Ravenweb Blog

Dear Random House , My daughter absolutely loves your Step into Reading toddler book Super Friends: Flying High . Unfortunately, as of this writing, there are no other Level 1 Step into Reading superhero books in the series and few books overall featuring strong female heroines. I think it would be really great and empowering if you followed up the first book with a Level 1 Super Friends book featuring Wonder Woman. I know, there are Barbie and Disney Princess titles, but I believe Wonder Woman is galvanizing in ways those characters aren't. And  Wonder Woman has a new look and costume that is well-suited for a new generation of girls. I tried to send you feedback about this using your Feedback link but the form did not submit correctly. Then I considered pitching the idea to you, but you made it quite clear on your FAQs that you only deal with agents. "Like most big publishers, Random House only accepts manuscripts submitted by an agent--the volume of mat...

I've added Wonder Woman as one of the superheroes (along with Batman, Captain America, the Hulk, the Punisher, Spider-Man, Superman, and Wolverine) my Superhero Survey assesses and compares you against. Are you a fellow wielder of the Lasso of Truth?

I've updated the look and feel of my Superhero survey . Take a look. I'll also soon be adding a few more questions and two more superheroes to score against.

Those familiar with the HBO show Real Time already know about Bill Maher's funny and biting collection of "New Rules".||For those who don't of for those who want a written sampling of the material, the text New Rules collects some of Maher's best "New Rules" rants and also includes new material, including a few some longer form editorials. Like most texts collecting funny short-bit stand up material, New Rules is a very fast (too fast) and fun read.

Civil War is a 2006 Marvel Comics mini series that centers around the introduction into the United States of the Marvel Universe of a Super-human Registration Act. The conceit is, a super-powers tragedy precipitates a bill requiring the registration, unmasking and regulation of all super heroes -- signed into law by GWB. Some heroes, led by Iron Man, approve of the measure, bringing them into armed conflict with those who see it as a disastrous assault on civil liberties. Leading the charge against the Bush measure: Captain America. I haven't read comics in years but I find the idea for this series very interesting and may check this out if it's released as a graphic novel. Thanks to A. R. Wolff for alerting me to this comic series and for providing the summary that I've reproduced in this posting.