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zoiejanelle's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
had no idea this middle grade fantasy book would have me weeping at 1am over my mommy trauma and my relationship with grief/death but here i am, covered in tears and snot!
anyway, the newberry award was well-deserved. this book is extremely complex and layered, but perfectly appropriate in plot and style for its intended audience.
i loved the multi-POV, the different perspectives and details that the reader experienced through the larger cast of characters. i loved the overarching themes—which seemed heavy for a MG book, but were handled with care—such as broken families, generational trauma, motherhood, loss, grief, death, identity, adoption, indoctrination, forgiveness, and love.
i somehow came away from this book with a more secure understanding of death and loss, as well as an appreciation for the complexities of parenthood and the trauma that comes with it for both the parent and the child. i did not expect this book to fall so firmly into the “mommy issues” category for me, but damn, it did.
the only flaw was that this was not an “unputdownable” book for me as the reviews suggest. it was definitely a page turner, but only after i got about 60% of the way through it. the beginning was interesting and caught my attention, but i was able to put it down and pick it back up without distress.
this was a perfect example of the MG genre, and i plan to give this book as a gift to all my young reader buddies.
anyway, the newberry award was well-deserved. this book is extremely complex and layered, but perfectly appropriate in plot and style for its intended audience.
i loved the multi-POV, the different perspectives and details that the reader experienced through the larger cast of characters. i loved the overarching themes—which seemed heavy for a MG book, but were handled with care—such as broken families, generational trauma, motherhood, loss, grief, death, identity, adoption, indoctrination, forgiveness, and love.
i somehow came away from this book with a more secure understanding of death and loss, as well as an appreciation for the complexities of parenthood and the trauma that comes with it for both the parent and the child. i did not expect this book to fall so firmly into the “mommy issues” category for me, but damn, it did.
the only flaw was that this was not an “unputdownable” book for me as the reviews suggest. it was definitely a page turner, but only after i got about 60% of the way through it. the beginning was interesting and caught my attention, but i was able to put it down and pick it back up without distress.
this was a perfect example of the MG genre, and i plan to give this book as a gift to all my young reader buddies.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Death, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment
micaelamariem's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Around my birthday a couple months ago, I went to a used bookstore and picked up a few gems, including this one, which seemed perfect to read around Halloween.
The Girl Who Drank the Moonby Kelly Barnhill is a middle grade fantasy novel about a town that sacrifices a baby each year to the witch in the woods under the belief that she would curse them elsewise. The witch doesn't know why the town is abandoning their babies, but she tries to save them and give them each a loved home. Until one day, she accidentally enmagiks a baby by feeding her moonlight and decides to raise her as her own. Over the novel there are secrets that lead to the discovery of why the town must sacrifice babies and how the story began. The novel actually won a Newberry award!
The author, Kelly Barnhill, is a teacher turned author who loves promoting the arts for children.
I really enjoyed this story for a middle grade novel. There were a few themes that really struck out to me: the danger of sorrow vs hope, the fragility of memory, as well as some motifs of paper and birds and magic.
The worldbuilding of the novel is great, showing a vast landscape for readers to escape into, complete with its own laws and myths and origin stories.
The writing style was a little confusing and a lot whimsical. Half the time I wasn't quite sure what was going on but I enjoyed the ride, reminding me kind of like the show I just watched called Over the Garden Wall.
I loved the characters as well, each one combatting their own fears and sorrows. My favorite character was the Simply Enormous dragon Fyrian who was always childlike and naive, but had blocked out his own trauma which perhaps kept him this way.
Perhaps the main idea of the book is the hope and sacrifices we make for whom we love can combat sorrow. The witch and the girl formed a tightly-bound relationship like a mother and daughter and held hope for each other. The swamp monster and the dragon seemed to also care about each other. The boy from the town found his own love and hope, ready to change the world, as did the madwoman.
I would highly recommend this book to middle grade readers who like whimsical quirky things with deep messages and meanings or who like to make their own inferences in stories.
