James Rourke has been a high school teacher of history, psychology, and philosophy for twenty-eight years. His commitment to these three disciplines guides his writing . "The Comic Book Curriculum" is praised for revealing "how major superheroes and their stories raise some of the deepest and most important ethical and psychological questions we all need to ask and answer." This aspect of storytelling, the quest to tell stories that entertain, challenge, and uplift the reader, inspires James in his fiction as well.