The products will feature many of the highly popular Marvel characters, including Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four, The Incredible Hulk, The X-Men and Iron Man, as well as other popular Marvel characters, such as Captain America, and the pre-school property Spider-Man & Friends. The initial offerings in the new children's book products will be released next spring.

Doug Guendel, vice president, Meredith Books states, "This agreement reflects our continued strategic goal of expanding our publishing business into the children's book marketplace, especially in the licensed character arena. We can't think of a better property in this area than the great Marvel characters."

Tim Rothwell, president, Worldwide Consumer Products Group, Marvel Enterprises, added, "Meredith Books is one of the pre-eminent brands in the publishing industry and has become one of the most aggressive and creative players in the children's arena. Their creativity, coupled with their retailer clout, make them perfect to help expand the presence of the Marvel Universe among young kids."

The agreement builds upon the existing relationship between Meredith and Marvel. "We are extremely excited to expand our relationship with Marvel and believe that we are uniquely positioned to create children's products that reflect the passion and fun of these well-known Marvel characters," says Todd Davis, executive director, New Business Development for Meredith Books.

Meredith Books is a division of Meredith Corporation, one of the nation's leading media and marketing companies. With more 300 books in print, Meredith Books turns great brands into great books. Brands such as TLC®, The Home Depot®, Disney®, the Food Network(SM), and Better Homes and Garden®, and products such as Trading Spaces(TM), American Chopper(TM), Miracle Gro®, Monster Garage(TM) and Spider-Man trust Meredith Books to produce bestsellers that capture the essence of their brands.

Marvel Enterprises, Inc. is a leading global character-based entertainment company that has developed and owns a library of more than 4,700 characters, which have entertained generations around the world for over 60 years. Marvel's operations are focused in entertainment and consumer product licensing and comic book publishing. Marvel Studios supports the development of feature films, DVD/video products and TV series. Marvel's creative team also supports the creation of video games and toy lines based on its characters as well as for a broad and growing range of consumer products and services including apparel, collectibles, foods and promotions. Marvel's comic book division is a leading publisher in the global marketplace while also serving as an invaluable source of intellectual property. Marvel's Toy Biz division is a recognized creative force and leader in toy design, sales and marketing, developing and overseeing both licensee and in-house toy lines. For additional information visit http://www.marvel.com .

Marvel, Spider-Man, The X-Men, The Fantastic Four, The Incredible Hulk, Captain America, Iron Man, Spider-Man & Friends and the distinctive likenesses thereof are trademarks of Marvel Characters, Inc., and are used with permission. http://www.marvel.com.

Super Hero(es) is a co-owned registered trademarks.