20190728_214451.jpgWelcome to my stop on the Becoming Superman blog tour sponsored by TLC Book Tours! Thanks to TLC for the invitation! This one is very, very special, and I can’t wait to talk about it.

About Becoming Superman

• Hardcover: 480 pages
• Publisher: Harper Voyager (July 23, 2019)

Featuring an introduction by Neil Gaiman!

“J. Michael Straczynski is, without question, one of the greatest science fiction minds of our time.” — Max Brooks (World War Z)

For four decades, J. Michael Straczynski has been one of the most successful writers in Hollywood, one of the few to forge multiple careers in movies, television and comics. Yet there’s one story he’s never told before: his own.

In this dazzling memoir, the acclaimed writer behind Babylon 5, Sense8, Clint Eastwood’s Changeling and Marvel’s Thor reveals how the power of creativity and imagination enabled him to overcome the horrors of his youth and a dysfunctional family haunted by madness, murder and a terrible secret.

Joe’s early life nearly defies belief. Raised by damaged adults—a con-man grandfather and a manipulative grandmother, a violent, drunken father and a mother who was repeatedly institutionalized—Joe grew up in abject poverty, living in slums and projects when not on the road, crisscrossing the country in his father’s desperate attempts to escape the consequences of his past.

To survive his abusive environment Joe found refuge in his beloved comics and his dreams, immersing himself in imaginary worlds populated by superheroes whose amazing powers allowed them to overcome any adversity. The deeper he read, the more he came to realize that he, too, had a superpower: the ability to tell stories and make everything come out the way he wanted it. But even as he found success, he could not escape a dark and shocking secret that hung over his family’s past, a violent truth that he uncovered over the course of decades involving mass murder.

Straczynski’s personal history has always been shrouded in mystery. Becoming Superman lays bare the facts of his life: a story of creation and darkness, hope and success, a larger-than-life villain and a little boy who became the hero of his own life. It is also a compelling behind-the-scenes look at some of the most successful TV series and movies recognized around the world.

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Purchase Links

HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Photo by Peter Konerko

About J. Michael Straczynski

J. Michael Straczynski has had one of the most varied careers of any American writer, penning hundreds of hours of television, comic books for Marvel and DC that have sold over 13 million copies, and movies that have grossed over a billion dollars.

Follow him on Twitter.

 

My Thoughts:

Wowza. If you want to read a powerful, heartfelt story, look no further. Joe Stracznski has put it all out there. 

Straczynski is the writer behind Babylon 5, Changeling, and Thor- big deal Hollywood stuff with high creativity! He has worked in TV, movies, and comics and has done so for over four decades without publicizing a word about his early life. Until now. 

Where do I even begin? It’s hard to wrap my head around all that he went through, and everyone around him was carrying big time baggage.

His dad was an alcoholic, his mom struggled with mental health and was out of the home often in the hospital, his grandfather was a conman and his grandmother was also a master manipulator. On top of it all? There was absolutely no money, and he lived in poverty in unfit housing. Often, however, they were on the run, escaping his father’s past. 

Joe found solace in comics. The more he read he realized he could tell stories, too. Good ones. It was a gift. 

If you are a fan of the movies, shows, and comics of which he’s been a part, you will adore the behind the scenes info. Even if you aren’t, this is one of the most compelling and inspiring memoirs I’ve read. I haven’t even mentioned the huge family secret that involves a mystery and a mass murder. 

Becoming Superman is a book I could not put down. It’s so good. It’s darkness and brilliant hope and everything in between.

I received a complimentary copy. All opinions are my own. 

Have you read Becoming Superman, or is it on your TBR? Happy Reading! ~ Jennifer THR