“If the jungle wants you, it will have you.” Hidden deep in the magical Inkasisa kingdom, there lies a lost city named Paititi. For decades, Paititi has aroused legends of warrior people, exotic foods, and high concentrations of gold. But it’s never been found. Paititi is protected by the Yanu Jungle: a land alive with colors, plants, and imminent danger. Each flower holds poison. Jaguars and other carnivorous animals roam the stretches of green. Rivers fester with humongous creatures and dangerous currents. Why, then, would anyone venture into this nightmarish land? For Catalina Quiroga, the answer is easy: revenge. Written in Starlight by Isabel Ibañez, the highly-awaited sequel to Woven in Moonlight, is a story that follows ex-countess Catalina’s many trials in the Yanu Jungle. Catalina was supposed to be the new queen of Inkasisa, but her best friend Ximena seemingly betrayed her by choosing a princess named Tamaya to be the queen instead. Wounded, proud, and unaware of the danger in store, Catalina rejected Tamaya’s queenship and was consequently banished to the Yanu Jungle. Now, all Catalina can do is try to find the lost city of Paititi, hoping that she’ll be able to persuade their leader to ally with her, in turn gaining the army necessary in dethroning Tamaya. But Catalina’s always lived a sheltered life. Despite being born with the ability to interpret messages written in the stars, she can’t seem to use her ability correctly; therefore, is unable to see what dangers lie in her future. Catalina nearly dies in the jungle several times—until she unexpectedly bumps into Manuel, her former guard and love interest, who helps her find shelter and food. Fueled by Catalina’s thirst for revenge, they continue. But when Catalina’s old feelings toward Manuel are rekindled, ultimatums are wielded, and Catalina’s emotions become as plentiful as the stars above her, she must decide what the fate of Inkasisa will be: another war, or peace. I love this book. I actually went out of town to get the first book in the series, Woven in Moonlight, and it was definitely worth it. I immediately fell head over heels for Ibañez’s writing: the description and metaphors were so real and heartbreaking. I was no less blown away by Written in Starlight. Usually, I find that sequels don’t live up to their predecessors, but this book broke the mold. I loved how the narrator (Catalina) was different from the narrator of the first book (Ximena) because it really extended the world of Inkasisa. I was able to see how torn apart the kingdom was through Catalina’s eyes. The Latin influences in this book are also invaluable and make the novel all the more fascinating. The foods mentioned, such as paiche (marinated freshwater fish that is cooked over a fire) and fried yuca (a crispy, creamy version of fried potatoes) made my mouth water. It was very interesting to see the cultural influences that shaped the kingdom of Inkasisa. Even the word “Inkasisa” is from a different language—it’s Quechua for “royal flower,” which made me think of Inkasisa as an even richer, more fascinating place! The fact that Ibañez was able to incorporate her heritage into her writing was beautiful. The overall theme of Written in Starlight was very important as well. Catalina, though at first furious and vying for the throne, begins to realize that she might not want the crown so much as the story goes on; she starts looking into paths that are more appealing. This novel teaches you to find yourself instead of being subservient and passive just because you think it is your duty. All in all, I thought this book was a gorgeous and memorable read. I would recommend Written in Starlight to anyone looking for a good YA novel! It has a little bit of everything so everyone can enjoy reading it: fantasy, mystery, adventure, romance, drama, action, and suspense. This book made me fall in love with Isabel Ibañez’s writing even more, and can’t wait for a potential third book in this series to be released! Written in Starlight by Isabel Ibañez. Page Street Kids, 2021. Buy the book here and support Stone Soup in the process!
fantasy
Summon the Mammal
With the ability to summon any mammal, I was safe. So, my adventure started in the Mystic Woods. That was a warm, breezy day when the soil opened in a fold and I fell in. When I landed on some concrete, the unnatural purple color told me straightaway where I was—Professor Haunter’s course. He traps his victims and puts them, well, basically in a death course. Anyway, the room’s only light in this room was a ghostly mauve. Do I have to get through this room? I summoned my long-eared jerboa, a nocturnal mammal with excellent navigation skills. It would be able to sense the way to the next part. As it hopped, I followed the hollow sound as it hopped toward the exit. After a few crashes, I was at the next course. A large lake with piranhas (an amount that can only be described as a lot) stood before me. They took no notice for now, but they would smell me if I went in the water. I thought for a while and swapped my long-eared jerboa for my jaguar, a mammal that frequently swam in rivers (in the Amazon), and was used to swimming with those fish. I hopped on my jaguar and it went in reluctantly, with me trying not to touch the water. It had been quite a while since my jaguar had been utilized, so in the middle, my jaguar stopped for a break. (Well, it is a big lake, so I don’t blame it.) To my surprise, it ate a piranha while resting. Then my jaguar kept swimming, closer and closer to the edge, and finally reached it. I was at the next part. I took one look at it and knew that it was even more treacherous and I wondered how I was going to get there… Er… I’m on a ledge fifteen centimeters from the surface of a deep salty sea. If you’re alone now, you’re dead. So I swapped my jaguar for my dusky dolphin, a small water-dwelling mammal. I choose small over powerful, it was three feet wide and… er… very long. Oh well, never mind that! The dusky has little activity. So I told it to go full speed ahead. It bolted off with me clinging on its dorsal fin. Soon, a dark blue-purple glow came from below. My dolphin knew that a lot of box jellyfish were coming. It sped ahead like a torpedo knowingly. Finally, after what seemed like a million years, I had successfully made it to the next course. This was the final part since I could see the light of the exit. Just then, Professor Haunter came into sight in his purple-black starship. He chuckles, “Oh, you? You’ll never get out THIS time.” “Really?” I shouted reluctantly, retrieving my dusky dolphin (he couldn’t see my dusky dolphin or my hand with my summoning tool as it was at the wrong angle). But he was already gone. In his place are sixteen angry, hissing king cobras. To fend them off, my banded mongoose had to take action. Banded mongoose regularly eat snakes, so my banded mongoose chased the sixteen, slick, sneaky snakes with ease and fought them, catching them with its little paws, then ripping its flesh with its teeth. I tried to help, but I didn’t catch any. After quite a long time, all the king cobras were dead, and I was through to the exit. Once I was back in the Mystic Woods, I retrieved my banded mongoose and went home. If Professor Haunter won’t learn, he’ll never get me. With the help of over five thousand mammals, nothing can stop me from going on in my distinct adventure.
