10 DC Graphic Novels You Must Read Before You Die

2. DC: The New Frontier

The late Darwyn Cooke was one of the finest creators of our time, and no book proclaims that more loudly than The New Frontier.

As much a homage to DC's Golden and Silver Ages as it is a thematic reappraisal of them, Cooke's magnum opus roots itself squarely in the zeitgeist of the 'long' 1960s, beginning in the McCarthyist milieu of the early fifties and ending with the commencement of JFK's New Frontier speech in 1960. It discusses everything, from the Civil Rights Movement to the Red Scare and of course, the Cold War dynamic itself, and places DC's heroes right at their centre.

The New Frontier is masterful in its presentation and painstaking in its analysis, rooting these classic DC characters in a world the publisher was, at the time at least, reluctant to depict. That's what makes it so special, and while hardcore DC fans will get the most out of Cooke's work, in that it uses everything from Sgt. Rock to Dinosaur Island and more, there's something for everyone, whether they be a student of the sixties, a superhero fan more generally or indeed, a fan of literature in all its forms.

There's also the matter of the fact the book is gorgeous in every sense of the word, with DC having released both an Absolute and Deluxe Edition over the space of the last decade, so you're spoiled for choice if you're looking to pick it up.