Al's Book Club for Kids: Where the Mountain Meets the Moon

Sun, 10/25/2009 - 12:49pm by darla

On Friday morning Al Roker, the beloved weather man of NBC's The Today Show, announced his latest pick for Al's Book Club for Kids: Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin.
"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."
Not only is this story a beautiful blend of traditional Chinese folklore themes and characters (keep an eye out for the fabulous talking fish!), it is also a physically beautiful book. Grace Lin's full-color illustrations throughout this tale are intricate and dazzling, and the use of multiple type faces make this journey all the more enchanting. Adult readers will appreciate Lin's author note at the end of the book, where she explains her Asian-American roots and the folktales from her childhood that continue to resonate with her today.