The Essential Batman Encyclopedia
Grade 6 Up—Over the last 69 years, Batman has experienced countless incarnations. For years, he seemed ageless and unchanging, but recently editors and writers have found many creative ways to explore the superhero's mythos. Expanding upon Michael Fleisher'sThe Encyclopedia of Comic Book Heroes: Batman(DC Comics, 2007), this volume attempts to clarify how Batman fits into these story arcs, and to catalog nearly every villain and close ally he encountered between 1939 and September 2007. Entries are limited to characters and information within the Batman universe. This focus on characters and internal plot may be fascinating to fans, but will limit the book's usefulness as a research tool. Fewer than one-third of the entries are accompanied by black-and-white illustrations. Two sets of color plates add much to the flavor of the work, though they impart little information. Overall, the book is extremely thorough within its scope and is well researched.—Dawn Rutherford, King County Library System, Bellevue, WACopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.