The Girl Who Drank the Moon (Winner of the 2017 Newbery Medal)

The Girl Who Drank the Moon is a beautifully written fantasy full of magic, heart, and unforgettable characters. The story is enchanting and imaginative, with emotional depth that appeals to both young readers and adults. I loved the rich world‑building and the way the plot weaves together hope, courage, and kindness a truly magical read!

I read this book in 2021, but it haunts me still almost 5 years on, in all its beautiful imagery and the mystical plot that Kelly Barnhill weaves so magically with her captivating writing. There are genuinely people in this world, who feed off the misery of others. It is these parallels that you can draw from fantasy to reality that make this a standout novel. I loved every word. From the very first chapter and the allegorical writing style, I was amazed at how quickly I sank into the world she created. I still feel that pace of urgency and movement, which is something so powerful and difficult to dramatise in literature. The carrying of “weight” or burden on one’s back or in one’s arms. The heavy duty of love and protecting something vulnerable from harm. The unexpected love as an unforeseen result of humanity and being a moral person. The meeting of all the characters at the climactic end when all is revealed and undone. It’s mesmerising and I cannot urge you enough to read this book. You will be as magnetised towards it as I was and I am about to read it again now as the Thanksgiving Holidays draw nearer. I couldn’t put this down, I completed this book within 48hrs and the delay was only because I had to sleep and take care of my newborn at the time! He is now 5yrs old and I have a second who is 16months. Let’s hope I will have some time to myself to enjoy this book once more and relish the writing again!

I am so embarrassed. A Newbery award winner, in our library collection, and I had not read it until I downloaded the ebook from Amazon on a special for $1.99. Now I know what all the excitement is about. This is an award winner that deserves every plaudit it receives. This is a book that could easily be part of an adult collection, reminding me of T.H. White's "The Once and Future King" and the stories of Philip Pullman or even the Stephen Sondheim play, "Into the Woods." For as we all know, a great fantasy has no age restriction; it is ageless, just as it is timeless. The bare outline of the story is a tale of the yearly offering of the youngest baby of the community known as The Protectorate to the Witch of the Woods. The Council of Elders enforces this sacrifice for the safety of the population, but the reader soon learns it is the Council that has come up with this scheme to keep the people subjugated, In fact the witch each year rescues the abandoned child and finds a home for him or her in the free cities far away. One year, however, instead of placing the baby with a family, she takes the baby to be her own and accidentally suffuses her with moonlight which transforms into powerful magic. She than attempts to protect the child from the power of her magic by creating a spell to keep it hidden til her thirteenth birthday. The whole book is a study of magic in all its forms and purposes, both conscious and unconscious, but more importantly, the book itself is magic. Listen, for example, to this little throw-away paragraph about the unexpected behavior of papers that appeared in a tower room with no explanation: "Apologies," the papers murmured. They scattered and gathered; they swirled into great whirlwinds; they undulated across the room in waves. This paragraph begs to be read aloud like the poetry it is. The whole book is a perfect read-aloud, with wonderful titles at the beginning of each chapter and lovely cliff-hangers at the end. But the story is more than an evening's entertainment. It is a clarion call for open access to knowledge, for as Barnhill writes, "Knowledge is powerful, but it is a terrible power when it is hoarded and hidden." So I have told you of the beauty of the writing and the power of the book's message, but I haven't yet told you what a wonderful story it is with characters that will hold your attention from the first time you meet them til they finally leave the stage. This book has already received so many 5 star reviews, I would be surprised if you have read my offering to this point, but I am writing not so much for you who might read this, but for me to place as a tribute to this author and her perfect story.

What do an old witch, a magical baby and a fearful society all have in common? A thread of magic that connects them all through different perspectives. Kelly Barnhill’s The Girl Who Drank the Moon is a great young adult fantasy novel that demonstrates how magic comes in many different forms and is viewed in many different ways. One of the main characters, Xan, the old witch in the wood, who is mystical as most witches are, is filled with ancient power. She’s always been magic, infused with it centuries ago. Xan is basically a kind old individual trying to use her magic as beneficially as she can. However, the Protectorate doesn’t see her that way. Being the city on the outside of the wood, they have reason to be cautious of the dangers in the forest. Their solution is to sacrifice a baby to the witch every year so she doesn't destroy them. The day of sacrifice is a yearly ceremony to keep the witch in the wood pleased. The Protectorate has fear of magical destruction. However mothers go mad when their children are to be taken away and left in the woods. In fact, sorrow and madness follow any mention of magic In the Protectorate. Something marvelous can come from all of this sorrow and fear, though. Luna, a sacrificed child, is a fount of young beautiful magic. Xan took Luna as she does all babies but was so in awe of Luna’s beauty that Xan accidentally feeds her moonlight instead of starlight. As a result, Luna has a crack of blue and silver magic in her mind, waiting for the floods and waves to come crashing upon her shores to unleash her own magic. When this happens, this child becomes so whimsical that flowers sprout from each of her footsteps. Luna shows readers that you can have magic in you and can use it every day without even knowing about it. You can think magic is one thing but the perspectives of a witch trying her best, a supernatural baby, and a dreadful community show how much variety magic can contain. And they are only part of the creative world in this book. We also meet a madwoman, a scar-faced boy, a swamp monster, and a small dragon. I’d give this novel four out of five stars. I am not a huge fantasy fan but this book drew me into its fantastical world. Perhaps you’ll find yourself like me, getting lost in the world of magic, unable to put it down! Written by Jenna M. 8th grader

I bought this book for my 5-year-old, but ended up getting really engrossed in it. It is a multi-layered story, and at the very surface, it challenges the old notions (that all witches, sorcery and extra-natural abilities are evil and must be destroyed). The characters are simple enough for a child, but the meanings will change for the reader when they get older... there is love, loss, heroism, and upending of the usual myths e.g. monsters are killers. In fact, I think I caught a bit of irony in that the portrayal of the true villain is that of someone who appears to be a member of a religious order. It could easily be said to be a criticism of modern-day religions, especially those that focus on sinfulness and sorrow. It is a thinking book, written for thinkers and would-be thinkers because it challenges the common view of mythological creatures and of institutions that people sometimes revere too much. Pick it up... really worth the read.

Mi hija lee mucho y se ha vuelto un desafío encontrarle libros interesantes y cautivadores para su edad - 10 años. Así que probé con este, basado en todas las reseñas, y me alegra haberlo hecho. ¡Ya va por la mitad y le encanta!

Un bellissimo titolo da prendere alla lettera (ironico il tentativo della traduzione italiana di renderlo più ultraterreno) e poi una storia di perdite e ricongiungimenti, amore filiale e la lotta fra il bene e il male spesso celati sotto false sembianze nel governo della città. "...there surely wasn't a witch. ...The belief in her-made for frightened people" (pagina 12) -è un esempio delle varie occasioni che la scrittrice dà di trovare una chiave di lettura del contemporaneo in questo fantasy per ragazzi. In generale il livello di inglese come seconda lingua è fra B1 e B2 ma col dizionario alla mano: a gnarled tree; a smothered flame; guffaws.

Leí muy buenas reseñas del libro, aunque fue para regalo, la persona a quien se lo di le fascinó, tanto así que su mamá lo leyó y también le encantó.

L'histoire est très originale et sympa !