Wonder Woman: Tempest Tossed by Laurie Halse Anderson, Leila del Duca
Published by DC Comics on June 2, 2020
ISBN: 1401286453
Pages: 208
Genres: Fantasy
Format: Graphic Novel
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This Wonder Woman origin story starts as most do, with Diana coming of age in Themyscira, the protected and hidden home of the Amazons.  In this installment, Diana is just turning 16 and struggling with puberty, which the Amazons think makes her a changeling and not just a teenager.  She’s not as strong or graceful as the other Amazons, but she more than makes up for it with her strength of character.  That empathy is what leads to her becoming  trapped outside the Themyscira protective bubble.  She ends up in a Greek refugee camp and then moving on to the U.S.A where she moves in with a family and gets to know the horrors of life outside her island.  The book features issues of human trafficking, refugees, environmentalism, homelessness and poverty.  While those are surely noble issues to discuss, it’s a bit much to have them all in one graphic novel.  Particularly as some of them are wrapped up as being the work of the same man.  The message ends up being muddled.  The realistic  art starts off with shades of green and orange and moves to blues and browns with the change of location.  Back matter includes resources for human trafficking and the Naturalization Oath of Allegiance to the United States of America.  Recommended for grades 8+

Reviewed by Kara Reiman, Maine State Library