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Posted on Sep 07, 2008 - 12:27 AM by Admin |
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He’s a best-selling author and always a big name draw in Comicdom. Now, Brad Meltzer has combined the worlds of his novel fiction and his love for superheroes to bring you the brand new novel “The Book of Lies.” Just as this novel hits the shelves, Meltzer has stopped by to spill the truth about “The Book of Lies” with The Comic Fanatic.Com! Read on for a chat with Brad Meltzer!
The Comic Fanatic.Com: Brad, thanks for taking the time to talk to The Comic Fanatic.Com. I'm a huge fan of your work - novels and comics - so this is a great honor.
Brad Meltzer: Please - thank YOU!
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TCF: Let's talk about your new book that has just been released…a book that promises to tie the world's first villain - Cain of Cain and Abel fame - to the world's greatest superhero. Tell us about "The Book of Lies."
Brad Meltzer: Every writer has a story they've been waiting their whole life to tell. This is mine. We are a country founded on our own legends and myths, and in this election year, where everyone is pushing hope, what's crazy to me is that we still don't know which of these myths are real. Cain is known as one of the world's worst villains, but maybe he's not the bad guy in the story. And why did the world get Superman? Because a little boy named Jerry Siegel heard his father was murdered and, in grief, created a bulletproof man. These stories - about Cain and Abel, about Superman - are not just folklore. They're stories about us. Our heroes and villains tell us who we are. And sometimes we need to find the truth, even if it means revealing our own vulnerabilities. So those are some…uh…big…characters.
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TCF: It's a true testament to a writer's ability when that writer can make the reader examine the author's work, in a way to see if the writer is "telling it like it is." I'm a Christian and "The Book of Lies" sent me all the way back to the book of Genesis to examine the “Mark of Cain” and the cause of Abel's death. Is there more to Cain that what we have believed over the years?
Brad Meltzer: Research isn't magic. It's just legwork. It's the same with Cain. According to most modern Bibles, Cain thinks God's punishment is too much - “My punishment is greater than I can bear” is what the text says, which is why Cain is seen as such a remorseless monster. But when you go back to the original text-like in the geniza fragments from Cairo - that same passage can just as easily be translated as “My sin is too great to forgive.” See the difference there? In this version, Cain feels so awful…so sorry…for what he's done to poor Abel, he tells God he should never be forgiven. That's a pretty different view of Cain. Of course, most religions prefer the vicious-Cain. A little threat of evil is always the far better way to fill the seats. But sometimes the monsters aren't who we think they are.
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TCF: Is it true that not only is the cause of Abel's death unknown, but so is the cause of Jerry Siegel's father's death?
Brad Meltzer: The cause is known for Jerry Siegel's father. But the men who committed the crime are unknown, so it's unsolved. In the book, you'll see my theory.
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TCF: Is it true you were able to actually talk with Siegel's family concerning Mitchell and Jerry Siegel?
Brad Meltzer: His daughter said to me, "Of all the books written about my Dad, you're the only one who's actually spoken to us." Unreal. It was better than talking to Presidents.
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TCF: After talking to the Siegels and writing "The Book of Lies" do you have an opinion of what really happened to Mitchell Siegel?
Brad Meltzer: I do. But do I really look stupid enough to ruin the book?
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TCF: Fair enough…"The Book of Lies" is without a doubt one of the best novels I have ever read, and as mentioned earlier, it reads like a Hollywood blockbuster. Any chance of seeing "The Book of Lies" on the big screen someday?
Brad Meltzer: Nope. It's not for sale. This one, I'm keeping for myself.
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TCF: Brad, best of luck with “The Book of Lies” and everything else in the future, and thanks for taking the time to talk to The Comic Fanatic.Com!
Brad Meltzer: Thank YOU!
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Huge thanks go out to Brad Meltzer for taking the time to do this interview, and big thanks go out to Carolyn Deming for setting it all up! For more information about “The Book of Lies” and all things Brad Meltzer, visit Brad Meltzer.Com.
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