The second book in Abrams' Marvel Arts line, featuring the work of beloved Mutts creator Patrick McDonnell and the greatest super heroes of the Marvel Universe

"The miracle is not to fly in the air, or to walk on the water, but to walk on the earth." -Thich Nhat Hanh

The Super Hero's Journey is unlike anything you have ever read. Imbued with the creativity, artwork, and heart of Patrick McDonnell, the beloved creator of the comic strip Mutts, this all-new graphic novel features classic Marvel super heroes including the Fantastic Four, the Incredible Hulk, Captain America, Black Panther, and Spider-Man, and is the synthesis of McDonnell's positive, inspirational sensibility and Marvel's blockbuster brand. Using the Marvel Universe as avatars, McDonnell muses on how comics changed his life and inspired him to become a cartoonist, instilling a moral sensibility that he carries through his work and his life.

We begin with the Watcher-a being who exists outside the planes of space and time, who sees every moment that has happened, will happen, or is happening throughout the cosmos-as he observes Earth and the inner burdens of the Marvel super heroes. As the Watcher observes the villainous plans of Dr. Doom, who is harnessing the power of the Negative Zone and slowly spreading its negativity across our planet and destroying the human spirit, Mr. Fantastic is led on a meta journey that takes him through the pages of classic comic books and across scenes familiar and unexpected, including the Commercial Zone, which is filled with advertisements for "stuff" and wonders of the imagination only to deliver disappointment and false promises. Ultimately, our heroes discover a zen solution in an unexpected fashion-one that aligns this book with the inspiring messages of McDonnell's other beloved and award-winning books-leaving readers with a renewed sense of love, hope, and redemption.

"If the stars should appear but one night every thousand years, how man would marvel and stare." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Visually striking-The Super Hero's Journey includes panels from classic Marvel comics as a tribute by McDonnell to the stories he grew up reading, and to his heroes-Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Steve Ditko, creators of the Marvel Universe-alongside inspirational quotes from Eckhart Tolle, Thoreau, and others, all of which deliver upon the promise of the Marvel Arts line to tell stories where "nothing is impossible and anything can happen."

The second book in Abrams' Marvel Arts line, featuring the work of beloved Mutts creator Patrick McDonnell and the greatest super heroes of the Marvel Universe

About the Author
Patrick McDonnell is the bestselling author, illustrator, playwright, painter, and creator of the comic strip Mutts, which appears in more than 700 newspapers around the world. He has received numerous awards internationally, including a Caldecott Honor and the Reuben, the highest honor given by the National Cartoonists Society. The Art of Nothing, a career-spanning monograph, was published by Abrams ComicArts in 2019. He lives in New Jersey. Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world's most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over 80 years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing, publishing, games, and digital media. For more information visit marvel.com.

Reviews
"The Super Hero's Journey is a powerful argument for how the comic book art form makes a positive impact in our lives. Patrick McDonell weaves the work of Jack Kirby and other Marvel artists together with his own to create a remarkable view into the wonder he felt as a young reader first experiencing these classic comics. It is a genuinely moving treatise on the inspiration we can take from others, and an antidote for cynicism." * -Alex Ross, author of Fantastic Four: Full Circle *
"The Super Hero's Journey is thrilling, hilarious, mind-blowing, weird and poignant-just like the stories that inspired it. Patrick McDonnell flexes the same artistic muscle that drew Kirby to collage, mashing up childhood memories, Silver Age stories, and his own works of fine art, fueling an explosion of creativity, wonder, and beauty. When I finished the first time, I immediately read it again to re-experience its generous heartbeat. After my own journey, all I can say is Make Mine McDonnell!" * -Glen David Gold, author of Carter Beats the Devil and I Will Be Complete *
"Mutts cartoonist Patrick McDonnell has long sought to connect his own spiritual journey with the worlds that inspired him to become a comic artist in the first place-and while he got to do the former in Heart to Heart, a cartooning collaboration with the Dalai Lama, his next graphic novel comes at it from a more comic-booky angle, although no less spiritual... A philosophical and spiritual look back at the Silver Age comics heroes that inspired him, McDonnell's weaves his own path to cartooning by intersecting his own art and renditions of Marvel's classic heroes with the original, iconic artwork of their comics, as the likes of Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Steve Ditko's works weaves throughout McDonnell's history." * -io9 *



Book Information
ISBN 9781419769108
Author Patrick McDonnell
Format Hardback
Page Count 112
Imprint Abrams
Publisher Abrams