Thankfulness: a review of “Where the Mountain Meets the Moon” by Grace Lin, by Daniel Zhu, 10
I have heard the following thought experiment countless times, albeit from different people: you can save your family (including you), or you can save everyone but your family (with the exception of you). Hard choices like this, although usually not as dramatic, often draw out one’s true personality. In the book Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin, the main character, Minli, and her friend Dragon are trying to change both their fortunes by visiting the Old Man of the Moon; a mythological figure who is said to control the fate of all humans. However, when she discovers that she can only have one question and one answer, Minli is forced to make a choice: she can either change her own fortune, or she can change that of one of her closest friends. Minli and Dragon both didn’t have very good fortunes. Minli’s village never saw any rain, so farming was extremely hard; the villagers barely got by in everyday life. Dragon was a little more lucky – he was a dragon, after all – but for some reason unbeknownst to him, he couldn’t fly like other dragons could. Both wished to change the bad conditions they felt they were living in. When they finally get to the Old Man of the Moon, however, he delivers some grave news: Minli can only ask one question. Now Minli is faced with a choice: she can either change her own fortune, or Dragon’s. Although this was forshadowed when Dragon found that the bridge to the Old Man of the Moon could not hold her weight–only Minli’s–it still came as a shock to her when the Old Man of the Moon revealed the grim truth. However, Minli suddenly remembers the words of her friends Da-Fu and A-Fu: “Why would we want to change our fortune?” Then she sees the legendary paper which supposedly held the secret to happiness: and it read “thankfulness.” She realizes that perhaps why Da-Fu and A-Fu didn’t want to change their fortune was because they were already satisfied with everything they had; they didn’t need more. Minli finds herself thinking that perhaps her fortune doesn’t need to be changed either. So, without doubt or hesitance, she asks the Old Man of the Moon, “Why can’t Dragon fly?” It turns out, the pearl on top of Dragon’s head was somehow weighing him down. Minli pulled it off his head, and together, they flew home. Coincidentally, Minli’s father had told her mother a story about a dragon pearl, so the next morning, they were shocked that Minli actually came home with one. And then, after their happy reunion, the villagers’ lives took an even better turn when the Fruitless Mountain started blossoming again. Why? Well, a story that people once thought was just a legend said that a dragon called the Jade Dragon was the master of all rain. However, when her children sacrificed themselves because Jade Dragon was being cruel and holding grudges, she was filled with grief and descended to the ground as a river, hoping to reunite with one of her children. However, this never happened, which is why Fruitless Mountain remained fruitless; it had been cursed by Jade Dragon. Long story short, it turned out that Dragon was one of Jade Dragon’s children, and since he had been reunited with one of his children, the curse on the Fruitless Mountain was lifted. Minli’s village began to prosper again, and after her parents sold the dragon pearl to a king–The Guardian of the City of the Bright Moonlight, to be exact–the village was able to get the material it needed to properly farm. Minli thought to herself, “I had not asked the Old Man of the Moon any of my questions; yet, they have all been answered.” I’m sure that if Minli had asked her question, the Old Man of the Moon would have told her to be thankful. When we make choices, it shows a lot about us. One of my favorite trilogies, Divergent, centers on this topic. At the top of every book, there’s a catchphrase that relates to choices, and on the cover of the last book, Allegiant, the words written on it are: “One choice will define you.” And it will– this is demonstrated in Minli’s story. When Minli chose to ask Dragon’s question instead of her own, she demonstrated that she had attained arguably one of the most important virtues in everyday life: thankfulness. If you had truly mastered this virtue: you could make a choice when asked thought experiment questions in a second. For example, the thought experiment at the beginning: if you were truly thankful, you would be satisfied with how you had lived your life, and you wouldn’t want more. So, you would obviously go with the second choice. This not only demonstrates the importance of thankfulness in itself, it also shows that thankfulness is a crucial part of making good choices: one of the most important skills to master in life. Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin. New York: Little Brown Young Readers, 2009.
