Looking for a good History of Comics book
 

Can anyone recommend a good one?

Looking for something that feels like it was written by a very intelligent fanboy. Something that talks about the different incarnations of the characters, creations, character history, important chapters in the character's life.

Any suggestions?

Les Daniels has written good histories of Marvel and DC. Also, check out "All in Color for a Dime."

DK Publishing's "Ultimate Guides" series isn't too bad if you are just trying to get your feet wet with core comic characters. They have editions for Superman, Batman, Justice League, Spider-Man and X-Men. Most of them can be found for under 15 bucks too.

Here are some acknowledged "classics" of the genre, some are hard to find but fleabay is a good source...

"The Comic Book Heroes" by Jacobs and Jones, excellent survey of superheroes and Marvel and DC up 'til the 1980s or so
"All In Color For A Dime" by Lupoff and Thompson -- this is from 1970 but is an awesome look at the "Golden Age" of comics from the 1930s and 1940s
"The Great Comic Book Heroes" by Jules Feiffer, classic survey of the heroes of the Golden Age.
"Slings & Arrows Comic Guide," this is a HUGE thousand-page book from England that is like the Overstreet guides in scope but not concerned with prices at all, it's all about the comics themselves, great critiques and pretty much every major series from the 60s on up you can imagine. It's a little hard to find but worth the price, I never get tired of looking at this puppy and I understand a new edition (mine's from 1996 or so) is about to come out. A great survey of the medium.

Avoid like a plague Marvel's overpriced and absurdly unhelpful "Encyclopedia" series, I flipped through one in a bookstore and it was the worst piece of self-promotional crap I've ever read.

Did anyone read Les Daniels' : DC: A Celebration of the World's Favorite Comic Book Heroes?

An attractive cover. But can't judge a book that way...

Daniels similarly titled DC: A History of the Worlds' Favorite Comic Book Heroes has been criticized as being a bit too self-promotional....like the Marvel Encylopedias.

The Les Daniel's Celebration and History DC books are actually the same, Celebration has 16 new pages added and the new Alex Ross cover.

Think the cover is great.

What's your take on the tone and quality of the writing. Is it a puff piece or an interesting, legit exploration on the character's histories/origins?

Any book recommendations on a SOCIETAL OVERVIEW of comics.