A lovely origin story for a fantastic new superhero that Gotham needs. Whistle really shows that as long as you have the will to do good, you can do it. It's gritty and so well-fleshed out. Here's hoping there's much more from this adaptation.

I received an advanced copy of Whistle: A New Gotham City Hero through Netgalley so I could share my review with you!

Willow Zimmerman wants to change her world, even though she’s only sixteen years old. She has seen the ways that people in her community are suffering, and she knows that she could help if she works hard enough. For the time being, she does what she can, helping her mother through cancer treatment and working at the local animal shelter. But, when Willow is offered the chance to earn enough money to really make a difference in the world, she can hardly refuse. Nothing comes without a price, though, and Willow will have to weigh her morality with the good that she could do with her earnings.

You can get your copy of Whistle: A New Gotham City Hero now from DC Comics!

I am always excited to read about new characters interacting with already existing superheroes and villains, so I was naturally quite excited to read Whistle. I thought that this book skillfully addressed a lot of difficult topics (including gentrification, corruption, and moral dilemmas) in a relatively short space, which was quite impressive. Despite this heavy content, Whistle did not sacrifice its character development or sense of story. When introducing completely new characters into an existing world, it can be difficult to create a full sense of character, yet Willow felt extremely real to me. I felt her spunk and fighting spirit in every page, making this book a five-star read for me! I am excited to see where Willow goes next

My Recommendation-
If you would rather read about Gotham’s villains than its heroes, you should definitely pick up a copy of Whistle: A New Gotham City Hero! I would especially recommend this book to fans of Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass, or the Gotham High Series!

I really enjoyed Willow, the dogs, and the setting of a neighborhood in Gotham. I'd definitely like to read more stories about Whistle and the Hound.

Whistle: A New Gotham City Hero is a graphic novel from DC Comics written by E. Lockhart, illustrated by Manuel Preitano, colored by Gabby Metzler, and lettered by ALW’s Troy Peteri. Willow is a passionate teenager who loves her city, Gotham, and particularly its historically Jewish neighborhood. She also loves her mother, who has been going through tough cancer treatments keeping her out of work and forcing Willow to take more and more shifts at the local dog shelter to makes ends meet. Everything changes for Willow, though, when she reconnects with her mom’s old friend, E. Nigma.

Willow is the most visibly, obviously, and wholeheartedly Jewish superhero I have ever seen. It’s incredible. She’s got the hallmark frizzy brown hair, loves babka, and her dog is named Leibowitz after Fran, sure. And from the look of her neighborhood itself to the old Jewish delis that fill it, the landscape is as Jewish as can be. But so is her worldview and life. Willow has a whole conversation with her mother about mitzvot, Jewish commandments. She explains at one point that while her mother is observant, she never has been, yet still finds solace and affinity in her neighborhood’s old synagogue anyway. It’s all reflective of a very real and common Millenial/Gen Z Jewish experience and is easily the strongest reflection of myself and my peers in comics. She particularly reminds me of the growing movement of young folks reviving 20th Century Jewish socialist/activist traditions.

I am also obsessed with this book because of Whistle’s true superpower: guilt. Without getting too far into spoiler territory details, Willow and Leibowitz eventually gain very fun powers that essentially give them a bit of each other: Willow gains superhearing, and Leibowitz can talk to Willow. This leads to all sorts of antics and heroics protecting Gotham’s Down River neighborhood from supervillains and too-radical activists alike.

But she’s still a kid. Her strength or speed aren’t enhanced; she can’t take down ner do wells in a fight. So her real weapon of choice? Guilt. It’s often a Jewish stereotype that mothers, in particular, use guilt as their sharpest tool to keep their kids acting just right. But here, it’s Whistle’s way of doing good without doing harm. She guilts her enemies into being better without having to beat them to a pulp.

Beyond that kvelling, though, Whistle just has great characters and a great plot. It takes place outside of the DC canon, so it has the liberty to reimagine some classic Gotham villains to fit its own unique needs, and every single character, old and new, is full of personality. I love the frequent subtle references to other DC properties, from the Black Canary performance to the casual Green Lantern t-shirt. I also enjoy the typical YA romance that follows a predictable but comfortably satisfying arc.

On the art side, there’s a bit of a classic feel to the style. It’s drawn and colored in a way reminiscent of the Silver Age but with sharper detail. I love how many different sets of clothes the characters are drawn in, especially Willow. However, it was a bit uncomfortable how some adults tried to use those clothes to sexualize this teenager. Nonetheless, the coloring uses simple earth tone backgrounds so that clothes and the frequent use of green can stand out starkly against it. The lettering includes a slightly stylized font that befits the Silver Age feeling of the whole comic.

Whistle is not only a great graphic novel; it’s also a great Jewish representation. Between the Jewishness of the character and her community and how she weaponizes a sometimes trite, sometimes actually traumatizing stereotype, it’s the best represented I think I’ve felt in a comic ever. Moreover, it has a great artistic style and creatively weaves old and new characters into its own unique Gotham City story. While not canon, I really hope Whistle/Willow will get to appear in future DC stories.

