Week 7 Fantasy / Science Fiction and Mystery and Adventure

 

The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill is Fantasy fiction with witches and moon milk that replaces breast milk for a baby to drink. The moon milk was on accident injecting magic into the baby. And as the years go on, the magic becomes stronger. This plot begins with imagination and ends with imagination. The only idea that is not magical is that a baby is born and is later named Luna. The universal truth is that the mystery of love reveals itself even when two loves have been separated for years. As far as understanding the symbolic significance of this universal truth, a mature 8+ year old child might possibly comprehend it, I still question it though.

The setting is provided in the text that occurs between characters, their voices, their syntax, their tone. Not so much a “place” kind of setting.

The writing style is beautiful. It just sounds beautiful, majestic, and untouchable. The description of Luna is the closest to identify with humanistic values and beliefs.

Barnhill, Kelly. The Girl Who Drank the Moon. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2016. 400             pages. Tr $19.99. ISBN 9781616206567.



King and the Dragon Flies by Kacen Callender. Twelve-year-old Kingston Reginald James, King for short, just lost his brother, Khalid unexpectedly and the author unfolds the truths and lies that a family experiences when losing a loved one, especially unexpectedly and too young. Readers from 3rd to 7th grade could relate to King while going through his loss or facing the reality of being gay. Despite anxiously waiting to find out how Khalid dies, readers almost forget about it until Callender mentions it midway through the book, (ch.10), keeping the surprises until the timing is just right. This is also around the time when King’s parents work on accepting that King may be gay. King thought his father’s first response would be, …if you’re gay, then you’re no son of mine, (ch.11). Of course, he didn’t say it, we all think our parents are going to "kill us" for something we know is wrong, but that actually never happens. Just when you think, what more could happen to King, sadness over Khalid’s death, King’s struggle with exploring being gay, his good friend, Sandy, that he recently reunites with turns up missing because he finally runs away from his abusive Sheriff father, until King finds him in his own backyard hiding out. In the end chapters, it is up to the readers how Sandy and King’s friendship will develop and grow. How King’s parents and King are trying to live a new normal without Khalid. King’s father is still working on accepting King possibly being gay, but I think he follows his own advice, “You’ll be alright.” Just as he tells King on his first back to school day after all the drama.

Callender, Kacen. King and the Dragonflies. Scholastic Press, 2020. 272 pages. Tr $9.99. e-ISBN 9781338129359.















Comments

  1. Jen CJune 26, 2025 at 12:01 PM

    Some good opinions and evidence here. Continue working toward a balance between summary (40%) and evaluation (60%). As well as avoiding "I" statements or other phrasing that puts the focus on you rather than the work.

    ReplyDelete

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