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| Meet the Author | Contacts | Recent Appearances | About the Book | News & Reviews | Rights | Links |  News & Reviews! By Wil Moss Nashville City Paper (June 9, 2006) Will Eisner is most notable for two things: the storytelling innovations he brought to comics in his 1940s comic strip The Spirit, and popularizing (if not outright creating) the graphic novel in the late Ō70s. Biographer Bob Andelman chronicles both those parts of EisnerÕs history, and also the rest of the manÕs fascinating life, in Will Eisner: A Spirited Life. What the book is most to be commended for is the sheer volume of people Andelman is able to get on the record to talk about Eisner, not to mention the invaluable firsthand accounts from Eisner himself (which unfortunately wonÕt be available to any future biographers as he passed away in January 2004). The book is packed with great stories from EisnerÕs comic strip peers in the Ō40s and Ō50s up to his comic book peers of today. The parts of the book that deal with Eisner creating and working on The Spirit are interesting, as is the bookÕs examination of his later years when he returned to comics in the late Ō70s, but both those eras are fairly familiar to Eisner fans already. ItÕs the part of the book that deals with EisnerÕs life after he stopped making The Spirit and before his return thatÕs of great interest, and Andelman answers all those questions and more, following Eisner in his career illustrating comics for the military and his other business ventures over the years (the book gives a good sense of how important EisnerÕs keen business sense was to making sure his artistic merits were able to be recognized). The book does overall kind of feel like a collection of anecdotes rather than a portrait of a manÕs life; like even with direct access to Eisner, Andelman couldnÕt bring out the true character of the man. But perhaps thatÕs less a fault of the book and more just a reality of how guarded and reserved Eisner was about his personal life and emotions, which is suggested in the book and seems common with men of EisnerÕs generation. With A Sprited Life, Andelman tracks the life of a man who never seemed to stop moving, establishing very well the importance of what he brought to comics and the impact he had on those who followed him.  Heavy Metal magazine gave Will Eisner: A Spirited Life by Bob Andelman a great review in its March 2006 issue. S.C. Ringgenberg wrote, in part, "It's likely to stand for some time as the definitive profile of this influential and talented comics genius, who, sadly left us at the beginning of 2005... This book is essential reading for any fan of Eisner, or anyone who is curious about the inner workings of the comics industry in its early days, and its heyday of the late 1940s... Once I picked this book up, I found it hard to put down. I give this book my heartiest recommendation." For more reviews of Bob Andelman's  Books of Note Starlog (March 2006) The late Will Eisner was a comics legend--and he has been honored with a biography to match by M Press (a Dark Horse Comics imprint). Savor Will Eisner: A Spirited Life by Bob Andelman (tpb, $14.95). There's an introduction by Starlog reader Michael Chabon (Pulitzer Prize winner for The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay) and an appreciation by master artist Neal Adams.  "Sci-fi Overdrive" America's premier science fiction radio talk show! Guest on syndicated radio show, hosted by Joey Donovan. Download it! Friday nights at 12 midnight, Eastern Time on the Lifestyle TalkRadio NetworkTM. Monday mornings at 1am, Eastern Time on the Business TalkRadio NetworkTM . http://www.scifioverdrive.com/ BUSINESS BOOKS: Will Eisner was innovative in art, business A biography of writer and artist Will Eisner reveals that he also mastered the art of business. By Richard Pachter Miami Herald (Feb. 20, 2006) I knew Will Eisner, not intimately but well enough to be invited to his 80th birthday party at Mort Walker's International Museum of Cartoon Art in 1997. At a comic book convention in Orlando in 1978, I bought a copy of his new book, A Contract With God, from him. Arguably the first graphic novel, it was a then-revolutionary innovation. About a decade later, we spoke again at an appearance at a children's museum. I subsequently visited his Tamarac studio several times. We met for lunch when our schedules permitted, and I tried to help him place an animated literacy project with a TV station, too, but to no avail. We remained in irregular contact until a few months before his death a year ago. RELEVANT LIFE STORY Eisner was an innovative and influential artist, but Bob Andelman's new biography also correctly focuses on Will as a groundbreaking businessman. More than most tales of successful creative executives, the lessons of Eisner's insistence on owning and controlling the intellectual properties he created are as relevant as ever. Previously, the artists and writers responsible for iconic characters such as Superman, Batman, Captain America and others toiled on a work-for-hire or freelance basis for publishers who subsequently claimed all rights to the property. Until DC Comics executives were shamed into coming up with an annual charitable stipend on the eve of the release of the first movie, Superman's 'fathers' (artist