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Reviewed by:
  • Starry River of the Sky
  • Kate Quealy-Gainer, Assistant Editor
Lin, Grace. Starry River of the Sky; written and illus. by Grace Lin. Little, 2012. [304p]. ISBN 978-0-316-12595-6 $17.99 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 4–6.

Stowing away on a merchant’s cart, young Rendi is on the run from his tyrannical father and finds a convenient hideaway in the Village of the Clear Sky, an isolated village with few residents and even fewer visitors. Hired on as a chore boy at the local inn, Rendi spends his days angrily cursing his past and his nights struggling to sleep through the mysterious weeping only he hears—weeping he assumes is a result of the moon’s absence from the sky. When an enigmatic and beautiful storyteller arrives at the inn, Rendi is captivated by her tales, but when his past finally catches up with him, he’s reluctant to take the lessons he has learned from the stories and apply them to his own reality. Readers of Lin’s Newbery Honor–winning Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (BCCB 9/09) will recognize both Lin’s folkloric style and a few familiar faces, but as a companion piece rather than a sequel, this requires no knowledge of the previous book. While initially far less likable than Moon’s vivacious heroine, Rendi eventually transforms from a spoiled, angry brat into a thoughtful, compassionate friend whose heroic actions drive the plot of [End Page 201] the story. Lin reprises her technique of framing the main story with a selection of Chinese folktales (signaled by a change in font), and her spare, lyrical prose lends the entire endeavor a tone of quiet enchantment. The book has the same carefully elegant design as its predecessor, with a decorative line-drawn headpiece in a single strong color introducing each chapter, and occasional full-page color illustrations, saturated with ruby reds and deep, midnight blues, portraying key scenes and accenting the book’s folkloric style.

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