I first encountered this book in my hometown library, when I was a kid. I don't know what prompted me to check out the grown up books, but I do know I was delighted to find comics in the library. (This was the seventies, mind you.) (The nineteen-seventies, you smart alec.) I read it from cover to cover, again and again. Sometimes I'd also check out the companion volume, Superman From the 30s to the 70s, but Batman was the tome I preferred. Time passed and the book eventually vanished from the library shelves. I was buying my own comics then--usually heroes other than Batman--so I wasn't heartbroken. But the book always had a spot in my heart.

Anyway, now it's almost 40 years later and I see this book in the antique and book collections room at the Library Sale. I wrestled with my conscience for a minute or two, but I knew I'd regret not snatching it up when I had the chance. So what is this treasure I acquired? Merely a hard-bound collection of reprinted Batman stories from the 30s to the... well, you know. (As it was first published in 1971, most of the 70s stories are actually from the late 60s.) (But hey, the comics in the stores are always dated a couple of months ahead. Maybe comics publishers are calendarly challenged.) They offer the first appearance of Robin, the Joker, the Riddler, Batgirl (both Batgirls, actually) and,of course, Batman himself. Most of the stories are in black and white, but a couple are in full color. In these days of trade paperback reprints, a collection of comics may not seem so special. But back in the day, this book was a real treasure. It still is.
--J. ( )