“Knowledge is power, but it is a terrible power when it is hoarded and hidden.”
- Title: The Girl Who Drank the Moon
- Author: Kelly Barnhill
- Genre: MG Fantasy
- Pages: 388 pages
- Publication date: August 9, 2016
I won this book for free on Twitter, but I can’t remember when or how it all went down. All I know is that for once I won a book raffle. Took me years but I got one.
The Girl Who Drank the Moon feels like a Disney fairytale. It all begins and ends with Luna, a child taken from her mother and left in the woods as an offering for the witch. But the witch is not as evil as the town believes. Instead, she comes to take the abandoned child to a new home, always confused about why the town leaves them.
One year, she feeds the child—Luna—moonlight instead of starlight, filling her up with magic. Feeling responsible, she raises the magical child with the help of Glerk (a being who has been around since the beginning of time) and Fyrian (an Extraordinarily Small Dragon for an Enormous Dragon).
The tale itself switches between the citizens in the town that gave Luna up, the witch, and Luna. There are even some smaller chapters where an adult tells wicked stories about the witch. The format keeps the story’s lyrical pace well. I also enjoyed the dialogue and how different all the characters seem to be. It has some darker tones but through Disney eyes.
The main thing that stuck out to me was how repetitive the story got. Some descriptions repeat many times and could’ve been cut down. A few characters also pass by major signs, not thinking much of it. But that could be a fault of telling multiple sides of a story. Readers can get frustrated if the characters don’t know what they know.
Overall, I enjoyed the story. It’s excellent to introduce fantasy to children or to see the innocence of magic again.
Score: 7.9/10
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.1/5
Robin LeeAnn 