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jwinchell's review against another edition
4.0
Salazar has done something very special here in creating a novel in verse about menstruation. Other than Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, can you think of any novels for young people about this rite of passage? Like Celi’s cringing, I found myself recoiling at Mima’s insistence on having a moon ceremony for her when the time comes. This is our cultural conditioning to see menstruation as dirty and private and not something to be acknowledged or even celebrated. Celi’s friend Magda/Marco is gender fluid and how each navigates this evolving identity is a big part of the story. (Celi’s apology was a bit too pat for me.) I appreciated the author’s notes at the end and the moon cycle template one can use for journaling.
“I chose to write my version of a Xicana moon ceremony because I believe the forgetting, erasing, and lack of access to this information has contributed to the negative ways many Xicanas see menstruation.”
Here’s to getting this unique book into the right hands.
“I chose to write my version of a Xicana moon ceremony because I believe the forgetting, erasing, and lack of access to this information has contributed to the negative ways many Xicanas see menstruation.”
Here’s to getting this unique book into the right hands.
inkstndfngrs's review against another edition
2.0
On one hand, my opinion of this book means nothing as a Midwestern white person.
On the other hand, I am part of the LGBTQ+ community, and identified as a woman for the first 30-odd years of my life before accepting my non-binary identity.
But where do I even start with this?
First, I knew already that I was going to have a hard time with this one because it's in verse. And I *loath* books in verse. The only thing I hate more is present tense fiction. But, I had to read this because of a book challenge issued to a local school district, and I'm on the committee to decide to keep it or not (spoiler alert: I may not have liked it, but I don't believe in censorship). One perk: It was about an hour and a half to read it.
I have two major issues with this book. First, the Moon Ceremony. Celi tells her mother (Memi) *repeatedly* that she does not want to have this ceremony and wants her menstruation to remain private. Her mother spouts off about "reclaiming the traditions that were taken from us" and waxes rhapsodic about the glory of being a woman. Even at the end, when it finally happens --Celi is STILL telling her mother no, and her mom basically says "Too bad! It's happening!".
This is just so frustrating. People with vaginas are already constantly told that their bodies are not their own. Her mother's attitude comes from a "horrifying" experience of "not being prepared" for her first time --but the thing is: SHE PREPARED CELI! Not to mention that her Grandmother is later part of the ceremony, along with with her transwoman friend? WHO DOESN'T EVEN MENSTRUATE? WHAT?! And yes, Celi does eventually have "fun" (we assume?) at the ceremony, and Mar even takes part in it as well, which probably relieved some of anxiety around the situation.
Several others have mentioned the scene at the very beginning of the book where Memi calls in Celi's Dad and Brother to check out her new bra. Again, no, it's not sexual, but OH MY GOD. I'm dying from the secondhand embaressment. If I didn't *have* to read this book, I would have stopped then and just been like, "nope!".
My other issue comes around Mar. They embrace him as a sort of two-spirit person (I can't spell the word they used in the book; thank god Celi added a pronunciation in the text). Many reviewers call him "genderfluid". But...that's not really accurate and is never used anywhere in the text. I also didn't really like that they basically told him "You'll get your period too, but it's okay because you have both man and woman spirit in you, so it'll be cool!".
...No. No, that isn't how it works. And while all the grown-ups in their life embrace Marco (nee Magda) and their transitioning, Celi is rather blindsided by it. The plotline around Ivan being a jerk to Mar is also kind of contrived. A lot of that is very cliche (as is getting her period for the first time in white pants --I knew it was coming the SECOND I saw the line...)
I also really, really hated everything about the lunar calendar and menses. The book goes as far as INCLUDING A CALENDAR to "help track". ...I have never had a regular period, my entire life. I have PCOS. In fact, in my family, only my little sister is lucky enough to have a period like clock-work. Hardly any of my friends are this insanely regular either. So, no...no, this does not apply to "all women" and honestly if I had read this when I was a teen, I would have been terrified and wondered what the heck was wrong with me. (Another Spoiler Alert: I have PCOS, but it wasn't diagnosed until I was 30, even though I underwent various tests for it a few years prior... Thanks Healthcare System!)
So...yeah. I just...I cannot with this book. I am sure that there are cisgirls out there who are going to love and appreciate this book and find the lunar thing "magical" and "reassuring"...but it really just made me feel like a failure of a person with a vagina.
If you're gender non-conforming, maybe do yourself a favor and just skip this one. It's not worth the possible dysphoria.
On the other hand, I am part of the LGBTQ+ community, and identified as a woman for the first 30-odd years of my life before accepting my non-binary identity.
But where do I even start with this?
First, I knew already that I was going to have a hard time with this one because it's in verse. And I *loath* books in verse. The only thing I hate more is present tense fiction. But, I had to read this because of a book challenge issued to a local school district, and I'm on the committee to decide to keep it or not (spoiler alert: I may not have liked it, but I don't believe in censorship). One perk: It was about an hour and a half to read it.
