An Open Letter to the Readers and Author of The Girl Who Drank The Moon

Dear Reader, 

As I finished reading the first half of The Girl Who Drank The Moon, by Kelly Barnhill, I was left with several thoughts that I wish to share. First of all, I feel the need to explain how captivated I am by this book so far. Fantasy and fairy tales have never been my favorite genre to read and I typically avoid this type of book as I tend to get bored with them quickly. I sat down to read The Girl Who Drank The Moon and was initially reassured of my feelings about the fantasy genre. It didn't take very long for my thoughts to change. At the very beginning of chapter three, the swamp was described by the narrator as follows: “. . .bubbly, sulfury, and noxious, fed and warmed by and underground, restlessly sleeping volcano and covered with a slick of slime whose color ranged from poison green to lightning blue to blood red, depending on the time of year” (Barnhill, 14). This rich description instantly transported me into the book and from that moment on, I was fully invested in this story. I am wondering if the setting was different in some way if I would have had more or less of a pull into the world of this story. What if the setting was different? Would readers be fully able to transport themselves into the story? 

This wasn’t the only place in the book that I found myself drawn deeply into the magical world of the book. This time, it wasn't the setting that pulled me in closer but rather the characters their lives. In chapter seven when Luna and Xan are visiting the Free Cities and Luna is playfully and without even knowing exploring her magic. When Luna turned the dough into a hat and Xan discovered what she had done, was one of my favorite moments so far in the book (Barnhill, 52-53). I loved this moment so much because it felt so real when reading it. It felt as though a child was across the room from me was running around, playing, and just enjoying life and I thought it was wonderful and moving. 

While the have been many other magical and intriguing moments in this book so far, I would like to talk about the future of this story as we watch it evolve. I really feel that the turning point of this story is chapter eighteen. This chapter was the first time that we kind of began to see the three storylines overlap. There was one line in particular that sent chills down my spine as I read it. “The madwoman in the Tower saw the Witch hobbling through the trees” (Barnhill, 143). I could tell right then that things were going to get interesting and I cannot wait to see where we head next in this story. 

Sincerely,

An enmagicked reader

Hailey Willard