The Girl Who Drank the Moon

The Girl Who Drank the Moon
by Kelly Barnhill

Grades 5 & up

Fantasy

Iron Hearted Violet
The Mostly True Story of Jack

Book Summary:
The people of the Protectorate sacrifice a newborn baby every year, leaving it for the witch on the edge of town, hoping it will keep them safe. But the woman who picks up the babies, Xan, is not evil - she simply collects the babies and cares for them. Luna is one of these babies, and when Xan accidentally gives her moonlight instead of starlight, Luna grows up with magical powers that are expanding with dangerous potential.

In the meantime, a young man named Antain is struggling to find his place in the Protectorate, disliking the politics of his family and preferring to make things with his hands. Can kindness and ambition work together in the same person?

Book Review:
I love this book. There are characters who experience love and pain, and even though you have nothing else in common with them, you know them through your own experiences with love and pain.

This is a rather strange book, and it's unexpectedly funny. The story rotates to multiple settings and sets of characters, most of whom are unusual. This story is set in a fantasy past, but it also carries dystopian elements. It is a bit dark and complex, and not every reader will want to travel that journey. However, if readers welcome what is quirky and embrace what is odd, they will find rewards in these characters: in their imperfections and persistence and devotion. They will also recognize themselves and their dreams.

""Xan followed Luna from place to place, undoing spell after spell. The wings were removed from the goats. The eggs were untransformed from muffins. The treehouse stopped floating." (p. 65)