STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK
Batman doesn’t have anything over Ernest Hemingway.
Hemingway has appeared in comics alongside Superman, Mickey Mouse and Captain Marvel—he’s even fought fascists with Wolverine.
Robert K. Elder has written a book titled “Hemingway in Comics” and he will discuss that book and its accompanying exhibit currently on display in the Community Library’s foyer on Wednesday, Sept. 15.
Elder, the award-winning author of 14 books, will discuss his work at 6 p.m. Wednesday Sept. 15 outside on the Library’s Donaldson Robb Family Lawn. The event will also be livestreamed and available to view later at www.livestream.com/comlib
Elder’s “Hemingway in Comics” explores what it means to be a pop culture icon and how that image can change over time. His role in comics ranges from the divine to the ridiculous. Hemingway is often portrayed as a hypermasculine legend: bearded, boozy and ready to throw a punch. But some comic creators have looked past the stereotypical bravado to the sensitive artist looking for validation.
Elder says the comic book page and Hemingway share a natural kinship as comics demand an economy of words, much like Hemingway’s less-is-more “iceberg theory.” And he says Hemingway is the perfect avatar for comic book artists wanting to tell history-rich stories as Hemingway experienced beautiful places during the most chaotic times, such as Spain during the Spanish Civil War.
In addition to “Hemingway in Comics,” Elder has written “Hidden Hemingway: Inside the Ernest Hemingway Archives of Oak Park,” “The Best Film You’ve Never Seen” and “The Film that Changed My Life.”
A native of Montana, his work has appeared in The New York Times, The Paris Review and other publications.
The presentation will be followed by a book signing with Chapter One Bookstore.