Willow is trying to help her mom (who has cancer) and save Gotham by protesting what she can. When her mom desperately needs money, she takes a job. The job interferes with her friends and school but brings her lots of money. Then she is attacked and she all of a sudden has powers.
Opinion
I am a big E. Lockhart fan. I normally do not read comics. I did like this one and the graphics were excellent. Venturing over into comics from regular novels, I was left without a lot of details that I personally like However, I think this book was done well. The details in the pictures were excellent and the flow of the story was good as well. I think that this book will interest a lot of children who like superhero stories.
Many thanks to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Whistle: A New Gotham City Hero is the latest graphic novel in DC Comics’ YA graphic novel line. As the title states, it features a new hero in Gotham, 16-year-old Willow Zimmerman. She spends her time advocating for her community and caring for stray dog Lebowitz, but little does she know how drastically her, and her dog’s, lives are about to change!

Since Willow is an original character, you need no prior knowledge to pick up and read the book. Yes, it features some familiar names and places, but a completely new to DC Comics reader would not be at all lost in reading it. But at the same time it is fun for people familiar with DC Comics and Gotham City to see another part of it, a story outside of Batman and his family of vigilantes.

Whistle is a story of being a teen in today’s world. In a city that may have some supernatural and over-the-top villains but contain many of the same problems that we see in the real world. It questions a lot of gray areas when situations become desperate. It’s a story that truly makes you think. There are not really any warnings for this book other than considering some of the ethics of the decisions that Willow must make.

Overall, I really enjoyed Whistle: A New Gotham City Hero. I was excited to read about a new superhero in one of my favorite fictional series. I could easily see Willow being a permanent part of the Gotham City hero roster and I’m hoping to see her story explored more either in subsequent YA graphic novels, or even in the monthly periodicals, perhaps even fighting alongside Batman someday.

My full review can be found here: https://thegeekiary.com/learning-to-be-a-superhero-whistle-a-new-gotham-city-hero-graphic-novel-review/100377

Dr. Emily Lockhart, AKA YA writer extraordinaire has joined forces with Manuel Preitano to create a whole new kind of superhero in Gotham City. Sure, the reasons for why our hero, activist and animal lover Willow Zimmerman, gets her powers are a bit hand wavey, but isn’t that the way of most heroes? Oh yeah, there was a thing and something spilled, or bit me, or rubbed against my ankle or I fell into a vat and, viola, I have powers.

The why of the powers is not really important here as much as what she is willing to do with them once she has them. Faced with all the things a normal 16-year-old faces, I think Willow handles herself pretty well. I appreciate the deep look at Jewish culture as well. We all know that there are plenty of Jewish characters (Bruce, Kate, Tim…the Bat Family alone could fill a Synagogue) in the DCU, but it is always touched upon, but not explored.

Preitano’s art style brings a lot of charm and warmth. Gotham is, for the most part, a dump. On that, we can all agree. However, Preitano makes the whole place seem like a place I wouldn’t totally hate. That is a big ask a most books set in Gotham act as warning flags.

If you are looking for an easy way into Gotham City for a younger reader, this is the book. If you are an old, wisened veteran of Gotham City, this is a breath of fresh air.

Thanks to Net Galley and DC Comics for the ARC

This a really enjoyable read that I think my middle school students would love! The storytelling is perfect, bringing in social justice themes and other important themes for teens. I could not put this book down and read it within a day!

There is a lot to enjoy about Whistle, mainly the characters, the dialogue and the artwork. I enjoyed Willow as a protagonist; I thought her struggle to provide for her ill mother was engaging and made her very sympathetic. The characters had natural dialogue that flowed and helped move the story along. And the artwork was gorgeous. I loved the high contrast look, the grungy inkwork.

Okay, so I loved all of that....but I didn't care for much else. While Willow's main conflict makes sense, her transition from unsuspecting lackey to superhero happened so quickly. Nearly half the book happens before she even gets superpowers, and then she resolves one of her conflicts fairly easily while the rest of the book appears to be unresolved. This tale begs for a sequel, which is strange for these standalone YA graphic novels, most of which have open endings that could have a sequel but aren't necessary.

Overall, I would recommend this to my teen readers, but this isn't the strongest title in DC's YA graphic novels collection.

DC Comics is absolutely crushing it with YA titles lately!! After reading both Raven and Beast Boy, and of course falling in love with other titles from e. lockhart, I was BEYOND excited to read this graphic novel, which I blazed through in about a day. The storytelling is perfect, bringing in social justice themes without it being absolutely over the top. One of the main themes explored in this graphic novel is guilt and lying- when is it okay to lie if it means helping those you love? The story is told masterfully in shades of grey- there is no black and white answer. The illustrations are gorgeous, and the color pallet really gives a different side to Gotham City. There was no mention to any other heroes that make Gotham home, which surprised me a little, so where we are in the 'timeline' of Gotham City, I'm not sure.

