman, Radioactive Man, and Peepshow demand a knowledgeable audience and reward members of the culture for their expertise while tending to alienate those outside. This book shows how the degree of ""comics literacy"" determines a fan's place in the culture and how the most sophisticated share the nuanced history of the format.

Although their interaction is filled with conflicts, all groups share an intense love for the medium. But whether one is a Fanboy or a True Believer, the preferred hangout is the specialty store. Here, as they talk shop, the culture proliferates. They debate among themselves, spread news about the industry, arrange trades, discuss collectibles, and attach themselves to their particular mainstream.

With history, interviews, and textual analysis Comic Book Culture: Fanboys and True Believers examines the varied reading communities absorbed by the veneration of the comics and demonstrates how each functions in the ever-broadening culture.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

Of all the ways the history of comic books has been studied, the one most ignored is how people read them. Purporting to remedy that neglect by looking at the 1940s through the 1990s, Pustz (American studies, Univ. of Iowa) rehashes some of the history of fandom, revisits the well-tread comics/violence debate, traces the roots of contemporary comics readers, looks at comics literacy, and provides a sketchy outline of resources fans use (comicons, comic-book stores, Web pages, fanzines). Some parts of the book are well done: e.g., the discussion of comics literacy considers continuity, crossovers, parody, allusions, and depictions of the reader's world. But too often one finds generalizations, insufficiently supported claims, and misinformation--particularly the references to comics scholarship (Pustz seems unaware of the advances in comic scholarship in the last decade: three annual conferences, a journal, university courses, and many new sources such as secondary works, bibliographies, indexes, dissertations, etc.). The book also suffers from the lack of a clear explanation of methodology, the use of what appears to be a haphazard sample of readers, and far too many typographical errors. It does what Pustz claims (i.e., begins an analysis of comic-book culture), but not very well. Knowledgeable academic and general readers. ; University of Western Ontario

Booklist Review

Libraries with graphic-novel holdings may have noticed that the patrons for them include hard-core comic-book enthusiasts, a distinctive band of, almost invariably, young males who have created a distinctive culture that Pustz limns exhaustively if often prosaically. Tracking fans down at their gatherings--actual (comics shops and fan conventions) and virtual (fanzines and Internet Web sites and discussion groups)--he demonstrates that the social aspects of their hobby seem to constitute as much of its appeal as do the comics themselves. He distinguishes between various subgroupings, namely, "mainstream" fans, who restrict their interest to superhero stories; "alternative" fans, who prefer independently published nongenre comics; and "speculators," who purchase collectible titles with an eye toward reselling them profitably. Peculiar and extreme as fans' behavior often is, Pustz's straight-faced treatment is appropriate because it mirrors their general lack of humor about themselves. All in all, the fanboys don't seem much different from similarly obsessed Star Trek fans or role-playing game players, and if their focus is circumscribed, at least they're reading. --Gordon Flagg