This was just terrific. Ever wondered about the lives of John Romita Sr. and Jr. and their days working as artists for Marvel. If so, this is the book for you. I didn't realize Senior worked for DC for several years at DC drawing romance books before moving to Marvel and becoming THE Spider-Man artist. Or that Daredevil villain, Typhoid Mary, was based on JRJR's ex-wife. Then there's cool things like JRJR breaking a Guinness world record by drawing sketches for 48 hours straight. (Man I wish I could have gotten one of those.) The book also devotes a large part to Virginia, Senior's wife of 60+ years and how she also worked at Marvel until they both retired. I love this inside baseball look into comic book creators.

Thank you to Netgalley for this review copy for an honest review.

I liked this book it was intersting and i enjoyed reading it. I found it was well written, the information was interesting.
The art and illustrasion were good and looked nice.

Rating 3 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Father and Son Issues: The Secret History On Spider-Man by Jeff Ryan is about the Romita family and their involvement in propelling Spider-Man into becoming one of the most popular superheroes. As the title suggests, the novel mentions several interesting facts about the web slinger we all know and love, but mainly details the highs and lows of the comic industry, and our hero.

I was immediately interested in reading this book as it pertains to the history of Spider-Man, and enjoyed the "fun facts" listed in the novel. The author focuses a majority of the novel on John Sr and Jr Romita. He writes in detail about their struggles in the industry, such as low pay ,no work/life balance and no credit. Prior to this book I'm pretty sure I knew nothing of the Romita's,so it was great to read about people that were so detrimental to the evolution of Spider-Man. The Author also includes some other notable comic legends such as Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. I enjoyed reading all the interesting facts about Spidey and side characters, and appreciate the author for shedding light on the injustices of the industry. However he also includes some information that i felt had no relevance to the story, like details about the Romita's extended family and tended to jump back and forth between topics without proper transition. The ending was pretty abrupt, which was a bit confusing. Overall I would rate this book 2.5 stars.

This is my own fault. For some reason I thought this was a graphic novel. So I will not post a negative or positive review. Just wanted to give feedback this was a mistake.

Thank you to NetGalley and Riverdale Avenue Books for providing me with an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This is a great book if you want to dive into Spider-Man’s background and history. It was cool to learn about the people behind the scenes and get a better understanding of the industry as a whole.

I didn’t know most of this, and I loved seeing how everything developed over time—from the early creative process to the way Spider-Man became a cultural icon.

It wasn’t just about the character, but also the people behind the scenes and how the entire comic industry operated during that time. It was eye-opening to see the conflicts within the industry—like the constant battle over creative control, royalties, and credit for characters.

It really gave me a new appreciation for the character, Spider-Man, and the people who brought him to life.

My thanks to NetGalley and Riverdale Avenue Books for an advance copy of this book that is both a biography on two artists, their family ties to Marvel comics, and a peek behind the mask at an industry that seems to make tragic figures out of everyone who works in it, with a few exceptions.

Parents want the best for their children. So to have a child enter into the same profession as a parent must be a hard thing. Knowing how hard that business can be, the many ups and downs, the aches, the pains the job can have one a body. The many ups and downs of the business, maybe a lot of work one week, a lot less or even none the next. The fear of paychecks getting smaller. The fact that people might judge the child against the father or mother. Even the fact that one has to not only be a parent, but a boss. Some fields might be easier to enter. Comic books is not one of them. Comics, something many learn will break one's heart. The names of people driven from the industry is lengthy. As are the numerous Go fund me accounts. And the arts is fully of people quick to judge, quick to snipe, about nepotism, why people get jobs, why people keep jobs. The name Romita has been a mainstay in comics for a very long time. John Romita Sr, and John Romita Jr have created numerous characters, drawn art that is recognizable not only from comics, but used in movies, cartoons, computer games and more. Comics were a family things, and we as comic book fans are the better for it. Father and Son Issues: The Secret History of Spider-Man tells the story of both of these men, and their work for Marvel comics, along with a look at many changes that the industry has gone through over the decades.

John Romita Sr, was born in Brooklyn, New York with a gift for art, and an ability to find materials all over the neighborhood. Romita Sr. loved comic strips, clipping and studying strips, tracing their lines to find out why things worked, what didn't. Movies were also a training ground, watching how a movie scene was presented, how a person stood, and how to frame action. Upon graduation, Romita bucked his father who wanted him to go into the bakery business and went to Manhattan to the School of Industrial Art, where he made contacts, and learned more about the business of not just art, but production. Romita made an ok living in comics for years, doing ghosting work for other artists, drawing romance comics, and making contacts, one of whom was Stan Lee. Who soon needed an artist for a title, Spider-Man. John Romita Jr, grew up watching his father draw, seeing him work past midnight, work weekends, to complete deadlines. For some reason this drew him to the industry, working on his own art, and not sharing what he did with his father. Romita Sr. held a editorial job at Marvel, along with his wife, and he feared what his son might be getting into. Comics has been known to break many a person. John Romita Jr. was not one of them.

A book that is not only a fascinating look at two men who really changed comics, but a great warts and all look at the whole comic industry. Ryan get write about the artistic side of comics, and in the same paragraph get into the nitty gritty about the ways the business could steal from the artist. I really enjoyed the fact that Ryan looked also at the role of Virginia Romita, and the role women had in the creation of this industry, something that does not get talked about enough. Ryan has done an extraordinary amount of research, and written a book that is very complete, and yet never bogs down. The balance between art, commerce, and family life was really very well balanced. Again this is pretty warts and all, so if one has illusions about many of your favorite creators, well one will be in for a few surprises.

This is probably the best book on comics that I have read in quite awhile. The you are there feeling about artists trying to work on deadline. The fact that these people created such great works, and that few even know anything about them. The bad deals, the friends who left the industry, broken and even worse broke. The family love. There is a lot here, and quite a lot to enjoy. I can't recommend it enough.