Joe Shuster and writer Jerry Siegel) were nearly destitute. From the age of 22 on, almost all of Eisner's projects were originated by companies he controlled. In the case of his most famous creation, the crime-fighter known as The Spirit, Eisner produced the material for a syndicator but retained ownership of the material and the character throughout most of his life. NEVER EXPLOITED As intellectual property continues to supplant manufacturing as this country's key export, the example of a master writer and artist who was equally adept at creating and exploiting his conceptualizations without himself becoming exploited is a potent and valuable model for future content providers who also want to be entrepreneurs. Another of Eisner's innovations was the educational comic book. The idea of fusing an instructional narrative to sequential art may seem rather mundane right now, but with Army Motors in 1942, PS Magazine in 1949 and his American Visuals company, he produced industrial and educational comics for a number of government and corporate entities. In his later years, Eisner taught at New York's School of Visual Arts, lectured throughout the world and after years of producing only commercial material, wrote and drew a series of popular and critically celebrated graphic novels, including several personal romans a clef. TRUE TO LIFE The influence of Eisner's approach to business and art remains a potent one. Andelman's affectionate biography rambles a bit, but it's entertaining and enlightening, capturing Will's extraordinary character and dignified presence quite nicely. It made me miss my friend, who died in January 2005, more than I already do. Pioneer Of Comic Stylings Profiled By Kevin Walker Tampa Tribune (Jan. 8, 2006) In his introduction to this book, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Michael Chabon ("The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay") deftly sums up the legacy of Will Eis- ner: "The amazing thing about his 'Spirit' work - all of Eisner's tricks and technical bravado, his wild angles and striking use of shadow - was how fresh and new it still looked, even after fifty years of constant imitation by peers, inferiors, and successors. It was like 'Citizen Kane' in that regard." Eisner is commonly, and justifiably, referred to as the Father of the Graphic Novel. In this interesting look at Eisner's life, Bob Andelman, a St. Petersburg resident, takes the reader from Eisner's formative years growing up in Brooklyn, N.Y., to his breakthrough in the 1940s with "The Spirit" comic and, later, his seminal work in the 1970s and 1980s with such works as "The Contract With God." Andelman looks at Eisner's personal life, including his Army service during World War II and the tragic death of his 16-year-old daughter. He also offers insight into the thinking of Eisner, who died in January 2005, in his creation of his characters. Perhaps most poignant, however, are the testaments to Eisner's influence and talent from peers such as Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons, Robert Crumb and Neil Gaiman. Father of the graphic novel By Paul E. Fitzgerald The Roanoke Times (Jan. 8, 2006) Writing a review of Bob Andelman's excellent and beautiful biography of Will Eisner poses a challenge Š not as monumental as the one that Andelman has met most successfully - because most of us who personally carry what we thought to be a fulsome awareness of Eisner's many intriguing facets are discovering here an endless array of new and precious jewels, revealed by this biographer's diligent digging and offered up to sparkle in an intricate setting of fine, clear, muted prose, logical organization and meticulous indexing. Andelman's most significant achievement is his seamless tying together of the multiple threads in Eisner's long and ever-changing career -- as a writer, artist of "The Spirit" comic strip, pioneer in graphic communication of technical and motivational information, graphic novel trailblazer, successful businessman, mentor and industry icon. The profuse illustrations, both photos and art, alone are more than worth the price. REVIEW: Will Eisner: A Spirited Life By M. Thomas Inge Richmond Times-Dispatch (Jan. 1, 2006) It is difficult to discuss the importance and influence of Will Eisner without sounding hyperbolic. He was there at the start and helped shape the visual and narrative potential of the American comic book and the graphic novel to follow. Without his presence, the comic book would not look the same, nor might it have the same popular appeal it achieved. Without his genius and example, we might not have the graphic novel, which now has its own section in bookstores. Everything he touched in visual and narrative form turned to aesthetic gold. As an educator, he inspired several generations of comic artists at the New York School of Visual Arts. He created many characters who came to populate the American imagination, such as the Spirit, Sheena and Blackhawk. He gave us several major graphic novels, such as "A Contract with God" and "The Plot." All of this has been documented in a biography by Bob Andelman, "Will Eisner: A Spirited Life," based on two years of interviews with Eisner and those who knew him. Because to study Eisner is to study the entire history and development of the comic book, this is also a history