I was shocked when I heard of Dave Stevens passing. You think that some people will always be around, but it never seems to work that way. When I received the book BRUSH WITH PASSION it felt really melancholy to be leafing through his lifes work. Reading about his experiences and his ups and downs in the industry was a real eye opener. I used to think "Where the heck is that next issue of the ROCKETEER?" Now I know what goes on.
Despite all this, Dave comes across as genuinely nice bloke. What also stands out is Dave had a lot of good friends. Oh by the way the book is brilliant, nice reproductions.....very classy, just like Dave.

This is a great book. I love Dave Stevens, he was the greatest talent. Not just for his comic art,but all his art, which this book represents. There is a contribution of just about everything he ever did. I can't believe that he by his own admission, experienced torment to get his work on paper. Every page every picture displays his fantastic talent. Nearly 300 pages of background stories of his life, family pictures and interviews. This book is a collectors item. Get it whilst you can.

I was fortunate to meet, know and talk with Dave over the years while he was alive. I consider him a friend even though I wasn't as close to him as Bill Stout, Steranko, Michael Kaluta and others. This book is a great tribute to a great artist and friend. I enjoyed this book although I always get sad reading and looking through this book because I remember him at the comic book conventions being so alive and friendly to the people that were there, including me. I have nothing but fond memories of him as he lives on with this beautiful, tribute book.
He was one of the greatest comic book artists in the mold of Kirby, Steranko and Frazetta even though he really didn't do too much comic book work. To see his art represented in this book is such a fine gathering. His brush work was
second to none. Nobody could draw girls like he could. It was nice that they were working on this book while he was alive as we get to know Dave,his family and friends personally(from his personal notes) and read about his struggles and triumphs in the industry. While he is best known for creating the Rocketeer, he was much more as this book attests. I didn't know he worked on Raiders Of The Lost Ark or with Michael Jackson over the years. He was such a humble person and never bragged about himself. Even with his Leukemia, he was humble with the pain he was dealing with. Dave's book covers his life with such love and respect.
This book is a lasting legacy and anyone that knew him or was a fan of his art or art in general, will not be disappointed in this book. 5 stars all the way!

What inevitably impresses about this lusciously produced keepsake autobiography of the late artist Dave Stevens is his unending struggle to achieve the level of excellence he long felt was beyond his reach. Never mind that he was an established, highly skilled professional with credits in comics, animation, film, and illustration--Stevens wanted to be more. In his forties, after being diagnosed with the illness that would ultimately take his life, he undertook a disciplined and grueling exploration of oil painting. He had been intimidated by oils, and approached this new phase of his career with no little apprehension. (The simultaneous, unpleasant regimen to treat his illness seemed to intimidate him far less.) After false starts and maddening dead ends, he at last succeeded in pleasing himself. In a book that's very honest about the disappointments and frustrations that await highly driven artists, Stevens's breakthrough-in-oils is a thrilling triumph. His fear of repeating himself and becoming artistically inert (something that probably was never likely at all) was banished in a beautiful moment of revelation. Naturally, I love the book's generous selection of timeless Stevens pinups, his Rocketeer pages, seldom-seen commissioned pieces (he used a brush as if it were an organic extension of his hand), and warm reminiscences of friends, but it's the account of his successful battle with oil paint that best reveals Stevens's elevated ambition, his perseverance, and his courage. This is a lovely book about a man of beautiful spirit.

I was lucky enough to meet and talk with Dave on a few different occasions and he left quite an impression on me. This book, (and I recommend the Deluxe edition for the 16 extra pages of art) is really just another extension of his character. It's Dave in his own words for better or worse yet unabashedly revealing. The big score for this book are the reproductions of his work collected in one tome. There's a lot of great art here and yet, one can't help but wish for more. He seemingly produced so little, that to have it all would really help us understand this meticulous craftsman even better. His work was a mirror of his character, honest, true, and heartfelt...with just a touch of devilishness.

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