Book Giveaway: WITH GREAT POWER: The Marvelous Stan Lee by Annie Hunter Eriksen

Annie Hunter Eriksen has written a new picture book, WITH GREAT POWER: The Marvelous Stan Lee, illustrated by Lee Gatlin and published by Page Street Kids. It is available in bookstores now. SBP has agreed to share a copy with one lucky winner living in the United States.

All you have to do to get in the running is leave a comment. Reblog, tweet, or talk about it on Facebook with a link and you will get additional chances to win. Just let me know other things you do to share the good news, so I can put the right amount of tickets in my basket for you.

Sharing on Facebook, Twitter or reblogging really helps spread the word for a new book. So, thanks for helping Annie and Lee.

If you have signed up to follow my blog and it is delivered to you everyday, please let me know when you leave a comment and I will give you an extra ticket. Thanks!

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Every superhero has their origin story: a radioactive spider bite turns ordinary teen Peter Parker into Spider-Man, wealthy Tony Stark escapes captivity by building his Iron Man suit, scientist Bruce Banner survives gamma rays only to transform into the Hulk.

For Stan Lee, it was books of adventure, monsters, and magic that helped him transform from an ordinary boy to a superstar superhero creator. At first, reading these stories was a pathway to a world bigger than his family’s tiny apartment in New York City, but it wasn’t long until Stan was crafting his own stories, creating comics professionally when he was still just a teenager! Still, writing wasn’t exciting when the heroes were always the same: strong, perfect, and boring. Stan had a revolutionary idea. What if anyone―even an ordinary kid―could be a superhero?

Discover more about the life of the Cameo King, known to many for his appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and how he revolutionized comics with this vibrant introduction bustling with action, humor, and references for fans new and old. ‘Nuff said!

BOOK JOURNEY:

Have you ever felt like you were definitely not the target audience of something you love?  That was me when I was a kid.  As a teenager, I was a huge nerd before the days of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  I spent my days reading X-Men and explaining to anyone within reluctant earshot all about Stan Lee.  I’m still a nerd and I’m still telling Stan’s amazing-fantastic-incredible story, only now it’s in the form of With Great Power.

This is my debut children’s book and the first time I’ve ever been published.  I’ve been writing my whole life, but the process has been secret—like in-my-PJs-writing-in-my-bedroom kind-of secret.  Entering this very public realm of professional writing is world-altering for me, especially since With Great Power contains so much of my personality.

My Page Street Kids editor for With Great Power, Courtney Burke, picked up my manuscript in 2019.  I was lucky enough to find as big of a Marvel fan as me, as made evident by our constant exchange of Marvel GIFs and asking each other how many times we’d seen Endgame.

I mostly hang out in the YA genre and in the opposite end of the spectrum of non-fiction true crime.  The manuscript possessed a more formal, almost academic tone, but after the first few revisions I adapted it to be much more fun and engaging.  I read Stan’s autobiography and yes, watched all of the MCU movies (over and over and over again) as part of my research and absolutely enjoyed every single moment of it.

Lee Gatlin was a no-contest illustrator choice. I saw his Spidey and Fantastic Four webcomics and it was like being struck by lightning.  I had a feeling that Stan Lee would’ve been psyched about Lee’s style, too. The first illustration I saw was his early sketch of Stan with all of his character ideas up his sleeve.  Nobody had ever illustrated my words before, and here was this spectacular sketch of my idol based on my manuscript.  I can’t explain the feeling, but it was like being seen for the first time. This is as much my book as it is his.

The entire process took about two-and-a-half years.  Standing on the other side of this just weeks before my book is released, I still can’t fathom that I was privileged enough to have my first published work be about Stan Lee, a man I spent my adolescence fan-girling over.  The best part?  The Marvel Universe is just that—universal.  I don’t feel so alone in part because of comics becoming mainstream, but really because I’ve learned to take Stan’s message to heart: creating stories that empower others is a superpower.

ANNIE’S BIO:

Annie Hunter Eriksen grew up with a love of superheroes and remains a huge Marvel nerd to this day. Her favorite comic book series is Ms. Marvel. She works as a freelance writer and lives in Ohio with her husband, two black cats named Cosmo and Kiki, and a hedgehog named Pineapple.

LEE GATLIN has been drawing as long as he can remember. He learned to draw by looking at cartoons, kids’ books, and comics. Born and raised in south Alabama, he is an illustrator and cartoonist based in the Mississippi Delta. He has illustrated Monster School by Kate Coombs (Chronicle). You can find his weekly cartoons in Athens, Georgia’s Flagpole Magazine, and more of his work at neilaglet.tumblr.com or leegatlin.com.

In addition to drawing and making things, he enjoys making a racket on the piano or banjo. An illustrator and cartoonist, he lives with wife and three children in Georgia.

Annie, thank you for sharing your book and journey with us. I loved reading about your journey with the book. You say it was a work of love and I can see that. And I love that you say this was as much Lee’s book as yours because I can see that too. Lee has really captured the essence of the book. Love the illustrations. He really was the perfect choice to illustrate the book. I will be featuring him on October 30th’s Illustrator Saturday, so everyone check back. Thank you Annie for bringing Stan Lee to those of us who only knew he brought Spiderman to life. Good luck with the book!

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy