Where the Mountain Meets the Moon
Grace Lin (2009)
“A girl climbs a mountain to ask the Old Man of the Moon to change her family's fortune — and discovers that fortune was never what she thought it was.”
At a Glance
Minli lives with her parents in a poor village at the base of Fruitless Mountain. Her father tells stories of the Jade Dragon and the Old Man of the Moon who controls fortune. Believing she can change her family's luck, Minli sets out on a quest to find the Old Man of the Moon. Along the way, she befriends a dragon who cannot fly, encounters characters from her father's stories, and learns that fortune is not something given by the moon but something created by gratitude.
Read full summary →Why This Book Matters
Newbery Honor (2010). One of the first Chinese-American fairy tales to achieve mainstream American recognition. Widely adopted in elementary and middle school classrooms for both literature and cultural studies units. Praised for naturalizing Chinese mythology within the American literary landscape.
Diction Profile
Formal in the tradition of oral storytelling — measured, rhythmic, with the ceremonial quality of tales told aloud
High