This book is a fascinating part of Black Americana. It is the first comic book to be published by an African-American. Orrin C. Evans had been a reporter for the Philadelphia Record. He was the first black writer to work for a mainstream white newspaper. His articles on segregation in the Armed Forces were read into the Congressional record. Many historians feel they helped to end the practice. When the Record closed due to labor problems, Evans had to find work. He had always enjoyed comics; the Katzenjammer Kids and Li’l Abner were particular favorites. There was one thing that struck him about comics though; there were no black characters who acted as heroes. He decided to publish a comic that would advance the cause of blacks in a positive light. Working in partnership with some friends who worked at the Record, he put together a book that was completely written and drawn by African-Americans. The content of the book runs from straight detective (Ace Harlem) to children’s fantasy (pixies named Dew Dillies). The highlight of the book is the art work of John Terrill, who in a different time might have emerged as one of the industry’s greats. The 2004 Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide lists this book as rare. The book has some restoration that includes a moderate amount of color touch on the cover and tape along the spine of every wrap. The pages are listed as brittle. This copy is CGC-certified 1.5 (FR/GD). CGC lists the restoration as apparent and slight amateur. The restoration on this comic is as follows: moderate amount of color touch on cover, tape along the spine of every wrap. There are no records of the print run and distribution outside of Philadelphia is hard to document. Due to problems with distribution, there was never a second issue of the title. Gerber rated this book as “very rare”. It is generally believed that there are no more than around ten copies in existence.