Review – Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin (5/5 stars)
Reading Level: Middle Grade
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 288 pages
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: July 1, 2009
ISBN-13: 978-0415495257
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: Bought
Rating: 5/5 stars
“In the valley of Fruitless mountain, a young girl named Minli lives in a ramshackle hut with her parents. In the evenings, her father regales her with old folktales of the Jade Dragon and the Old Man on the Moon, who knows the answers to all of life’s questions. Inspired by these stories, Minli sets off on an extraordinary journey to find the Old Man on the Moon to ask him how she can change her family’s fortune. She encounters an assorted cast of characters and magical creatures along the way, including a dragon who accompanies her on her quest for the ultimate answer.”
My son got this book in an Owlcrate Jr but didn’t have an interest in it, so he gave it to me. I ended up really loving this book, it is a wonderful blend of fantasy and folklore and has a very fairy tale feel to it with heavy Asian influence.
Minli decides to leave her desolate home and poor family to seek out the Old Man on the Moon and ask how to change her family’s fortune. She ends up being accompanied on her journey by a dragon and meets a number of fascinating magical creatures on the way.
On her journey Minli hears a variety of folklore and fairy tales (stories within the main story) that help to guide her on her quest. The whole book is beautifully illustrated in full color and was very well put together.
I loved the fairy tale feel to this book and enjoyed the Asian influence as well. The characters are interesting and intriguing and the writing style is beautiful and easy to read. I really loved everything about this book.
Overall this was an incredibly well done book. It’s written in a somewhat classic fairy tale style but has heavy Asian influence. The writing and the illustrations throughout are both very beautiful. After finishing this I immediately went and put some of Lin’s other books on my wishlist. I would recommend to all ages, but particularly kids and adults who enjoy fairy tales and adventure.
This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– Goodreads Reading Challenge
– Mount TBR Reading Challenge