of the industry and the culture it encouraged. Told in a straight journalistic style, with heavy reliance on quotations, everything we need to know is here, but what is missing is an effective synthesis, a point of view, that enables us to grasp the complexity of Eisner's importance in the larger culture. What does come through is the warm and congenial personality of a man who inspired all those who knew him to achieve the best they could accomplish in life, whatever their talents. Andelman admits up front that he did not plan to deal with Eisner's works from a critical perspective, and that, of course, leaves a major gap. For a creator such as Eisner, we ideally need a fully developed and appreciative study of the life and the art and explanation of how they relate to and influence each other. A full citation of sources, a bibliography and a chronology also would have been valuable. Further fact-checking would have been helpful, too. This reviewer is misidentified in the text, for example. Life writing is no easy task, and the best biographers view it as an art form unto itself. By collecting all the facts and assembling the extensive interviews, Andelman has made a major contribution to the biographical and critical studies that inevitably will follow. INTERVIEW: Andelman Details Will Eisner's Spirited Life By Jennifer M. Contino The Pulse/Comicon.com (Dec. 15, 2005) Writer Bob Andelman's recently released book, Will Eisner: A Spirited Life, examines the life and times of one of comics most notable men. He told us what it was like hanging out with Eisner and creating this volume. THE PULSE: The first thing I noticed about Will Eisner: A Spirited Life was the cover. It's a fantastic design - very striking. Who came up with the design? BOB ANDELMAN: Dave Nestelle and Amy Arendts collaborated on the cover. I agree; it's very cool, although I have to admit my first reaction to the bowtie was one of uncertainty. A bowtie? But I printed out a full-page, color copy and put it next to my computer. It really grew on me, I suspect because the look on Will's face amused me. He was happy, at peace and looked satisfied with his place in the world. And everybody who saw the cover just oohed and aahed over it, which didn't hurt. Now that it's out, I especially love the way the red pops out from store bookshelves, too! READ MORE! REVIEW: Comic Book Resources By Steven Grant Master of the Obvious Column (Dec. 14, 2005) Despite years of obscurity, Will Eisner is now considered the heart and soul of American comics of the 20th century, and that's certainly the story Andelman has chosen to tell in this affectionate and comprehensive biography. The tone is vaguely dislocating, though; unleashing and carefully organizing what amounts to anecdote after anecdote - if everything here is accurate, Eisner knew everybody and was connected to practically everything in comics, and even people very familiar with Eisner's life will likely learn things they never knew - but what's missing is any suggestion of a point of view. For pure biography, A SPIRITED LIFE is great, but a serious critical assessment of Eisner's life, work, influence and legacy as a companion volume couldn't hurt. READ MORE! INTERVIEW: A Short Interview With Bob Andelman By Tom Spurgeon The Comics Reporter (Dec. 11, 2005) Bob Andelman is a former Comics Buyer's Guide columnist, a journalist whose subject matter has been as far removed from comics as a journalist can get, experienced autobiography "as told to" writer, and the author behind one of the prime "book about comics" gift choices for the holiday season: the new biography of cartoonist Will Eisner, Will Eisner: A Spirited Life. Unlike many past biographies of comics figures, Andelman's book keeps focused on the life of its subject rather than the second life Eisner work took in the imagination of its fans. In the following chat, we talked about his background, his basic approach to working with Mr. Eisner and the source material, and one or two snags that developed on the way. You can visit Andelman's site here, and purchase his book wherever books are sold, like Amazon.com (where you can also search its pages). TOM SPURGEON: How were you selected to do A Spirited Life? I understand you were Judy Hansen's choice for the book based on some other work you had done. BOB ANDELMAN: My former agent, a guy named Kevin Lang, had called me up out of the blue and said, "I don't know why I haven't done this before, but you need to talk to Judy Hansen. She has an agency, she represents comic book creators and journalists. Since you have an interest in comics, and some people say you're a journalist [laughter] you two should talk. Maybe you could do a book on one of her clients." I said, "Great, I'd love that." So I called her up that evening. I called at 6 pm thinking I was getting an office and could leave a message. Judy was like "I work at home" and there she was. We spoke for about two hours. We hit it off pretty well. She was saying, "We represent Will Eisner, we represent the state of Harvey Kurtzman, we represent the estate of Al Capp. We've talked about biographies on all of them at one point or another. We talked to Will, and we've been trying to convince him to do an autobiography. You may be the right person because you're not coming at it as a comic book fan, you have journalism