The Sidekick Comes of Age

How Young Adult Literature is Shifting the Sidekick Paradigm

Stephen M. Zimmerly

Literary sidekicks like Dr. Watson and Robin the Boy Wonder have not been the singular subject of a significant critical study—until now. Using young adult literature (YA) to study the sidekick reveals new and exciting ways to understand these kinds of characters and this kind of literature. YA has embraced the sidekick, recognizing the way the character reflects the importance of growth and finding one’s place in the world. The nature of many YA texts allows sidekicks to grow beyond literary or historical origins. This includes letting sidekicks “evolve” over the course of multiple texts, using parallel novels to add complexity to a sidekick’s characterization, and telling a story from the sidekick’s perspective, paradoxically making the sidekick the hero. A singularly focused and prolonged study helps to establish sidekick scholarship as a burgeoning field in and of itself.

Lexington Books

Pages: 180 • Trim: 6⅜ x 9

978-1-4985-8679-5 • Hardback • April 2019 • $111.00 • (£85.00)

978-1-4985-8681-8 • Paperback • April 2023 • $39.99 • (£30.00)

978-1-4985-8680-1 • eBook • April 2019 • $38.00 • (£30.00)

Series: Children and Youth in Popular Culture

Subjects: Literary Criticism / Children's & Young Adult Literature, Literary Criticism / Modern / General, Literary Criticism / Subjects & Themes / General

The Sidekick Comes of Age

How Young Adult Literature is Shifting the Sidekick Paradigm

Hardback

Paperback

eBook

Summary

Literary sidekicks like Dr. Watson and Robin the Boy Wonder have not been the singular subject of a significant critical study—until now. Using young adult literature (YA) to study the sidekick reveals new and exciting ways to understand these kinds of characters and this kind of literature. YA has embraced the sidekick, recognizing the way the character reflects the importance of growth and finding one’s place in the world. The nature of many YA texts allows sidekicks to grow beyond literary or historical origins. This includes letting sidekicks “evolve” over the course of multiple texts, using parallel novels to add complexity to a sidekick’s characterization, and telling a story from the sidekick’s perspective, paradoxically making the sidekick the hero. A singularly focused and prolonged study helps to establish sidekick scholarship as a burgeoning field in and of itself.

Details

Lexington Books

Pages: 180 • Trim: 6⅜ x 9

978-1-4985-8679-5 • Hardback • April 2019 • $111.00 • (£85.00)

978-1-4985-8681-8 • Paperback • April 2023 • $39.99 • (£30.00)

978-1-4985-8680-1 • eBook • April 2019 • $38.00 • (£30.00)

Series: Children and Youth in Popular Culture

Subjects: Literary Criticism / Children's & Young Adult Literature, Literary Criticism / Modern / General, Literary Criticism / Subjects & Themes / General

Author

Stephen M. Zimmerly is assistant professor of English at the University of Indianapolis.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction: Using Young Adult Literature to Study Sidekicks

Chapter One: Four Classic Sidekick Roles: Exploring Sidekicks as Narrative Gateways, Devil’s Advocates, Comic Relief, and Foils

Chapter Two: Family Ties: An Investigation into the Potential Familial Relationships between Heroes and Sidekicks

Chapter Three: The Secondary Hero: Neville Longbottom and Tenar as Sidekicks-Turned-Heroes

Chapter Four: The Sidekick Sequel: Reinventing Sidekicks through Parallel Novels

Chapter Five: The Self-Aware Sidekick: Studying Sidekicks in First-Person Sidekick Superhero Stories

Conclusion

Bibliography

About the Author

Reviews

Zimmerly's book is a fun, informative, and accessible work that shows deep knowledge of and appreciation for a wealth of young adult literature. The book has a solid grounding in theory and an engaging style, making it a text that academics and YA readers can both enjoy. Zimmerly has provided a strong foundation for sidekick studies, showing the depth, creativity, and flexibility of the sidekick role, while also pointing the way towards further avenues of research. This is a great contribution to literary studies!
— Kristen Geaman, University of Toledo

The Sidekick Comes of Age offers deep insight into the cultural significance and narrative power that sidekicks possess in literature. Not only does Dr. Zimmerly recognize the importance of historically popular sidekicks, he provides analysis of new and exciting sidekicks in literature who will become standards for future readers. This book is not only excellent for use in a literary survey course on Young Adult literature of popular culture, it is an accessible text for any reader who is passionate about heroes and coming of age narratives.
— Alex Romagnoli, Monmouth University

The Sidekick Comes of Age challenges readers to rethink their preconceptions of sidekicks, their purposes, and their functions.

— Children's Literature Association Quarterly