Literary studies: fiction, novelists and prose writers

Fantasy and science fiction began in print, and from the first films to the latest blockbusters, print stories have provided the inspirations, the ideas, and in some cases the detailed blueprints.

The graphic novel is the most exciting literary format to emerge in the past thirty years.

George R.

Did aliens visit ancient civilizations?

Small towns have long been a commonplace setting in cozy mysteries, but in recent years writers of realistic crime fiction have discovered fresh possibilities in small town settings.

Comics and sequential art are increasingly in use in college classrooms.

A literary examination of the influence of 19th century sleuths on the early hard-boiled investigators, this book explores the importance of works by Edgar Allan Poe, Charles Dickens, Wilkie Collins and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to the development of detective series by Carroll John Daly, Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, Brett Halliday, Mickey Spillane, Thomas B.

Starting with William Godwin's Caleb Williams and Charles Brockden Brown's Edgar Huntly, this book covers in detail the great works of detective fiction--Poe's Dupin stories, Conan Doyle's The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Christie's The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Sayers' Strong Poison, Chandler's The Big Sleep, and Simenon's The Yellow Dog.

One of the great intellectual achievements of the 20th century, Joseph Campbell's The Hero with a Thousand Faces is an elaborate articulation of the monomyth: the narrative pattern underlying countless stories from the most ancient myths and legends to the films and television series of today.

Comic book audience expectations have fluctuated dramatically through the years, and comic book creators have had to adapt to shifting reader concerns.

Comparing various fantasy fiction stories, this book shows that it is not the tropes and cliches that make a story good or bad but how the author applies them.

From the Golden Age of the 1940s, through the Silver Age of the '60s, up until the early '80s--the end of the Bronze Age.

Ken Follett wrote his first international bestseller, Eye of the Needle, when he was 25 years old.

The appearance of Sherlock Holmes in The Strand Magazine in 1891 began a stampede of writers who wanted to emulate, build upon or even satirize Arthur Conan Doyle's work.

At the 2013 "e;Celebrating The Hobbit"e; conference at Valparaiso University--marking the 75th anniversary of the book's publication and the first installment of Peter Jackson's Hobbit movies--two plenary papers were presented: "e;Anchoring the Myth: The Impact of The Hobbit on Tolkien's Legendarium"e; by John D.

Bringing together papers presented at the Academic Conference on Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy from 2005 to 2013, this collection of essays includes Veronica Hollinger's keynote address, "e;The Body on the Slab,"e; and Robert Runte's Aurora Award-winning paper, "e;Why I Read Canadian Speculative Fiction,"e; along with 15 other contributions on science fiction and fantasy literature, television and music by Canadian creators.

This collection of new essays seeks to define the unique qualities of female heroism in literary fantasy from Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings in the 1950s through the present.

The birth of modern fantasy in 1930s Britain and America saw the development of new literary and film genres.

From 1949 to 1968 author Robert van Gulick wrote 15 novels, two novellas and eight short stories featuring Judge Dee, a Chinese magistrate and detective from the Tang dynasty.

Since the creation of the comic book, cases of legal conflict and confusion have often arisen where concepts such as public domain, unincorporated entities and moral rights are involved.

Edgar Allan Poe exerted a profound influence on many aspects of 20th century culture, and continues to inspire composers, filmmakers, writers and artists.

The Lord of the Rings rarely makes an appearance in college courses that aim to examine modern British and American literature.

Best known for his popular crime fiction, Boston novelist George V.

The X-Men comic book franchise is one of the most popular of all time and one of the most intriguing for critical analysis.

In honor of the 70th birthday of Professor Douglas G.

This collection of new essays applies a wide range of critical frameworks to the analysis of prolific fantasy author Terry Pratchett's Discworld books.

The comics within capture in intimate, often awkward, but always relatable detail the tribulations and triumphs of life.

This book creates a taxonomy for the major bestselling fictional genres: romance (e.

This book makes connections between mythopoeic fantasy--works that engage the numinous--and the critical apparatuses of ecocriticism and posthumanism.

The crime fiction world of the late 1970s, with its increasingly diverse landscape, is a natural beginning for this collection of critical studies focusing on the intersections of class, culture and crime--each nuanced with shades of gender, ethnicity, race and politics.

Gotlieb is a writer central to the Canadian science fiction canon.

This is a book about the comics genre and language, how these were used to create Batman, and how that character's longevity is largely due to the medium's unique formal qualities.

The all-new essays in this book respond to the question, How do spaces in science fiction, both built and unbuilt, help shape the relationships among humans, other animals and their shared environments?

Widely considered one of the leading experts on the works of J.

These new essays comprise a critical analysis of present-day crime fiction and nonfiction works set in Italy (all of which are available in English).

This is the first overview of cartoon art in this important cultural nexus of Asia.

This book explores the connections between comics and Gothic from four different angles: historical, formal, cultural and textual.

This book explores how contemporary fantastic fiction by women writers responds to the past and imagines the future.

This book focuses on the science fictional dimensions of Rushdie's later novels, Fury, The Ground Beneath Her Feet, Shalimar the Clown and Luka and the Fire of Life, and Rushdie's first unpublished novel, The Antagonist, to show how the author's oeuvre moves towards a more consistent engagement with science fiction as a generic form and an ideological investment.

This book is an appreciation of selected authors who make extensive use of humor in English detective/crime fiction.

This comprehensive guide to James Ellroy's work and life is arranged as an encyclopedia covering his entire career, from his first private-eye novel, Brown's Requiem, to his 2012 e-book Shakedown.

Created in 1941 by the psychologist William Marston, Wonder Woman would go on to have one of the longest continuous runs of published comic book adventures in the history of the industry.

This book comprehensively covers the history of Italian crime fiction from its origins to the present.

Robert A.

This book begins with a history of the detective genre, coextensive with the novel itself, identifying the attitudes and institutions needed for the genre to emerge in its mature form around 1880.

This essay collection explores the life and work of science fiction doyen Ray Bradbury from a variety of perspectives.

This is a complete reference work to the history of Batman big screen works, from the 1940s serials through the campy 1960s TV show and film, and up through the series of Warner Bros.

Children's literature is an excellent way to educate children, on everything from social behavior and beliefs to attitudes toward education itself.

The History of Middle-earth traces the evolution of J.

This collection of essays examines how college professors teach the genre of detective fiction and provides insight into how the reader may apply such strategies to his or her own courses.