The Girl Who Drank the Moon

by Kelly Barnhill

[Kat @ Novels & Waffles]

“Sorrow is dangerous. Memories are slippery. My grandmother does not always tell the truth. And neither do I.”

I haven't dived into a Middle Grade book for quite some time now, but a friend of mine who's a librarian (Yes, I have a librarian friend. That's when you know you've made it big, folks) highly recommended this one to me. And as is so often the case with librarians, she was right. This book was, as the Perfectly Tiny Dragon in it states, a "joyful joyness." You read that correctly – a Perfectly Tiny Dragon. Imagine, a dragon that fits in your pocket and likes to cuddle on your lap! Well, that's Fyrian for you. And he might as well be called a Perfectly Cute Dragon, because man, he made me want to pick him up and pinch his cheeks (Can you pinch a dragon's cheeks? Do they even have cheeks? I dunno, but Fyrian made me want to do it!).

If an adorable miniature dragon isn't enough of an incentive for you to read this book, then an overview of the rest of the cast might just change your mind: we've got a Swamp Monster, a Witch, a Madwoman with an army of paper birds, a talking crow, and an accidentally-turned-magic little girl who is way too energetic for her own (and her Grandmother's) good. That's quite the lineup!

This book was pure magic. It could have very well been made of starlight and moonlight itself. The writing was whimsical, with a sort of fairy-tale-esque feel to it, and is exactly the sort of book that I want to read aloud to my son one day. I loved how it posed serious questions for the reader in sometimes silly ways: Is it okay to lie, if you only do so to protect the ones you love? How can you deal with sorrow? Why is it important to remember the past?

The characters are entertaining, engaging, and endearing. The plot cleverly brought those same seemingly unconnected characters together in surprising ways that had me laughing out loud and wondering what would happen next. Although clearly meant for readers on the younger side of the spectrum, this book is a great read for any age, especially if you are in the mood for something lighthearted, fun, and full of the fantastical.