Wow this was a book! Because I am not familiar with DC comics I know their are connections I missed (goodreads indicated a connection to poison Ivy and the riddler). I was taken by a story of activism and while it feels like the beginning of a characters storyline, with things not resolved, it feels meaningful to have this character. A Jewish teenager who is fighting to advocate for the rights of everyone, especially those who don’t have access to the basic needs in life. This is a DC hero I could get behind!

DC Graphic Novels are really having a moment and I am here for it. I've read nearly all of the ones they've released for middle grade and young adult in the past couple of years and I'm glad they're also writing about less mainstream characters. In Whistle, a teenager gets dragged into Gotham's criminal circles because she needs money for her mom's cancer treatment. Once she has a run-in with Killer Croc and realizes exactly what her boss has planned for her beloved neighborhood, she uses her new canine superpowers to fight back and try to save Down River. I love seeing how classic characters such as Poison Ivy and the Riddler get a new spin, but I wish the book were longer so we could've seen more of their adventures in their villainous roles. I was intrigued by the Killer Croc subplot, especially because he doesn't get much play in Gotham, but he was gone nearly as soon as he appeared. I enjoyed the book overall, but I wish it maybe had one or two more parts to it so it could slow down and take its time with the plot.

I could not read this-it wouldn't download. But anything she writes is always golden. Any book about Gotham will be great!

Instead of being something original, this felt like layering older comic characters into a new one, and trying to add powers, a hopeful boyfriend, a life of trouble in Gotham city, etc etc. It all starts with character, but this one, for me, didn't really shine all that bright.

Whistle may actually be my favorite of DC’s YA line just far. E. Lockhart ads a new an deeply human element to Gotham city that doesn’t feel out of place and doesn’t simply try to map Batman tropes onto an unrelated story as many books in the line have done. This was a joy to read and I sincerely hope there will be more to come.

Originally I was unable to read Whistle because my phone was too small to get the details. But after downloading it to my Chromebook I was finally able to read it.

Whistle: A New Gotham Hero is about 16 year old Willow. She spends her time protesting, volunteering, and caring for her sick mother. E. Nigma offers to help, but after being attacked by Killer Croc she now understands her dog. Now she has a decision to make, stay loyal to the man who helped her mother or save her community.

Whistle is everything you want in an origin story; it is super sweet, a little sad, and silly. I really want more of this character. The book is a little slow in the beginning, but I really enjoyed it.

Creative Team:
Writer: E. Lockhart
Illustrator: Manuel Preitano
Colors: Gabby Metzler
Letters: ALW's Troy Peteri

4 stars

A Jewish teenager and activist in a rundown Gotham neighborhood get a new job that pays well but is a corrupting influence. She gets dog superpowers because she and a dog both got scratched by the same person. (yeah, it's a dumb origin.) This book had potential. My problem with it is there's no arc or climax. It's just like a year in the life of this girl. Nothing gets resolved. The bad guys don't get caught. She hasn't saved her neighborhood. She's still working a shady job. It's like the story ended halfway through. The art and coloring are fine, but muted and average.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the opportunity to read an arc version of this book!

For myself, this book was just fine, but I have a feeling my students will love Willow and Lebowitz. Willow Zimmerman is a hard-working high schooler who is forced to step it up when her Mom must quit her job as the chemotherapy treatments are taking her energy away. Willow starts off by working at an animal shelter (great for animal lovers, no pets die in this book), but finds a greater financial opportunity working for her mom's friend, E. Nigma. Of course, things are not quite what they seem.

The coloring and art make the reveal a bit obvious, but I think students will still enjoy the storyline and art. Recommend for the classroom, but I do wish Willow was a bit more of an activist/this was a greater part of her life.

So cute! In the early days of Gotham villainy, when Poison Ivy and The Riddler and Killer Croc are just getting started, there's a Jewish teenager who wants to do her best...while her mom's fighting cancer and they're struggling with bills. Enter E. Nigma, her mother's old friend Eddie, long ago removed from their life due to his toxic behavior. But he can offer Willow access to opportunities that come with payouts she can use for her family's health and stability. But at what cost?

Every one of these new DC younger-crowd spins has been good. Not sure why Garfield Logan is the love interest or why queer icon Poison Ivy has the Rogue untouchability sads, but as long as Gar is/will be Beast Boy and Poison Ivy figures a way around her issues, I guess those are just places to go in the future? At least with Gar, you've got potential plot stuff built in. With Ivy, it feels like a definite step backward, and not just in her timeline.

When I started this book I wasn't sure what to think. The art style reminded me of older comic book art style which I'm not a huge fan of but it was fine. Willow, the main character is passionate about her community. Her mom has cancer and she feels a sense of responsibility to help out her household. In order to do this she takes a sketchy job with E. Nigma, aka The Riddler. One night Willow and her adopted street dog are attacked by Killer Croc and they are now connected. Willow takes this opportunity to help her community. We learn a lot about Willow in this book but the plot itself falls a little flat. It's fun but not too exciting.