300

300
by Frank Miller, Lynn Varley

300
List Price: $30.00
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions

Buy 300 at Amazon.com
(Click here)
Buy this book at online book store in your country
Canada | UK | Germany | France

Book Summary Information

Author: Frank Miller, Lynn Varley
Edition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 1999-12-15
ISBN: 1569714029
Number of pages: 88
Publisher: Dark Horse
Product features:

Book Reviews of 300

Book Review: Bloody Well Done...
Summary: 4 Stars

300 is similar to Sin City in tone, violence, and characters. If you liked Sin City or enjoy Frank Miller's other work, this does not disappoint.

The book is a relatively quick read, but the artwork will have you stuck viewing page-a-day. At $20, its an inexpensive way to boost your art, comic & literature collections.

Summary of 300

The armies of Persia--a vast horde greater than any the world has ever known--are poised to crush Greece, an island of reason and freedom in a sea of madness and tyranny. Standing between Greece and this tidal wave of destruction are a tiny detachment of but three hundred warriors. Frank Miller`s epic retelling of history`s supreme moment of battlefield valor is finally collected in a glorious hardcover volume in its intended format-- each two-page spread from the original comics is presented as a single undivided page.
An emperor amasses an army of hundreds of thousands, drawn from two continents, to invade a third continent and conquer a tiny, divided nation. Only a few hundred warriors stand against them. Yet the tiny nation is saved. It sounds like the plot of a preposterous fantasy novel. It is historical fact. In 481-480 B.C., King Xerxes of Persia raised forces in Asia and Africa and invaded Greece with an army so huge that it "drank rivers dry." Then they entered the mountain pass of Thermopylae and encountered 300 determined soldiers from Sparta....

Writer-artist Frank Miller and colorist Lynn Varley retell the battle of Thermopylae in the exciting and moving graphic novel 300. They focus on King Leonidas, the young foot soldier Stelios, and the storyteller Dilios to highlight the Spartans' awe-inspiring toughness and valor. Miller and Varley's art is terrific, as always; the combat scenes are especially powerful. And Miller's writing is his best in years. Read it.

Do not, however, read 300 expecting a strictly accurate history. The Phocians did not "scatter," as Miller describes. His Spartans are mildly homophobic, which is goofy in such a gay society. Miller doesn't say how many Greeks remained for the climactic battle--you'd think 300 Spartans and maybe a dozen others, when there were between 700 and 1,100 Greeks. Herodotus's Histories does not identify the traitor Ephialtes as ugly and hunchbacked, or even as Spartan. 300 establishes a believable connection between Ephialtes's affliction and behavior, but his monstrous appearance, King Xerxes's effeminacy, and the Persians' inexplicable pierced-GenX-African looks make for an eyebrow-raising choice of villain imagery. Nonetheless, 300 is a brilliant dramatization.

For the full story of the failed invasion, read Herodotus's Histories or, for a concise, graphic-novel retelling, Larry Gonick's great Cartoon History of the Universe: Volumes 1-7, From the Big Bang to Alexander the Great. For a lighthearted look at post-invasion Athens and a very young Alexander the Great, check out William Messner-Loebs and Sam Kieth's witty and gorgeous graphic novels, Epicurus the Sage Vol. I and Vol. II. --Cynthia Ward

General Books

Book Subjects
Most talked about in Artistic and Stylistic Great Works in Comics
The Authority Vol. 1: Relentless ImageThe Authority Vol. 1: Relentless
by Warren Ellis
Wildstorm; Published: 2000-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.38
Price in other shops: $17.99
The Ultimates, Vol. 1 ImageThe Ultimates, Vol. 1
by Mark Millar
Marvel Comics; Published: 2004-10-27; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $104.00
Marvel 1602 ImageMarvel 1602
by Neil Gaiman
Marvel Comics; Published: 2006-03-08; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.92
Price in other shops: $19.99
The Complete Persepolis ImageThe Complete Persepolis
by Marjane Satrapi
Pantheon; Published: 2007-10-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $11.00
Price in other shops: $24.95
Ghost In The Shell Volume 1 - 2nd Edition (v. 1) ImageMasamune Shirow - Ghost In The Shell Volume 1 - 2nd Edition (v. 1)
by Masamune Shirow
Dark Horse; Published: 2004-12-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $48.99
New X-Men, Vol. 1 ImageNew X-Men, Vol. 1
by Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely
Marvel Comics; Published: 2008-06-11; Paperback; Book
Best price: $17.17
Price in other shops: $34.99
Batman: Hush, Vol. 2 ImageBatman: Hush, Vol. 2
by Jeph Loeb, Jim Lee
DC Comics; Published: 2004-11-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.25
Price in other shops: $12.99
Batman: Hush, Vol. 1 ImageBatman: Hush, Vol. 1
by Jeph Loeb, Jim Lee
DC Comics; Published: 2004-08-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $23.00
Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began ImageMaus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began
by Art Spiegelman
Pantheon; Published: 1992-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.89
Price in other shops: $14.95
Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History ImageMaus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
by Art Spiegelman
Pantheon; Published: 1986-08-12; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.98
Price in other shops: $14.95
Similar Books and other products
Batman: The Killing Joke ImageBrian Bolland - Batman: The Killing Joke
by Alan Moore, Brian Bolland
DC Comics; Published: 2008-03-19; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $8.95
Price in other shops: $17.99
From Hell ImageFrom Hell
by Alan Moore
Top Shelf Production; Published: 2000-02-23; Paperback; Book
Best price: $23.10
Price in other shops: $35.00
300: The Art of the Film Image300: The Art of the Film
by Tara DiLullo
Dark Horse Books; Published: 2007-01-11; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $5.96
Price in other shops: $24.95
Frank Miller's Complete Sin City Library ImageFrank Miller - Frank Miller's Complete Sin City Library
by Frank Miller
Dark Horse; Published: 2005-08-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $78.75
Price in other shops: $125.00
Batman: Year One ImageBatman: Year One
by Frank Miller
DC Comics; Published: 2007-01-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.44
Price in other shops: $14.99
The Hard Goodbye (Sin City, Book 1: Second Edition) ImageFrank Miller - The Hard Goodbye (Sin City, Book 1: Second Edition)
by Frank Miller
Dark Horse; Published: 2005-02-23; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.00
Price in other shops: $17.00
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns ImageBatman: The Dark Knight Returns
by Frank Miller
DC Comics; Published: 1997-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.10
Price in other shops: $14.99
Ronin ImageRonin
by Frank Miller
DC Comics; Published: 1995-03-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $11.00
Price in other shops: $19.99
Watchmen ImageWatchmen
by Alan Moore
DC Comics; Published: 1995-04-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $11.00
Price in other shops: $19.99
V for Vendetta ImageV for Vendetta
by Alan Moore
Vertigo; Published: 2008-10-24; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.96
Price in other shops: $19.99
Book store. Illustrated catalog of books on different categories