I’m going to restart Smallville this week. I never finished it when it was airing and writing about them guarantees that I have to watch them all and explore the whole series.

And since Superman has always been a hero of mine, I’ve also been scouring for a good Superman novel. Dawnbreaker is that.

Giving another spin on young Clark Kent, just beginning to discover who he is, who he will be, and his dedication to a better tomorrow, this novel reads enjoyably and easily.

Clark, and his best friend, Lana Lang, find themselves caught up in a dangerous adventure. There is an underlying growth of racism spreading across Smallville (a microcosm of modern-day America), and a number of the non-white residents of the town and surrounding areas have gone missing.

While Clark deals with burgeoning powers, a possible romance, and a shaky friendship (?) with Lex Luthor, things are happening around town.

Clark learns his parents have been keeping secrets from him, about who he is. He has to wrestle with who he is, and wants to be, and he’s going to learn a lot about himself.

de la Pena keeps the story rolling along, and it is highly enjoyable. I know this is but a single entry in the DC Icons Young Adult novels, but it was the only one I was really interested in. Now that I’ve read this one, I may dig into some of the others.

I really like the idea of a young Clark Kent discovering who he is. Yes, this story has been told a few times, but this version updates the tale nicely, and sets it against a lot of very familiar political turmoil.

Clark wants to believe in the best of people, that’s why he also portrays the best of what we can be. He reflects the humanity we can and should be back at us.

I like Clark a lot in this story. Having said that, some of the story seems a little rushed, it could have been lengthened and developed a little more. Have things happen over the course of months… getting Clark into the familiar blue suit happens a little too quickly.

The reader knows it has to happen eventually, but in this novel, it’s the only aspect of the story that doesn’t work as well as it could have. It’s fun, though, so don’t let that dissuade you from reading it.

Having said that, maybe that is the strongest endorsement there is to check out some of the other DC Icon stories.