Starry River of the Sky

Starry River of the Sky is written by Grace Lin and is considered a companion novel to Where the Mountain Meets the Moon.  In both of these stories, Lin takes the Chinese folklore that she so desperately did not want to hear as a child and creates her own spin to weave beautiful stories entwined with Chinese folklore.  Lin is a master storyteller and illustrator which allows both of these novels to come to life with vivid, rich illustrations spread throughout the story. 

In Starry River of the Sky, a young boy named Rendi seems to be the only person to recognize that the moon has disappeared!  Rendi, as you come to know, has recently become the chore boy for an innkeeper and as Rendi learns more about the innkeeper and the villagers, the more questions he has.  When a mysterious woman comes to the inn and begins weaving stories for the townspeople, Rendi’s feelings begin to change and he realizes that only he can create the ending to the story.

Lin, as I said, is a beautiful and gifted storyteller and if you are remotely interested in folklore filled with rich details and vivid illustrations, please take a look at this book and also at Where the Mountain Meets the Moon.  These novels are perfect for older elementary and young middle school students and would be useful in an English classroom for lessons as well.

Check our Grace Lin’s website for more information about the books and illustrations she has done.

Title: Starry River of the Sky
Author: Grace Lin
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: 2012
Page Number: 304 pgs.