From the publisher: From the Academy Award-winning actor and best-selling author: a novel about the making of a star-studded, multimillion-dollar superhero action film . . . and the humble comic books that inspired it.
I admit it – I love Tom Hanks as an actor. I enjoy him in every part that he plays. His new novel however started out as a bit of a snooze fest. I had trouble getting into it, as Hanks introduces lots of characters and lots of backstory, meandering off into the past whenever he feels like it. Eventually I got in tune with the book’s rhythm and I really enjoyed it.
This is a master class in the movie business, told by a master and presented as fiction. There are a lot of details, including a lot of little details, about how movies are made. The story moves very slowly. It takes its time. The narrative contains stuff that could have been left out, but all those little interesting bits really made me feel like I was a part of the movie-making process.
I know there’s stuff in here that is true. I know there are things that happen that really happened. I’m sure some of the characters are inspired by people Tom Hanks knows. He’s been around the business so long; what he writes is so plausible. Hanks has a lot of fun not telling us the names of real movies and actors, writing things like NAME OF ACTOR HERE and THAT MOVIE WE MADE. He makes you wonder – who is BOLDFACE NAME #4 who made everyone’s life a living nightmare on NAME OF SUCCESSFUL FILM HERE?!? I want to know!
Once I got into The Making of, I was thoroughly engrossed. I also appreciated that a man’s love for his damaged uncle is important to the plot. The three sets of comic book pages are an eccentric touch.
A final note to authors everywhere: more chapter breaks! Please!
The Galesburg Public Library owns the book in Large Print, regular print, and downloadable audio.