I have two major issues with this book. First, the Moon Ceremony. Celi tells her mother (Memi) *repeatedly* that she does not want to have this ceremony and wants her menstruation to remain private. Her mother spouts off about "reclaiming the traditions that were taken from us" and waxes rhapsodic about the glory of being a woman. Even at the end, when it finally happens --Celi is STILL telling her mother no, and her mom basically says "Too bad! It's happening!".
This is just so frustrating. People with vaginas are already constantly told that their bodies are not their own. Her mother's attitude comes from a "horrifying" experience of "not being prepared" for her first time --but the thing is: SHE PREPARED CELI! Not to mention that her Grandmother is later part of the ceremony, along with with her transwoman friend? WHO DOESN'T EVEN MENSTRUATE? WHAT?! And yes, Celi does eventually have "fun" (we assume?) at the ceremony, and Mar even takes part in it as well, which probably relieved some of anxiety around the situation.
Several others have mentioned the scene at the very beginning of the book where Memi calls in Celi's Dad and Brother to check out her new bra. Again, no, it's not sexual, but OH MY GOD. I'm dying from the secondhand embaressment. If I didn't *have* to read this book, I would have stopped then and just been like, "nope!".
My other issue comes around Mar. They embrace him as a sort of two-spirit person (I can't spell the word they used in the book; thank god Celi added a pronunciation in the text). Many reviewers call him "genderfluid". But...that's not really accurate and is never used anywhere in the text. I also didn't really like that they basically told him "You'll get your period too, but it's okay because you have both man and woman spirit in you, so it'll be cool!".
...No. No, that isn't how it works. And while all the grown-ups in their life embrace Marco (nee Magda) and their transitioning, Celi is rather blindsided by it. The plotline around Ivan being a jerk to Mar is also kind of contrived. A lot of that is very cliche (as is getting her period for the first time in white pants --I knew it was coming the SECOND I saw the line...)
I also really, really hated everything about the lunar calendar and menses. The book goes as far as INCLUDING A CALENDAR to "help track". ...I have never had a regular period, my entire life. I have PCOS. In fact, in my family, only my little sister is lucky enough to have a period like clock-work. Hardly any of my friends are this insanely regular either. So, no...no, this does not apply to "all women" and honestly if I had read this when I was a teen, I would have been terrified and wondered what the heck was wrong with me. (Another Spoiler Alert: I have PCOS, but it wasn't diagnosed until I was 30, even though I underwent various tests for it a few years prior... Thanks Healthcare System!)
So...yeah. I just...I cannot with this book. I am sure that there are cisgirls out there who are going to love and appreciate this book and find the lunar thing "magical" and "reassuring"...but it really just made me feel like a failure of a person with a vagina.
If you're gender non-conforming, maybe do yourself a favor and just skip this one. It's not worth the possible dysphoria.
rdyourbookcase's review against another edition
4.0
This is the ultimate coming-of-age book. I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to read it. I learned so much about a culture different from my own. My favorite part was definitely Marco's storyline. I wish that he had the opportunity to tell his story from his point of view. Perhaps we'll get a sequel or companion novel? Reading about their culture's ancient view on gender fluidity was inspiring and wonderful.
However, I am not sure if I would have liked it as a preteen myself. It was so much to take in. I definitely would have needed to discuss it with someone in order to sort through my feelings about it. And there's no way that I ever would have allowed a Moon Ceremony myself - but maybe that's because of my own culture. I am very curious to see what young people think about it.
However, I am not sure if I would have liked it as a preteen myself. It was so much to take in. I definitely would have needed to discuss it with someone in order to sort through my feelings about it. And there's no way that I ever would have allowed a Moon Ceremony myself - but maybe that's because of my own culture. I am very curious to see what young people think about it.
fallingletters's review against another edition
4.0
Review originally published 12 February 2019 at Falling Letters.
The Moon Within establishes on page one what kind of story its telling. In some ways, it’s a middle grade story we haven’t heard so directly for many years (young girl dealing with her period and other changes). In other ways, it’s a middle grade story we’ve never heard (Black Puerto Rican-Mexica girl dancing bomba and participating in an indigenous moon ceremony). The Moon Within explores colonialism, menstruation (frankly but not graphically discussed), reclaiming heritage, first crushes, gender identity, and friendship all in a way that’s highly accessible to middle grade readers.
Salazar navigates and relates each of these topics without overwhelming or preaching to the reader. The choice to write this novel in verse likely helps to keep it from becoming too dense. I admit I haven’t read a verse novel in probably 12 years (not since I was flipping through my friend’s copies of Ellen Hopkins). I am a prose reader through and through. But Salazar establishes a clear voice for Celi. She writes the first-person narrative voice of a middle grade protagonist, with poetics that don’t obscure. I wonder now if all middle grade verse novels have such defined characters and engaging narratives! I suspect The Moon Within is an exemplar of the form.
