Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Under the Moon: A Catwoman Tale
by Lauren Myracle, Isaac Goodhart (Illustrator)

Synopsis (via Goodreads): 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?

From Lauren Myracle, the New York Times best-selling author of books like ttfn and ttyl, comes the story of a teenage Catwoman, as she struggles to find her own identity while living on the streets of Gotham.

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I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

I'm not familiar with Catwoman's origin story, so I'm not sure how this one compares, but Myracle's version was dark. Selina's mother dates abusive men, although date might not be the right word. They cycle through Selina's life, all of them assholes, until one stays longer than the rest. He might be worse than the others combined, yet Selina's mother defends him and doesn't do anything to protect her daughter.

I hate parents like this. If you want to let someone abuse you, that's horrible, but you should never let someone verbally or physically assault your child. Selina is only fourteen, but she was forced to grow up a long time ago. She had to in order to survive. Despite her living situation, she's not a different person at school. She has "friends" that we see for a page or two, but she was able to dismiss them without much thought. She barely communicated with them, and their roles were basically nonexistent.

I really dislike it when animal cruelty is used to further a character's story. They are completely innocent, and often used against their will for things they don't understand. Selina finds a cat, a cat she's probably not supposed to have since she keeps it a secret, but her newfound happiness is quickly discovered and removed. Her mother could have saved them both, but she allows her abuser to lock her daughter away and endanger the cat. Eventually, her mom lets her out of the closet, but only in time to watch her beloved friend die horribly. Why didn't her mom save the kitten first? It would have been a simple thing to do, and her daughter wasn't in immediate danger. She shouldn't have allowed either thing to happen, but she was shitty parent.

Then there's everything that happened with Bruce Wayne and Ojo. It was hard to remember Selina was fourteen based on what she was doing with her life, but then she would do something completely childish to remind me. Bruce offered his home to her, and she never even considered what that would mean for her future -- a place to stay, food, friendship. Instead, she's sleeping on the streets and "showering" in fancy stores (also stealing clothes to avoid the issue of doing laundry). She steals and lies to survive, but it could have been avoided.

Ojo was a random guy she met on the streets, but he promised to teach her how to parkour. Eventually, he confides in her and we meet Yang and Briar Rose. It all seemed to happen really fast, and there were too many variables that didn't make sense. When Selina didn't show up for school (we're talking weeks, maybe a month), her parents would have been notified, or the police called. That likely would have led to an investigation, if she was labeled a missing person, or someone discovered the abusive nature of her home. Selina wouldn't have been able to waltz back into her school without consequences, and Bruce wouldn't have been so nonchalant about her disappearance. His concern seemed to be genuine, and they were friends once, so his behavior felt uncharacteristic.

Everything that happened with Rosie (previously Briar Rose) was weird. How the author chose to leave things was also weird. Selina, someone that's been trusting her instincts from the start, knew there was something fishy, but chooses to ignore it because a nine-year-old knows how to make her own decisions. The "home" had fliers inviting lost children to stay... c'mon, that's unsettling. I doubt it's legal, safe, or anything other than shady.

Honestly, I'm feeling pretty blah about this one. I enjoyed Myracle's Shine a few years ago, which is why her name was familiar, and I've always been curious about Catwoman, but a lot of things rubbed me the wrong way. There was no resolution with her mother, the abusive Neanderthal, the school, Ojo or Yang, and her treatment of Bruce was cold. He only wanted to help her, and Rosie when he had the chance, but Selina wanted nothing and no one. That's her prerogative, I guess, but I don't feel like there were many positives to take away from this story.

18 comments:

  1. I have never really seen a beginnings Catwoman story so while this sounds like it had potential I'm not sure it's the right one for me.

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    1. I read more Marvel than DC (also Image, IDW, and Boom! Studios). There was recently a Batman and TMNT crossover, which was interesting. I love it when random comics are combined! Catwoman is one I'm familiar with, even though I know who she is, but I have enjoyed this author previously. I've noticed a lot of YA authors are transitioning into graphic novels and comics.

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  2. I'm not sure this would be for me either. Animal cruelty is really hard to stomach. Wonderful honest review!

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    1. There's a different between an animal dying in a book, and an animal being killed. People that hurt animals... it's just not something I want to read about. I know it was probably a turning point in Catwoman's life, but there had to be an alternative.

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  3. Her recent books have not been my favorites and animal cruelty is one thing I try to avoid reading about.

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    1. I've been curious about The Infinite Moment of US. Have you read that one? If so, what did you think? I try to avoid books with animal cruelty, and wish they came with a warning.

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  4. I think most people feel meh about this story. I kind of understand why she didn't take Bruce's offer to stay in her home though. I think she rather be in control given her lack of control in her own home and especially with men. I still want to read it since I never get the chance to read a Catwoman book. I'm also curious since it has such mixed reviews. I might end up hating it but it doesn't kill the curiosity in me. Very thorough review, thank you!

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    1. I feel like she could have maintained control of her life and accepted Bruce's help. Why was his help less welcome than Ojo's? They both offered her friendship, a place to stay, food. She's also known Bruce for years, and they used to be good friends. He didn't want anything from her, didn't expect her to help with heists, but genuinely wanted to help. She could have stayed in one of his many guest rooms, and still maintained her independence. Really, I think they would both have benefited from having her there.

      I'm happy you're still curious and want to read it! It was meh for me, but there were aspects that I liked. You'll have to pop back over and let me know what you think after you read it! :)

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  5. I got an email to get a pfd of this book to review a while back, but I don't do pdfs, so I declined. I had no clue it was a graphic novel (comic?). I'm glad I didn't read it because animal abuse images take a long time for me to shake off. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. ๐Ÿ‘✨

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    1. I didn't realize it was going to be a PDF! They're so hard to read! I think I've found an app that makes them tolerable, but I'd rather avoid them if I can.

      I really dislike books with animal sacrifices, neglect, death, etc. Like you said, it sticks with you. I also feel like those things can be avoided in books. Yes, I know things like that happen every day, but I don't want to read about it. :(

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  6. I was really curious about this one but am marking it off the list now because of the animal abuse. Sometimes I can deal with it but that doesn't seem to be the case in this one. Thanks for sharing your review.

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    1. It could have been avoided. Her mother could have helped the cat before letting he daughter out of the locked closet, but she opened the door just in time for Selina to witness its death. Even though it was the Neanderthal that physically abused Selina, her mother is equally responsible for not saying anything. She actually has the nerve to tell Selina SHE'S the one making things more difficult. It was terrible.

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  7. Ugh, I hate animal cruelty. Well, I'm bummed. I was so curious about this one. I might try it from the library some day or something since it's a graphic novel and I can read those a lot quicker. LOL

    -Lauren
    www.shootingstarsmag.net

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    1. It was such a bummer! I know she needs an origin story, but did a cat literally have to die so she could become Catwoman? I feel like there were other options... Maybe you'll like it!

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  8. I love your little iconic pictures at the bottom of your reviews. They are simple and succinct, yet immediately accessible.

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    1. Thank you! If you want to use them, there's a tab at the top (Book Blogger Icon Tags). I made them, but they're free for anyone to use. I'm happy to share. :)

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  9. Sucks that this one was so blah. I saw it on Netgalley and thought it looked like a good one. :/

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    1. I was super bummed about this one! I really wanted to like it, but it just didn't work for me. :(

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