wasn't really that bad, but that's how people act in Charlotte when we get the least bit of snow. There was a major holiday yesterday that had people giving gifts and going out to dinner. No, I don't mean that holiday--the one with all the kissing and pink and frilly hearts and stuff that makes a MANLY MAN cringe--I mean Chinese New Year. It began yesterday and, in its honor, I present a review of Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin. Today's review is from our new friend Laurence. Actually, Laurence is new to you but he lives down the street from me and is a good friend to me and my family. Let's hear what Laurence says about this book:Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin is about a girl named Minli and her family that lives in a village that is very poor and plants and harvests rice. She is so inspired by her father’s stories that she sets off on her journey to find the Old Man of the Moon to make a wish that her family and village would be wealthy, and her parents’ struggle to find her, and the people she meets along the way. Enough with the plot, let’s gossip about the pros and cons. Grace Lin used mostly everyday verbs like shocked, scared and gratefully, instead of using words like dumbfounded, petrified, and beholden to the settings, characters, and predicaments. Plus, Grace Lin did not describe the characters very well, like when she wrote that A-Fu and Da-Fu were cheerful and were little rays of sunlight, (although too much description is bad).
Now that we’ve enough of the cons, let’s go to the pros. I am bursting with pros for this sensational piece of literature. I don’t what I was thinking condemning one of my favorite novels. Okay, first, Grace Lin was eager to use fiction elements like dragons, talking fish, and a book of all the knowledge in the world and mingle it up with the non-fiction elements to spice up her story and keep page turning bound. Secondly, she had surprises throughout the novel keeping readers on the edge of their seat until the book was over. Third, (see, I told you I was bursting full of great things for this book), Grace Lin instinctively knows what readers would not understand, she explains those things with a story told by a character, therefore clarifying the subject, like when a talking fish told about the Dragon’s Gate. Fourth, (I know this is getting repetitive), Grace Lin not only wrote a piece of literature, she went beyond that, introducing readers to Chinese culture, immersing them into their ideas and traditional customs.
Okay, this is the moment you have been waiting for…overall “Where the Mountain Meets the Moon” was a hunky-dory book even though Grace Lin did not employ vivid verbs but had lots of blue-ribbon parts and details throughout the book.
Thanks, Laurence! I totally disagree with you about Grace's use of verbs and descriptions. They very vivid to me and I could picture everything she wrote. But I completely agree with your pros! This is one terrific book and I can't recommend it highly enough. Click on the "Where the Mountain Meets the Moon" or the "Grace Lin" labels under this post to see my original review and an interview. We appreciate your review, Laurnece! Come in to Imaginon and claim your free book!
