WJHC: On the Air!

    (Wilson Place, 2003)
™ and © Wilson Place Comics Inc.

Why aren’t there more books like WJHC: On the Air on the stands? This book is one of the finest entries into the young readers’ market in quite a while.

This is the story of a high-school radio station, from its inception through its realization. The kids who run it are an eclectic bunch, in terms of personalities, interests, and ethnic backgrounds.

Janey, the star, is the typical girl next door. Ciel, her fashionable best friend, is Asian-American. Janey’s rival is wealthy Tara O’Toole. The DJ is a skating beatnik, the engineer is African-American, and Janey’s suitor is Latino. With strong female leads and a good racial mix, this book celebrates diversity without being “in your face” PC about it.

One might question the wisdom of making Roland, the sole black protagonist, something of a klutz, but most of the characters have foibles. He is such a likable character and he is handled with such obvious affection by the creators that it never appears racist or disparaging.

The characters have as much personality as that other gang, the one from Riverdale, but these kids are not involved in romantic head games. They are called high-schoolers, but they look more like junior-high students.

Tara is the only character who seems a little derivative (of Veronica). While she is the most unlikable of the cast, it’s a relative scale. While shallow, perhaps, even she is not really a bad person.

— Jack Abramowitz
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Cover Price: $11.95
1 copy available for $11.95 		Jane Smith FisherKristen Petersen, Phil Avelli, Adam Dekraker