After the Golden Age

Vaughn doesn't try to weigh the genre down with too much realism. Commerce City is another not-so-cleverly disguised New York (like Metropolis and Gotham), and the potential scientific explanations for the characters' powers are mentioned but not dwelt on (freeing this novel from plodding exposition or cryptic technobabble). The superhero device is accepted rather than deconstructed, and while there are wider sociopolitical ideas touched on, Vaughn makes sure they buoy the plot along rather than weigh it down into deeper waters than the subject matter could handle.

Instead of being a manifesto, this book functions as a character study with a sturdy plot exploring an eminently relateable question: when and how do you truly grow up? Yes, the question of this novel is not what makes a hero, but what makes a person. Celia's journey to maturity may be rougher due to her parents' overwhelming public personas, but she also faces very normal struggles: a dad with high expectations and poor communication skills, a mother whose love comes across a bit strong at awkward moments, a family friend who still thinks of her as a kid even after graduating from college.

The topic is explored humorously and lovingly, with light sprinklings of romance and action for seasoning and a healthy amount of suspense and soul-searching for good measure. One of my greatest reliefs was that Vaughn didn't feel the need to demonize some characters to make others look better; instead, she allowed characters to stand (or fail) on their own merits. Also, she managed to capably write fully realized villains without making them sympathetic: evil and destruction are never glorified in this book, and even a single act of indiscretion is shown to sometimes have consequences far beyond what we might imagine. Finally, there's the belief in this book that we never truly stop learning or growing up, and a reminder to not take family and friends for granted.

One word of warning for younger or more conservative readers: After the Golden Age is an apt description of the story, meaning this is a modern book with characters who may not conform to traditional rules of conduct in terms of language and sexual behavior. For the most part the book has nothing worse than a typical prime time TV show, but there's enough that I felt readers should be warned.

Overall, I highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy fun plots, engaging characters, and rich quirky prose.