training, and that might be enough to tip the balance." I said, "Okay." She said, "Now, you'll have to talk to my partner." So I go through the same thing with Denis [Kitchen]. I knew Denis very vaguely at that point. I'd been away from comics for a while. I'd been very heavily into comics in the '70s, very active in comics fandom. I did a column for the Comics Buyer's Guide. All these hidden secrets. [Spurgeon laughs] I sort of knew Denis' work. I knew a lot of his publications from the '70s. I didn't know what he had been doing. And I didn't know what Will had been doing, really. Denis and I talked, we hit it off pretty good. I'm sure he was a little dubious. He said, "I'll call Will, and we'll talk to him about it. If he's game, you can call him and set up an appointment. So I guess he's got Will's interest. At that time we were talking about an autobiography. I'd done a lot of those, as told to book mostly with business people. The founders of Home Depot, for example. He calls me back and says, "Call Will and set something up." We set up to meet for lunch. It was the beginning of February '02. It was a weird time in the world, a couple of months after 9/11. I did something I'd never done before. I told my wife and daughter they were coming with me to a business appointment. My daughter -- let me do the math -- she was about five and a half. We'll leave out my wife's age. I said, "You're coming with me. Come on. This is a great a guy, a talented guy and come down and meet him with me." Will was absolutely charming. We met at the tennis club near his office where he went to lunch a lot. My five and a half year old is sitting across the table from Will, she's bored, so she turns over the placemat and starts drawing. She covers the back with lines. In the middle of the conversation, she says, "Mr. Eisner, I'm an artist, too, you know?" "Oh, really?" "This is for you." He looks at it, and it's this white background with lots of lines. "Rachel, what is it?" "It's a snowman in a snowstorm." He laughs. He says, "I have a place on my bulletin board in my studio where when children send me pictures I put them up." She was very excited. "After lunch I want you to come back to my studio and I'll draw a picture for you." This is weird, because Dave Sim told me this story -- he was a fan at a Canadian convention, and he was working on a story for a fanzine, and he has a pad in his hand, and he says, "Mr. Eisner! Mr. Eisner!" He pulls his right hand up, because he had stopped doing drawings. I didn't know that when he did the sketch for my daughter. Afterwards I knew this was really special. So we hit it off. I wish he were here to tell people why he decided to do it. I don't know if it was a couple of Jewish boys who aren't very Jewish, or we're both from New York. My wife says I'm a pretty good listener, which is a good thing to be in this line of work. READ MORE! Hulver's Site: You Left the Water Running By Christpher Robin Was Murdered Blog (Jan. 8, 2006) Bob Andelman, "Will Eisner: A Spirited Life." Originally intended to be the autobiography of Eisner, the co-author (a business writer with seemingly little interest in comics) went on to create an authorized bio after Eisner's death. Poorly organized, thinly researched; the only interesting info it adds is greater detail about Eisner's time as a civilian educator for the army (often considered a blank period between his Spirit days and his graphic novel period). The good news is, if you were thinking of writing the definitive book on Eisner, the market still needs one. Gift ideas for that comics fan on your list By Andrew A. Smith Scripps Howard News Service (Dec. 6, 2005) Eisnermania: Comics legend and graphic-novel creator Will Eisner has now passed on, after more than six decades of phenomenal contributions to virtually every aspect of comics. His best-known achievement was "The Spirit," a long-running newspaper supplement putatively starring a masked detective, but in reality a series of human-interest stories ranging from the humorous to the poignant. See what the fuss was about in DC's "Best of The Spirit" trade paperback ($14.99), or a new biography, "Will Eisner: A Spirited Life" ($14.95). For those past the beginner stage of Eisner admiration, DC's Archives series chronologically collecting "The Spirit" has reached volume 17 ($49.95 each), and all of Eisner's graphic novels and textbooks are back in print. READ MORE! Stumblebum Studios 2005 Holiday Gift List By Drew Clements (Dec. 5, 2005) For the old-school comic fan we have the biography of the legendary Will Eisner as written from interviews with the man himself, family, co-workers, and the people he inspired. Definitely a must-have for fans of Eisner. READ MORE! REVIEW: BudPlant.com By Staff (Nov. 26, 2005) "Our Highest Recommendation." READ MORE! REVIEW: Will Eisner: A Spirited Life By Jog Jog The Blog (Nov. 22, 2005) ... The later portions of the book, moving towards the modern day, rise and fall on the strength of their topics, their stories. My personal favorites included an entire chapter devoted to Eisner's dealings with cat yronwode (one of the forces behind Eclipse Comics and Eisner's #1 fan, inventory keeper, reprint editor, art agent, and something of a surrogate daughter), amusing chronicles of Kitchen Sink's all-star 8-issue The Spirit: The New Adventures