Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin Narrator: Janet Song
Publication Date: November 17th 2009
Length: 4 hrs 56 mins
Format: Audiobook
Source: Library, Overdrive
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In the valley of Fruitless mountain, a young girl named Minli lives in a ramshackle hut with her parents. In the evenings, her father regales her with old folktales of the Jade Dragon and the Old Man on the Moon, who knows the answers to all of life's questions. Inspired by these stories, Minli sets off on an extraordinary journey to find the Old Man on the Moon to ask him how she can change her family's fortune. She encounters an assorted cast of characters and magical creatures along the way, including a dragon who accompanies her on her quest for the ultimate answer.
This book is delightful. First of all, it’s a story told in stories, which makes it one big love letter to stories. Second, it’s based on Chinese folklore, which makes it a love letter to folklore. Third, Minli is pretty amazing, and I love her. She is up there with Ella of Frell for me. She’s smart and clever and kind. I love her, basically.
The book also has an awesome message of the importance of gratitude and how to avoid sowing bitterness. It also shows why bitterness isn’t just bad for the bitter person, but those around that person. Plus, it’s a quest/road trip, which means meeting lots of interesting characters along the way.
I also really enjoyed the narration in this book and the production of the narration. Janet Song gives the book a lyrical quality, almost like she’s reading a lullaby. Plus, there’s a little bit of music interspersed throughout. The music isn’t distracting, but rather emphasizes the musical/lyrical quality of the narrative. (Now that I think about it, I could be making up the music part and it could be that the narration was so darned charming, but I swear I heard music at some point.)
Mostly, though, I love that this book shows why stories are important and how they can be important. They are a source of comfort and strength and hope and joy. They can serve as a distraction (in a good way) or a road map. Most importantly, stories bring people together because they show us where people have been and where they are going. Stories! They’re great! Just like this book!
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