One of my favourite parts of the story is Celi’s friendship with her best friend Magda, who comes out as genderfluid halfway through the book and then identifies as a boy named Marco.
My Personal Response
When I was 11, I am pretty sure my main concern was roleplaying on the Neopets message board. I was not thinking about my body changing or my feelings about boys. If you had given me this story when I was in grade five, I wouldn’t have understood it at all. (Although I at least would have related with Celi wanting to keep her body private.) At first, I was uncomfortable with how Celi’s mother pushes her beliefs about menstruation and the moon ceremony onto Celi, but over the course of the novel, her good reasons for doing so become clear and she does give Celi the room to make her own decision.
The Bottom Line
As a novel in verse, The Moon Within is a wonderful option for readers as a nuanced and full narrative without the weight of a novel behind it. Of course, it could also be an especially important read for children experiences changes to their body or their gender.
The Moon Within establishes on page one what kind of story its telling. In some ways, it’s a middle grade story we haven’t heard so directly for many years (young girl dealing with her period and other changes). In other ways, it’s a middle grade story we’ve never heard (Black Puerto Rican-Mexica girl dancing bomba and participating in an indigenous moon ceremony). The Moon Within explores colonialism, menstruation (frankly but not graphically discussed), reclaiming heritage, first crushes, gender identity, and friendship all in a way that’s highly accessible to middle grade readers.
Salazar navigates and relates each of these topics without overwhelming or preaching to the reader. The choice to write this novel in verse likely helps to keep it from becoming too dense. I admit I haven’t read a verse novel in probably 12 years (not since I was flipping through my friend’s copies of Ellen Hopkins). I am a prose reader through and through. But Salazar establishes a clear voice for Celi. She writes the first-person narrative voice of a middle grade protagonist, with poetics that don’t obscure. I wonder now if all middle grade verse novels have such defined characters and engaging narratives! I suspect The Moon Within is an exemplar of the form.
One of my favourite parts of the story is Celi’s friendship with her best friend Magda, who comes out as genderfluid halfway through the book and then identifies as a boy named Marco.
Spoiler
Celi learns about this when she and her mother are invited to Magda’s house and Magda’s mother holds a ceremony acknowledging Magda’s identity as a xochihuah, ‘one who bears flowers’. Celi is surprised but supportive at first – until her crush on Ivan, who isn’t that nice, leads her to damage her friendship with Marco. This was personally infuriating for me to read about, but realistically done and I celebrated when Celi fixed her mistake. Marco’s body isn’t changing at the same rate as Celi, but he is celebrated equally alongside Celi in the moon ceremony. I would love to read a companion novel about Marco.My Personal Response
When I was 11, I am pretty sure my main concern was roleplaying on the Neopets message board. I was not thinking about my body changing or my feelings about boys. If you had given me this story when I was in grade five, I wouldn’t have understood it at all. (Although I at least would have related with Celi wanting to keep her body private.) At first, I was uncomfortable with how Celi’s mother pushes her beliefs about menstruation and the moon ceremony onto Celi, but over the course of the novel, her good reasons for doing so become clear and she does give Celi the room to make her own decision.
The Bottom Line
As a novel in verse, The Moon Within is a wonderful option for readers as a nuanced and full narrative without the weight of a novel behind it. Of course, it could also be an especially important read for children experiences changes to their body or their gender.
withthebanned's review against another edition
3.0
Really great conversations, here. Normalize them.
megatsunami's review against another edition
4.0
This book was really so lovely. A novel in verse, it explores a girl's experience with getting her period, and her ambivalent feelings about both her changing body and her mother's plan to honor this rite of passage through an ancient/ reclaimed Mexica moon ceremony. Also there are some lovely pieces about her relationship with her best friend, who is going through gender identity changes; as well as the boy she has a crush on. I felt like the book portrayed a lot of realistically imperfect decisions and reactions, while also affirming love and connection. The description of the ritual itself was beautiful and very moving.
I don't usually love novels in verse; I thought the format mostly worked here, but I think it could have been told in prose and would have felt a little more accessible.
I don't usually love novels in verse; I thought the format mostly worked here, but I think it could have been told in prose and would have felt a little more accessible.
natalieholdahl's review against another edition
4.0
A beautiful middle grade book!
I love a good book written in prose, and this one delivered. A learned a lot in such a short book. It talked about things in such an easily digestible way while still giving them the attention they deserve.
I love a good book written in prose, and this one delivered. A learned a lot in such a short book. It talked about things in such an easily digestible way while still giving them the attention they deserve.
kiperoo's review against another edition
5.0
Such an absolutely gorgeous novel-in-verse! It's only March 1, and it's already one of my favorites from 2019. I love that there are so many layers to the book--a young girl hitting adolescence, her family, her friends and crush, and of course her best friend, Mar, going through changes of his own. The writing is absolutely stunning and the story is so heartfelt. An absolute must-read for all eleven-year-olds!
dollhousebooks's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
catherinefenquist's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0