series (at one point Eisner asks Dave Gibbons to make sure that Alan Moore doesn't turn the title character into a drug addict or anything, given his reputation regarding costumed characters) and the infamous ABC-produced The Spirit television pilot, and an excellent overview of Eisner's teaching career at New York's School of Visual Arts. It's in that chapter that Andelman's approach bears the most fruit, darting and weaving through the years and among alumni to craft a kaleidoscopic portrait of Eisner's methods and influence. It seems like it was a fascinating class - a pass/fail simulated Golden Age-style 'shop' setting meant to cultivate both storytelling ability and business acumen. Testimony is given by Batton Lash (Supernatural Law), John Holmstrom (founder of Punk Magazine) and Patrick McDonnell (Mutts), among others. But it's not all sunshine: Eisner prompts a student to drop his course after declaring "one Robert Crumb is worth a dozen Frank Frazettas to me," Eisner throws Drew Friedman out of class for acting up, Eisner flunks Joe Quesada - partially for not turning in his projects on time (INSERT JOKE HERE). At one point Jim Shooter notes that he never had "an Eisner kid" work out (save for Quesada) when producing art for Marvel or Valiant - it's left for the reader to provide whatever connotation they want from such a statement. It's in chapters like this that Andelman's approach seems most justified; the author is often detail-oriented, dutifully providing information about various and sundry corporate maneuvers, and listing the current holders of the publication rights for all of Eisner's major works (for example, apparently Dark Horse currently holds the reprint rights for The Spirit: The New Adventures). And it's the details and the stories and the conversations that carry the book. During one passage regarding the delay-prone process of putting together Dark Horse's Eisner/Miller project, Eisner snaps "I'm fighting a losing battle with time," and this moment offers a sudden jolt of immediacy, of time passing that the rest of the book keeps at arm's length. But for those looking for a compendium of information and anecdote and lore, much of it straight from the subject himself, it'll be hard to find a resource more comprehensive than this book. Sitting back and letting it all sink in upon completion, I did get a sense of having been through Eisner's life with this book - it's just something you have to do on your own, having been given the information this tome is so eager to provide. READ MORE! REVIEW: The Comics Rack By Raymond William Stedman (Nov. 25, 2005) Written by Bob Andelman, this is a 376 page biography of Eisner's life that explores Eisner's influence on comic art. Packed with spot illustrations and photographs, the book is the result of nearly 3 years of research on the part of Andelman and not only examines Eisner, but also contains anecdotes and personal reminiscences by a number of comic book professionals who were either inspired by or new Eisner. Definitely a book that has been needed for a long time and a bargain at an SRP $14.95. READ MORE!  Talking with Bob Andelman By Tom Spurgeon Publishers Weekly (Nov. 15, 2005) Bob Andelman worked closely with the late cartoonist Will Eisner (1917-2005) in shaping Will Eisner: A Spirited Life, an intimate albeit sprawling biography of the legendary comics author and comics innovator. Andelman reaches for the breadth of Will Eisner's careerŃhis years as a successful businessman in addition to being both an influential art teacher and a driving creative force behind the modern graphic novel. Did you have that moment while working on A Spirited Life when Will Eisner's life kind of fell into place for you? It was [one night] sitting at his kitchen table. It was about nine o'clock. Ann [Eisner's wife] had already gone off to bed. We were just sitting there talking. There were some pictures on the refrigerator that I was asking him about. There were some cartoons that he had drawn for Ann for Valentine's and wedding anniversaries that were really sweet. And then there were photos. I saw Neil Gaiman and [Art] Spiegelman and Scott McCloud. Then there was one I didn't recognize. It was a photo of his son, John. I said, "Oh." I had been told by [agents] Denis Kitchen and by Judy Hanson to not ask about family, not ask about the children. If I knew it was his son, I wouldn't have asked at that point. But since I didn't know, it was an honest question. That was the point where he said to me, "I know you need to know about this stuff, and you've been very patient." I said, "I know you don't want to talk about this." He said, "No, I think it's time we have this conversation." That evening was when I knew it was going to work, and I knew there was something more here than just comic book fans would be interested in. That was the night that he sat down and he told me about losing his daughter. He told me about Alice getting sick, and all the doctor visits, and the hospital time, and just being so frustrated and unable to do anything for his daughter. She had leukemia. He was so upset and so frustrated. He dealt with it by working. He kept working and working. He had never talked about this to anybody for print before. He had family and friends who didn't even know he had children. It was such a heartbreaking thing. And