The Friendly Neighborhood of Peter Parker: Free for a Limited Time

[mabfan]

Two years ago, Smart Pop Books published Webslinger: SF and Comic Writers on Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man edited by Gerry Conway, and I was pleased to have an essay in the book. I grew up in Forest Hills, the same neighborhood of Spider-Man's secret identity, Peter Parker, and as a result I always took a greater interest in the character than I might have otherwise. It didn't hurt that I, like many others, identified with Peter and the difficulties he faced in his regular life. So when I had the chance to contribute to the book, I plumbed my own personal life and wrote an essay about the real Forest Hills, as opposed to the one in the Marvel universe. I explored what Peter's life might have been like had he grown up in the neighborhood of my childhood, noting the actual stores, schools, and sites he would have woven into his background.

Smart Pop Books is promoting their line by running whole essays from their books, and for this week only my essay is available. So if you never picked up the book, but would like to see what I said about Spider-Man (and about my own childhood, come to think of it), check it out here:

"The Friendly Neighborhood of Peter Parker"