Writer & Artist: Ariela Kristantina
Colorist: Sarah Stern
Letterer: Bernardo Brice
Designer: Kassandra Starkell
Editor: Will Dennis
Publishers: Comixology & Dark Horse Books
Kindle Release Date: September 23, 2025
Kindle Price: Free with an Amazon Prime membership
Paperback Price: $17.99
Paperback Release Date: March 31, 2026
Like a pier jutting over the water, Wangi's town perches on stilts. When the whales arrive each year, the girl abandons her hammock and dives into the sea. The whales swim around this cluster of homes that represents Wangi's world. Yet each whale dwarfs this small enclave of Humanity.
Despite the village elder's fears, the whales regard their Human neighbors peacefully. Maaha, the pod's leader, even lets Wangi fingerpaint on him. As Wangi adorns Maaha with art, the girl speaks with Maaha, and the pod leader responds. What stories about life do Maaha and Wangi share? And how will Wangi's love for whales affect her future? Let’s grab our art supplies, leap into The Girl Who Draws On Whales GN, and see!
Story
The village elder reads the tides and the sky. She has safeguarded her community for decades. But while everyone else sees happiness, the elder worries that the whales will bring trouble to her people. After the whales depart, she breathes easier for a while. But when Maaha returns without the pod, its injuries bode ill. As Wangi directs the villagers to tend Maaha's wounds, the elder’s fears grow.
In The Girl Who Draws On Whales GN, the elder cannot repress Wangi’s compassion. Nor can she quench the girl’s curiosity. As Wangi tends Maaha's wounds, she discovers that not all the art on its body has come from her hand. So, when Maaha departs, Wangi climbs into a boat to find her.
Ariela Kristantina's story introduces a cast of colorful characters. Like the elder, Wangi's younger brother Banyu urges restraint. But Wangi is up for anything and eager to explore her world. When she meets Citra and his people, some are less friendly than others. But like her, the young mapmaker has the heart of an explorer.
As Wangi travels, she meets more people like herself, learns about the history of her world, and beholds wonders she never imagined. Sadly, Wangi also discovers that the village elder’s concerns were warranted. The Girl Who Draws On Whales GN is a story of Human greed and the desire to destroy what you cannot control. Yet the book also celebrates love, family, adventure, and the beauty of nature.
Art
Bridges and piers link the islands upon which Wangi’s people have built their homes. Wangi braids her red hair in front. The rest tumbles around her, as uncontrollable as the ocean waves. While other islanders strain to remain in their boats when Maaha rises like a mountain, Wangi perches atop the whale and waves to them. Mythological creatures frolic on the page as Wangi draws on Maaha's hide. The children of the village swim beneath the waves to behold the illustrated whale in The Girl Who Draws On Whales GN.
Sarah Stern loads her brush with a soft and inviting palette of colors as she paints Ariela Kristantina’s charming illustrations. Bubbles rise through the turquoise waters as Wangi paints the gray whale with red, yellow, and blue. Citra's green hair evokes Peter Pan as he sits at his desk surrounded by books, charts, and a globe. His purple shirt links with the sky above him, while his maroon chair resonates with the wooden trim of his elegant ship. As green plants adorn Wangi's wood and reed home, metal spikes rise from the captain's jacket as he gazes at the pink clouds floating through a peach sky.
Bernardo Brice fills white dialogue balloons with black uppercase letters and lowercase letters in dark yellow paper scraps. As Wangi lies on the injured whale, Maaha speaks white uppercase letters into a black rectangle. While Humans splash in the water, knock on their neighbor's door, and activate alarms, the sea creatures' telepathic communication appears as white uppercase letters surrounded by black. Thanks to Comixology, Dark Horse Books, and Superfan Promotions for providing a review copy.
Final Thoughts
Citra is a young mapmaker. He owes everything to the man who raised him. The boy narrates this tale about Wangi’s adventure in his own inimitable style. Yet whether Wangi can trust this stranger who also draws on whales is anything but certain in The Girl Who Draws On Whales GN.
Rating 9.4/10