then I put two and two together that evening and I started asking him if that was the connection with A Contract with God [in the title story of Eisner's seminal 1976 collection of comics short stories, a young girl dies, plunging her father into grief]. And it was. It just kind of opened up everything. I went to bed that night and I was like, "Wow." READ MORE! REVIEW: A life of spirit: Remembering a legendary comics artist By Ron Kaplan New Jersey Jewish News (Nov. 3, 2005) Bob Andelman - Eisner's Boswell, due, in no small part, to his Web site and regular e-newsletter devoted to the graphics legend - may not have intended his homage, Will Eisner: A Spirited Life , as a eulogy but, as they say, timing is everything... ... A Spirited Life reads like a "Who's Who" of the world of comics, in the venues of both the classic superhero and the anti-establishment underground. As such, the names might be recognizable only to aficionados of the medium. This is a major problem of A Spirited Life . In an attempt to squeeze in as much information as possible, Andelman, who has written several business and management books, spends too much time on the commercial aspects of the industry and relatively little on Eisner's personal life. He does write sensitively about Eisner's parents and his wife, Ann, and their daughter, Alice, who died of leukemia as a teen; their son Joshua (sic), however, gets barely a mention. Because of this, despite all his research and obvious affection for his subject, A Spirited Life may ultimately disappoint the cartoonist's fans. READ MORE!  (Photo by Carter Chase, Pinellas News) new offering from local author By Carter Chase Pinellas News (Oct. 28, 2005) Andelman's exploration reveals Eisner's contributions to the nation, not only through his work, but also by his introduction of numerous cartoonists and by his inspiration of a multitude of successful artists and writers from various genres of pop culture. Renowned movie directors Steven Spielberg and Quentin Tarantino, along with fiction author Neil Gaiman, whose recent tale Anansi Boys topped the New York Times Best Sellers list earlier this month, are just a few of Eisner's disciples. While Eisner may have impacted a number of people, Andelman explains that even people who knew him probably didn't realize all there was to Eisner. Andelman's book offers insight into Eisner's emotional struggles and his feelings toward religion. He delves deep into the makeup of Eisner and smoothly conveys his stories, which were authorized by Eisner prior to his passing. Although he worked on the book for the last three years, Andelman said he probably could have spent another year gathering interesting stories about Eisner, because he touched so many. "I still meet people with stories about him," said Andelman. READ MORE! REVIEW: Elbows on the Desk By Christopher Allen ComicBookGallery.com (Oct., 2005) Will Eisner: A Spirited Life by Bob Andelman is the definitive biography of the comics legend and innovator. And sure, that's not much of an accomplishment on its face, as there are no other bios of Eisner. But Andelman was close to the Eisners and worked with their participation right up until Will's death, and did exhaustive research on par with biographies of any other celebrity or political figure. If anything, Andelman goes into too much detail on a few occasions, covering some things Eisner worked on even after Eisner has moved onto other things. This was an uncorrected proof, though, and perhaps some of this will be whittled down. It should be noted, as Andelman does right away, that this is not a critical examination of Eisner's body of work. That's not Andelman's area of expertise. But neither is it merely a series of facts and incidents. Andelman's research and the skillful editing create a book bubbling over with anecdote upon anecdote, from the humorous to the startling to the downright stirring. One comes away from the hard-to-put-down book with a fuller picture of Eisner the man, artist, and businessman than has ever been presented before, a man bursting with ideas but just as interested in business details; a man cheap but fair; stern but encouraging; loving and self-deprecating but supremely confident, and always curious and forward-thinking. Interviews with comics figures such as Stan Lee, Denis Kitchen, cat yronwode, Jules Feiffer, Mike Ploog, Alan Moore, Jim Shooter, Marv Wolfman, Neil Gaiman, Mark Evanier and others yield nugget after nugget, from young Eisner double-dating with Bob Kane, whom he came to despise, to Lee's trying to get Eisner to run Marvel so Lee could go work in Hollywood, to Eisner's connection to not only underground comics but the start of punk rock. Eisner's influence on comics and the creators who worked with him and those who came later has been discussed elsewhere at length, but this book is about the man's life, all the best stories framed by illuminating details of everything he was involved in, not just The Spirit and the later graphic novels but his decades of work for the military in Army Motors and P.S. and his many other entrepreneurial ventures. It should be required reading for any comics professional in how to be creative while still protective of one's art, and in how to live a life of dignified accomplishment. READ MORE! REVIEW: A beautiful look into the life of one