"Before Superman soared through the skies, there was Hugo Danner.
In Gladiator, Philip Wylie introduces one of the earliest and most influential superhuman heroes in modern fiction. Born from a radical scientific experiment, Hugo Danner possesses extraordinary strength, speed, and invulnerability — powers far beyond those of ordinary men. But in a world unprepared for someone like him, Hugo’s greatest struggle is not against villains, but against isolation, fear, and the burden of being different.
Set against the backdrop of early 20th-century America, this groundbreaking novel explores the moral and emotional cost of power. As Hugo searches for meaning, love, and purpose, he must decide whether his abilities are a gift to uplift humanity — or a curse that forever separates him from it.
Both an action-driven adventure and a deeply human story, Gladiator is a thought-provoking classic that helped shape the superhero mythos as we know it today. Experience the novel that inspired generations of comic book legends — and discover the original superman."
"Hugo Danner—a man with strength unparalleled. A man to physically rival any human, any beast, any machine, and maybe even the gods themselves. But will the world accept his existence?
Hugo didn’t ask for this gift that his father, brilliant biologist Abednego Danner, bestowed upon him; a “gift” that promises a life of greatness. From being a baby that can launch himself from a second-story window unscathed, a boy that can leap canyons and hurl boulders, a football star that can beat an opposing team single-handed, a man capable of crushing an entire enemy platoon with his bare hands; surely such a person could steer the entire world to their whims.
But, does the world hold any post for a man of such strength? What good is immortal muscle when your own humanity, and the world itself, want to hold you back? Are there imperturbable forces that could stop a man who is capable of moving mountains from realizing his destiny?
First published in 1930, Philip Wylie’s Gladiator precedes Jerry Siegel and Joe Schuster’s Superman by eight years and is part of a foundation of incredible stories featuring individuals with powers beyond human limits. Fans of superheroes will be astounded by this early rendition of very modern tales."
"A parable from the 1950s that is just as relevant today.It's the 1950s. After a nuclear blast in the mid-Pacific, a Thoreau-reading American Air Force General makes an unexpected and troubling discovery: In a flowery field on a tiny island in the middle of a vast ocean, is an angel— its beautiful face frozen in a death mask and its huge wings wrapped around an inert body. As the general ponders this mystery, the Soviets discover their own angel after a similar nuclear test in Siberia. Are these twin phenomena a ploy in the ongoing hostilities between two international powers? Or has divine intervention pointed the way toward a new political era?
Out of the confusion and dismay provoked by the discovery of these ethereal messengers comes a message both simple and profound. Originally published in 1955, this enchanting, sometimes chilling novella tackles a question that has plagued humankind since civilization began: How can we live together in peace?"
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