Marc Tyler Nobleman

Author Marc Tyler Nobleman and illustrator Eliza Wheeler tell the story of the Cottingley Fairies hoax in this engaging work of picture-book non-fiction. Angry at the adults in her family for scolding her younger cousin Frances, a sixteen-year-old English girl named Elsie Wright decided to play a trick on them, taking some pictures that she claimed proved the existence of fairies. The year was 1917, and photography was still new to many people. Eventually the cousins' trick grew beyond their show more fairy circle, convincing even the great Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that they had made a remarkable discovery. He used their photographs in his article on fairies, published in The Strand magazine, creating a widespread sensation. It would be many decades until the truth was revealed: the girls had faked the fairies, which were paper cut-outs propped up with sticks in each scene...

An absolutely lovely book, Fairy Spell: How Two Girls Convinced the World That Fairies Are Real pairs an engaging, informative text with beautiful illustrations. I knew the basic story of the Cottingley Fairies, but I thought Nobleman did an excellent job of expanding upon the better-known facts, and interpreting them in a convincing way. I appreciated his evident sympathy for the two young hoaxers, and the humane way he addressed their trickery. I also appreciated the inclusion of the actual photographs, although the real stand-out for me, visually speaking, was Eliza Wheeler's gorgeous illustrations, done in ink, watercolor and collage. Her color palette was immensely appealing, her human figures charming. I'd recommend this one to young fairy-lovers, and to anyone looking for engaging non-fiction picture-books about unusual and interesting children from the pages of history. show less

During World War I, two young cousins living together tell their parents that fairies can be found in their backyard. They beg and plead to use a camera to photograph the fairies as proof -- and their parents are confounded when they come back with two photographs showing the girls surrounded by fairies. The photographs soon find their way to the public and prestigious persons start believing fairies are real based on this evidence -- while skeptical others insist the photographs are show more faked.

This book provides a fascinating look at a slim slice of history that caught the attention of a nation repeatedly over the years. Nobleman writes clearly and succinctly about the incident, engaging readers with the story. Wheeler's illustrations are absolutely beautiful in their concurrent simplicity and detail. Likewise, the color palette is somehow both muted and bold. And, of course, no book about this story would be complete without including reproductions of the photographs themselves.

An author's note cautions readers not to assume that this the silliness of a simpler time and warns them to be vigilant in the era of the Internet as well, a brilliant point to make while bringing the ramifications of this story into the current day. show less

Bill the Boy Wonder is an odd book. It sort of promises to be a biography of Bill Finger, the man who created Batman along with Bill Kane and wrote many, many of his early stories. But it seems that we don't really know all that much about Bill Finger. Much of the book ends up focusing on the credit dispute between Finger and Kane-- if "dispute" is the right word, given that Kane always asserted that he solely created Batman and Finger rarely said anything to contradict that. It's appalling show more the extent to which Bill Finger's role in the creation of the Bat-Man has been elided, but I don't know if a children's picture book is the place for that dispute to be played out.

It's immaculately researched, though, as the Author's Note at the end makes clear, and it seems unlikely that we'll ever known enough about Finger to create a full-length biography of the man. So this is a nice little tribute, and I'm glad I read it, even if I'm uncertain as to what to do with it beyond that. Ty Templeton's illustrations are great. I've only encountered his art sporadically, but I've always liked it when I've seen it. show less

Bill the Boy Wonder, written by Marc Tyler Nobleman and illustrated by Ty Templeton, is a fantastic picture book biography of Bill Fingerman, the “secret co-creator of Batman.” Templeton’s illustrations are diverse enough to capture both historical accounts and colorful recreations from classic comics. It’s a handsomely produced work, with its text captions and blocking resembling comic book panels. This is truly an all-ages book in that adults interested in comic book history are show more likely to get more out to the book from kids, but it’s still enjoyable and engaging enough for younger readers.

This is a well-researched book, too, with an extensive author’s note at the end detailing all the research that went into writing it. While a great emphasis of the book is about how Fingerman was cheated out of receiving credit for his role in Batman, it also covers his inspirations and creative process, and it‘s fascinating to think of all the things that culminated in some of pop-culture‘s most famous images.

The book is actually more positive towards Bob Kane than other books I’ve read, and it really emphasizes more on the positive of Fingerman‘s life, which I think is the better approach to make. The authorship of comics, especially in terms of who created a creator, is complicated because it often involves a team working for a company, and it is likely that the company holds the creative control over the character. This can lead to many writers, artists, or their heirs not seeing a cent of the millions a company makes from comics, merchandise, and movies featuring their characters and storylines. I hope with books like this and researchers like Marc Tyler Nobleman, creators will get the recognition they’ve earned for helping shape our culture and imaginations. show less