of comics' most beloved figures By Larry Stanley PenguinComics.net (Oct., 2005) From the first chapter where a young William draws a Comic strip for his high-school newspaper and his father supports his dream of becoming an artist we see this book will be something more then the standard biography of 'this is how I draw, look at this it made me famous, see how important I was to the field?' It is a touching look from a writer (Andelman) who loved his subject, not a scribe who was given a job and did it well enough to finish. Andelman clearly loves Eisner and it is easy to see that Eisner respected Andelman enough to not only open his life, but to share with Bob something of this own essence, his soul and -ahem- his Spirit. I could go on and on about the stories and anecdotes in this book. I loved it, and would happily re-read it again. Andelman has done a fantastic job of giving us a look into the life of one of the Founding Fathers of American Comic books. This is a chance for us, his fans, to see what formed Will Eisner and where he truly came from and how he became the man he was. READ MORE! REVIEW: When the comics grew up: Will Eisner, who created dozens of comics characters, also revolutionized the field of graphic novels. By Kit Reed St. Petersburg Times (Oct. 16, 2005) SAMPLE: As Will Eisner: A Spirited Life, a detailed biography of the creator of Sheena the Queen of the Jungle, shows, everybody knew everybody else in the comics world of the 1930s and '40s. These artists worked for, sometimes stole ideas from and influenced each other. They included Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, who brought us Superman (and who eventually lost the rights to their creation); the cannier creator of Batman, Bob Kane; and artist, entrepreneur, teacher, friend and mentor Will Eisner. What's amazing is that these titans, whose works still are shaping a large portion of the national culture, were just kids when they broke into the field - some not yet out of their teens. The network they formed exists to this day. Eisner died in January at age 87, but his influence lives on, as Bob Andelman shows in his carefully researched account of Eisner's career, in such contemporary artists as Jules Feiffer, Art Spiegelman, Alan Moore and Neil Gaiman, all of whom crossed paths with Eisner - and learned from him. READ MORE! New to graphic novels? Check out these By Margo Hammond St. Petersburg Times (Oct. 16, 2005) Interested in trying out a graphic novel? I asked Bob Andelman, author of Will Eisner: A Spirited Life (see review, above), to pick 10 to get you started. The first five he chose, not surprisingly, are by Eisner, who first used the term "graphic novel" in 1978. The second five, by a broad array of artists, demonstrate the variety in the field. "These graphic novels are not books for children," warns Andelman. "While not extremely sexual or violent, all are adult in tone, language and images." READ MORE! REVIEW: Tony's Tips! by Tony Isabella Comic Buyers Guide (Installment #671 for CBG #1613; October 3, 2005) Though Will Eisner's accomplishments and career may frame the history of American comics, his life received far less attention. That changes with the coming of Will Eisner: A Spirited Life by Bob Andelman [M Press; $14.95]. A back-cover blurb proclaims that this biography tells Eisner's personal and professional life in dramatic detail. Andelman lives up to that claim. I keep using the phrase "fitting" when I write about Eisner or anything to do with Eisner these days, but there's no escaping how right so many things about his life and work were and are. It is, therefore, altogether fitting that the biography of one of comicsā greatest storytellers is, itself, a great story. Eisner was too big for even this 352-page book, but Andelman nonetheless gives us a sense of the scope of his subject's world. We see the boy, the artist, the surprisingly young businessman and entrepreneur, the husband, the father, the inspiration to so many others, a long life well led that seems tragically brief in light of Eisner's vibrant genius and productivity. Even in death, this man whose great comics always left us wanting more still leaves us wanting more...more of his stories, more of his wisdom, more of his company. Comicdom will not see his like again. Biographer Andelman does justice to a man who is undisputedly one of comicdom's greatest creators. Reviewing this book from the uncorrected proof, I haven't seen the black-and-white illustrations which will accompany the text in the published work. Even without seeing them, I don't hesitate to proclaim Will Eisner: A Spirited Life as a must-have item for any serious devotee of the comics art form. It gets the full five out of five Tonys. REVIEW: Booklist By Gordon Flagg Michael Chabon contributes a heartfelt introduction to Andelman's first-ever biography of Will Eisner (1917-2005), and the story that follows is a real-life Kavalier and Clay. Present at the comics industry's birth in the 1930s, Eisner revolutionized the field not just creatively in work spanning from his 1940s stories featuring masked crime fighter the Spirit to his later, pioneering graphic novels but also as businessman and entrepreneur, teacher, mentor, and the inspiration of countless young artists. Andelman covers all those roles and points up Eisner's uniqueness