Overall, this was a four star read for me!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Violence, Grief, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment
bookishfoxes's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
The last few months I have been struggling with reading, it kept giving me headaches or pain in my eyes. Most books I started I was unable to finish because I just couldn't read and eventually lost interest or hope. I managed to read a graphic novel and 2 very short books the last few months, but that was about it. Then this book came (along with a new pair of glasses to try) and I ~finally~ was able to finish it!
This book was an easy and quick read - if I had my pre-2022 reading abilities, I would've devoured this book in 2 or less days. The chapters were a perfect mix of medium or short, the occasional longer chapter didn't feel too long. It was easy to follow the switches between POVs, even if there was still some mystery around some characters.
The plot was interesting. When I read the summary, I knew I wanted to read this book. It did not disappoint.
However, at some point not getting answers to the dozen questions I had got a bit annoying. The whole time you're aware you don't know the full story, and I know that's on purpose because the characters suffer from magical amnesia, but it gets frustrating. Even by the end it still feels like there are questions unanswered.
Speaking of the end, it felt kind of rushed to me. The whole book is slow to medium paced, and then the last few pages are suddenly very fast. It didn't really give the ending the story deserved. It was over too fast.
I would still recommend this book. While it didn't become an all time favorite like I had expected, I still had fun reading it. I'll still cherish this book, think back to it with a smile.
My rating: 3.75☆
This book was an easy and quick read - if I had my pre-2022 reading abilities, I would've devoured this book in 2 or less days. The chapters were a perfect mix of medium or short, the occasional longer chapter didn't feel too long. It was easy to follow the switches between POVs, even if there was still some mystery around some characters.
The plot was interesting. When I read the summary, I knew I wanted to read this book. It did not disappoint.
However, at some point not getting answers to the dozen questions I had got a bit annoying. The whole time you're aware you don't know the full story, and I know that's on purpose because the characters suffer from magical amnesia, but it gets frustrating. Even by the end it still feels like there are questions unanswered.
Speaking of the end, it felt kind of rushed to me. The whole book is slow to medium paced, and then the last few pages are suddenly very fast. It didn't really give the ending the story deserved. It was over too fast.
I would still recommend this book. While it didn't become an all time favorite like I had expected, I still had fun reading it. I'll still cherish this book, think back to it with a smile.
My rating: 3.75☆
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting
Minor: Animal death and Child death
cookiecat73's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting and Abandonment
Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Terminal illness, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal cruelty, Murder, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
penofpossibilities's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Moderate: Grief, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Ableism, Death, Genocide, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Fire/Fire injury
toofondofbooks_'s review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
The Girl Who Drank the Moon is a middle grade fantasy about a witch who rescues babies who are left for dead in a sacrificial ritual every year. One year, she accidentally feeds one of the babies moonlight and enmagicks her. She decides to keep the child as her own and protect her from her mistake. Of course, it's a little more involved than that, but I'm so bad at summarizing which is why I rarely do it, oops.
Anyway though, this book was surprisingly dark for a middle grade read, which I kind of loved. The writing is really great and the characters are loveable. Fyrian, the dragon, was such a delightful character and I love him with my whole heart. Additionally, I just thought that the whole story had a certain charm and whimsy about it that I haven't encountered in a long time. I think this book has a lot to say about the power of hope, family ties both biological and found, and coming of age. There were some parts that dragged for me and I don't think it needed to be as long as it is, but in general, I really enjoyed my time with it.
Anyway though, this book was surprisingly dark for a middle grade read, which I kind of loved. The writing is really great and the characters are loveable. Fyrian, the dragon, was such a delightful character and I love him with my whole heart. Additionally, I just thought that the whole story had a certain charm and whimsy about it that I haven't encountered in a long time. I think this book has a lot to say about the power of hope, family ties both biological and found, and coming of age. There were some parts that dragged for me and I don't think it needed to be as long as it is, but in general, I really enjoyed my time with it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Death, Mental illness, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death, Death of parent, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
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