Review Detail

I may be out of the normal demographic for the WB's Smallville, but I do catch the series when I can. After all, Superman holds a fascination for many of us, both young and old. He's one of the only superheroes that doesn't come from this planet and doesn't have a deep, dark past or some mysterious childhood pain.

At least, that's what I thought before I started watching the series and read the first novelization, Arrival by Michael Teitelbaum. It seems that trusty Clark Kent does have a few skeletons in his closet.

The first novel in the new series from Little, Brown & Company covers the first episode of the series. It follows the storyline pretty much exactly, so if you are looking for any big surprises that you didn't see in the show, you'll be out of luck. It does, however, expand on the emotions of the characters some more (somehow I didn't originally pick up that Pete had a crush on Chloe) and gives a little more description.

If you're an avid fan of the series, you will like the book. If you haven't discovered the series yet, it is a good introduction, since it doesn't leave anything out. You can catch up on exactly how Superman dropped into the lives of the Kents, how he saved Lex Luthor's life (though someone please tell me how a young, tall, bald Lex played by Michael Rosenbaum turns into the fuzzy-haired older Lex played by Gene Hackman in the movie), and his background with Lana Lang (foreshadowing!).

The second book, See No Evil is also out this month, with the next two coming out in December, just in time for Christmas.