among his peers: he retained ownership of his creations, and that allowed him to reprint the Spirit stories at a time, decades after their original publication, when so doing cemented his reputation in a new era of comics fandom and facilitated launching a new career as a graphic novelist with A Contract with God (1978). Besides verifying Eisner's impact on nearly every artist who drew comics in his wake, Andelman shows that Eisner's influence extends to such film directors as Spielberg and Tarantino. (Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved.) REVIEW: Publishers Weekly It is highly fortunate that Andelman got to write this authorized biography of the towering American cartoonist Eisner before his death this year at age 87. Following Michael Chabon's insightful introduction, Andelman states that he will not critique Eisner's work, and so barely describes Eisner's innovative "The Spirit" or the contents of his pioneering graphic novels. Andelman thus limits his audience to comics aficionados who are already thoroughly familiar with Eisner's oeuvre; others will be left puzzled as to why he merits a biography. Thoroughly researched, the book confusingly jumps back and forth in time, while presenting vivid portraits of Eisner's colleagues like Jerry Iger, Denis Kitchen and Cat Yronwode. Eisner is depicted as a hardworking, almost universally beloved artistic visionary. Yet Eisner's work indicates that he was a far more complex figure. Andelman briefly touches on intriguing issues, like Eisner's capacity for anger, his obsessive penny-pinching, his religious doubts, and his anguish over his daughter's death, but never probes them sufficiently. A future biography should delve beneath Eisner's public persona to draw connections between his life and his art. Still, so far there are few serious biographies of important figures in American comics. In authorizing this book, Eisner has proved a pioneer yet again. (Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.) REVIEW: The Beat By Heidi MacDonald (June 6, 2005) At the Book Expo we picked up an advance galley of A SPIRITED LIFE, the Will Eisner biography by Bob Andelman. It's a text only galley that lacks all illos, but if the illustrations are one-quarter as colorful as the text, it's going to be quite illuminating. Andelman goes far beyond the Eisner most of us knew, the tireless supportor of comics as an artform. That Eisner is here, but it's the actual man we learn about, from such well-known aspects as his poor childhood to his partnership with Jerry Iger to his years in the Army, to some less well-known anecdotes and events -- Eisner's early romantic exploits (including Iger's hiring a prostitute for him, unbeknownst to Eisner), the death of his daughter at age 16 from leukemia, and the many failed businesses that went along with his triumphs. This is a rich real life narrative that everyone interested in the history of comics should read. Although the book is somewhat episodic, Andelman also ties in various figures to comics historical tapestry -- George Bridgeman, Jack Kirby, Joe Kubert, and a teen-aged Neil Gaiman all have unexpected roles to play along the way, as do countless others. (I was amused to encounter the ex-boyfriend of a close friend of mine in the narrative -- I had no idea he knew Eisner.) Unusual characters like Jim Warren and Cat Yronwode emerge. Through it all, though, we begin to learn where Will Eisner really came from, and how he got where he ended up. Eisner was fortunate to stay around long enough to experience the dawn of comics as an artistic medium -- although its something he dreamed of for a long time, the time had never been right until the 70s. Luckily for us all, really. Must reading, due in September. Subsidiary Rights Information for A Spirited Life! Will Eisner Links Will Eisner Official Site; Who is Will Eisner? http://www.willeisner.com Order Will Eisner: A Spirited Life Order Books By Will Eisner Will Eisner: A Spirit Life Official Web Site http://www.aspiritedlife.com Will Eisner & The Spirit: Biography and History of a Comics Legend http://deniskitchen.com/docs/bios/bio_will_eisner.html The Comics Reporter's Eisner Page http://www.comicsreporter.com/index.php/briefings/commentary/674/ Will Eisner's John Law, New Adventures Online http://www.johnlaw.us.com Wildwood Cemetery: The Spirit Database http://www.angelfire.com/art/wildwood/ Will Eisner Original Art For Sale http://deniskitchen.com/ DC Comics' Will Eisner Library http://www.dccomics.com/graphic_novels/dc_category.html?cat=eisner Dark Horse Comics http://darkhorse.com NBM Publishing http://www.nbmpub.com/fairytales/eisner/eisnerhome.html IMPACT Books (a division of F+W Publications) http://www.artistsnetwork.com/impact_books/titles.asp PODGallery: Fine Art Prints and Notecards of Will Eisner's work http://www.podgallery.com/eisner The Spirit Checklist http://www.luckymojo.com/spiritchecklist.html Rare Eisner: Making of a Genius http://www.comicartville.com/rareeisner.htm Fagin the Jew, Doubleday Books http://www.randomhouse.com/doubleday/catalog/display.pperl?0385510098 Kitchen & Hansen Literary Agency http://www.kitchenandhansen.com Who is Bob Andelman, Anyway? http://www.andelman.com  at Eisner's studio in South Florida, August 2003. (Photo by Pete Eisner) 
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