Where the Mountain Meets the Moon

By: Grace Lin
Review by: Erika

This is a great book based on ancient Chinese legions, including Old Man of the Moon, the Green Tiger, and the story of Fruitless Mountain. This book is about a girl named Minli and her adventure with Dragon to go visit Old Man of the Moon to get her family more money, for they are poor, and barely get by every day. Every day, the whole family works from morning to night to grow rice, but even with all their hard work, they get barely enough food to feed themselves. They only money they have are two copper coins that were given to Minli on her birthday, and they sit in a bowl on a shelf, still untouched after all these years. Then a goldfish seller comes to this humble little village, trying to sell his goldfish, claiming that they will bring fortune to the owner's home. One goldfish catches Minli's eye, and she buys it with one of the copper coins. When Minli gets home, her mother is furious because Minli spent the money, and now there is another mouth to feed. So, that night, Minli sneaks out, and sets the goldfish free. Then the goldfish, out of gratitude for Minli, speaks to Minli, telling her where to find Old Man of the Moon and how to give her family a great fortune. Now, Minli's adventure begins.

This book talks about sacrifice, how what you want might not be the best for others. This book also talks about greed, and how it can destroy a person. Lastly, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon talks about finding friends in the weirdest places.All the while, different people tell different Chinese legions. This book makes a great read aloud for kids. I hope you enjoy this book.