(I’m sure they bear resemblances to other important creators too - Chabon cleverly plucking various characteristics and histories to form these two magnificently realised characters - but these seem the most glaring to my eye).Īfter they meet in 1939, Sam and Joe decide to utilise the latter’s artistic talent and the former’s encyclopaedic knowledge of the costumed heroes taking the world by storm, and create “The Escapist,” part Houdini, part Robin Hood, and inspired by Joe’s traumatic upbringing in the shadow of Nazism (and the tragedy of his family, still trapped in Prague), and his training as a magician and escape artist. “Kavalier and Clay” is based on the history of the Golden Age of comic books, and its titular protagonists - Czech immigrant Josef Kavalier and his cousin Sammy Clayman - are inspired by several real-life comic creators of the era, particularly Siegel and Shuster, Simon and Kirby, and Steranko. More than a decade actually, since it was first prescribed essential reading. For years people have been telling me to read Michael Chabon’s “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay.” But although I make my living recommending books, too many people telling me something is going to be my favourite thing ever is a total turn-off.
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