Name: Under the Moon
Rating: 3.75 (12 reviews)
ISBN: 9781401285913

Lauren Myracle

When living with her mother's abusive boyfriend becomes unbearable, fifteen-year-old Selina Kyle, the future Catwoman, runs away and struggles to find her own identity while living on the streets of Gotham.

A Catwoman Tale

Under the Moon

Sarah Sammis

Under The Moon: A Catwoman Tale by Lauren Myracle and Isaac Goodhart is another of the DC YA graphic novels. This one is an origin story for Catwoman. It includes depictions of child abuse, domestic abuse, animal cruelty, animal death, and homelessness.

http://pussreboots.com/blog/2019/comm...

Ken Yuen

Content warning for domestic abuse, suicide, and animal cruelty.

Hmmm, I'm honestly not sure how to feel about this one. It just feels like a bunch of stuff happens to her and she has very little power to do anything about it. It's pretty frustrating, to be honest, since you're expecting Catwoman to be a very competent character with a lot of agency, but it just feels like she's unsuccessful in everything she tries to do.

More thoughts:
(view spoiler)[
-I could have done without Bruce and Selina being childhood friends. It feels distracting to Selina's story and ultimately feels kind of pointless in the end. You'd think there'd be some fun interactions between the two, but it mostly amounts to 
Bruce "Let me help you." 
Selina "No, I don't want help"

There's no real retribution for her stepdad who kills her cat, no final resolution with her mother.

The kid she was taking care of just goes hang out with her brother ( if this is an option, why didn't they both get adopted initially) who are hinted to be in the hands of a suspicious agency, but nothing comes of this.

The side plot with the killer is stopped in the background by Bruce, not Selina.

Selina says she has friends in Ojo and Yang, but that relationship feels abandoned as soon as their role in the story stops being relevant. 
 (hide spoiler)]
Hate that she calls herself Catgirl instead of Catwoman. 

Loved the art, but I just didn't dig the story. It ultimately is just a story about a teen girl who's beaten down by circumstance and she learns parkour and cats just mysteriously are attracted to her because she's Catwoman. Unfortunately, the story leans too heavily on readers recognizing her as Catwoman instead of developing her as her own character.

At the end of the book are resources for domestic abuse, suicide prevention, and stopping animal cruelty, which is much appreciated. I don't feel comfortable commenting on the use of these subjects in the story, so I'll just say they're present.

Edit: I forgot the best part. Supergirl is a TV show in this universe. Whaaaaat?!

When fifteen-year-old Selina Kyle, aka the future Catwoman, becomes homeless, she must confront questions of who she is and who she will become. She rejects human cruelty, but sometimes it seems as though brute force is the only way to "win." And if Selina is to survive on the streets, she must be tough. Can she find her humanity and reconcile toughness with her desire for community ... and love? From Lauren Myracle, the New York Times best-selling author of books like ttfn and ttyl, comes a new graphic novel that tells the story of a teenage Catwoman, as she struggles to find her own identity while living on the streets of Gotham.

Under the Moon: A Catwoman Tale

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received a copy from Netgalley then bought my own copy. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book Series: Standalone?

Rating: 5/5

Publication Date: May 7, 2019

Genre: Comic Book/Graphic Novel

Recommended Age: 15+ (TW for Animal Death and Violence and physical abuse; language)

Publisher: DC INK

Pages: 219

Amazon Link

Synopsis: When fourteen-year-old Selina Kyle, aka the future Catwoman, becomes homeless, she must confront questions of who she is and who she will become.

She rejects human cruelty, but sometimes it seems as though brute force is the only way to "win." And if Selina is to survive on the streets, she must be tough. Can she find her humanity and reconcile toughness with her desire for community ... and love?

Review: Oh my god guys this book was amazing! I loved the artwork and I loved the story. It was the perfect origin story for Catwoman and it wasn’t hard to sympathize with her at all. I really felt for Selina and I loved to see her develop. The character development was very amazing and I loved seeing it animated! The plot is also great, the story is written well, and the world building is fantastic.

However, I do wish that the relationship between Selene and Bruce was more developed as it wasn’t enough of a shock factor. Other than that, that’s my ONLY complaint! I’d read more books in this series by this author!

Verdict: Amazing. I definitely recommend.

Under the Moon A Catwoman Tale

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