As the rest of Katie O'Neill's works, this has a lovely story with a diverse cast of characters and fantastic art. I really appreciate how the author always makes it a point to be really inclusive in all her stories and I think we can always use more of that for children's fiction. The world of Tea Dragons that she has created is beautiful and I can't imagine anyone who wouldn't want to live in this world if it were possible. I enjoyed her first book set in this world more, but this is a great follow up as well.

I've been waiting for this book for so long because I had loved the Tea Dragon Society and this one was a good as the first one! It was soft and cute and full on flowers and dragons. The drawings are amazing as the colors. I dived into this world and never wanted to go back.

One word review: adorable!
Such a cute continuation of the tea dragons, that does a wonderful job of incorporating ASL and deaf culture into this charming children’s graphic novel. Everyone already following this story will be beyond pleased by the follow up!

I absolutely adored it. I read the Tea Dragon Society last year when it came in an owlcrate box and this prequel is just as cute. The artwork is stunning and the story has some really lovely messages running through it but they don't seem too pushy, if you know what I mean. Loved it and cannot wait to own a copy.

The Tea Dragon Society was one of the most adorable children's graphic novels I've ever read, but I confess I was disappointed by the lack of a satisfying plot arc. This prequel rectified my concerns with the previous book while losing none of its charm. I think some reader may be disappointed that the characters who reappear in this volume are the adults, Erik and Hesekiel, rather than the younger Greta and Minette. Still, there are new wonderful characters to meet instead, including Rinn, a nonbinary youth interested in cooking, and Aedhan, a full-size guardian dragon. And, of course, a new set of squee-inducing tea dragons, all set in a beautiful and gentle fantasy world. I think this will be just as popular at my library as the first volume.

Setting aside the illustrated nature of this book, its story works well. This is a lovable fantasy tale as strong in its world-building as its predecessor.

Now reminding myself of the fact that this is a graphic novel, the images practically pop off the page. This is a work of beautiful art bordering on animation.

Fantastic.

"Just because something comes easily to you, does not mean it has no value. You find it effortless because you love it, and that is why it is your gift."

After having absolutely adored The Tea Dragon Society, I didn't know how quickly to request this companion graphic novel. And just like in The Tea Dragon Society, this was once again a breathtakingly beautiful graphic novel, full of seemingly effortless diversity.

This novel moved a little slower than its predecessor, and it was amazing to see more of a background unfold. In this story, we meet Hesekiel and Erik again, but at an earlier period in their lives, when they've only been together for a few years. The novel is centered around Erik's family, however, and the peaceful, loving village they live in.

I just fell so completely in love with this story. There are were so many incredibly heartwarming, sweet aspects, and reading it felt like a warm hug.

Rep: multiple characters of colour, non-binary character, Deaf character & use of ASL.

This children's graphic novel is a companion story to the utterly charming The Tea Dragon Society and is just as delightful. Rinn gathers food for her isolated mountain village and stumbles across a dragon meant to protect the village whose been caught in an enchanted sleep. Together they try to find their purpose in their community.

Katie O'Neill has once again created a gentle fantasy world full of kindness and care. Her art is enchantingly beautiful, reminiscent of Hayao Miyazaki's forests, and the tea dragons are adorably cute and grumpy. The Tea Dragon Festival is a lovely book for children but I think readers of all ages would love it and I hope O'Neill will write more in this magical series.

I wish I could live in Katie O'Neill's illustrations. A great follow up to the first Tea Dragon book, this one focuses on a new character in the form of a ~real~ dragon who had been asleep for 80 years. Beautifully rendered story about valuing your time with loved ones and knowing that your skills are valid.

Absolutely adorable, as with all of Katie O'Neill's books! This is a prequel to The Tea Dragon Society, but I think they could be read separately or in either order -- Erik and Hesekiel, the sweet older couple who run the tea shop from Tea Dragon Society, appear again, this time as young adventurers, but the primary focus is on Rinn, a young nonbinary resident of a village that raises tea dragons, and the dragon they discover in the woods. The art is beautifully colored and incorporates sign language smoothly (one of the other villagers is either deaf or mute, and the entire village now communicates in a mixture of speech and sign language), and the human characters run the gamut of skin colors (but like. normal human skin colors, nobody is green or purple). A gorgeously illustrated and gentle coming-of-age story that I would strongly recommend to anyone looking for a non-sexualized but queer-friendly book for children, and to any kids who love fantasy but don't want a big scary adventure story!

The Tea Dragon Festival is a heartwarming and delightful story with beautiful illustrations and the cute little dragons. I loved reading every single moment and Katie O'Neil is so talented in the way she effortlessly draws out emotion. The book has wonderful representation and a lovely message yet some how poignant.

It was was wonderful in a heartbreaking sort of way? I was in tears by how sweet and adorable it was. I hope everyone gets a chance to read it.

This is a companion novel to Katie O'Neill's The Tea Dragon Society, which I was lucky to receive a copy of in an Owlcrate box. After reading The Tea Dragon Society I really wanted to know more about Hesekiel and Erik, two of the main characters in the story. They portrayed such a depth of knowledge about tea dragons and the world in which they lived. My wish came true in the form of this wonderful prequel!

We're introduced to a few new characters, a remote mountain village and an actual fierce dragon in this instalment. There's a deaf character amongst these new additions and so the author has amazingly incorporated the use of sign language by most of the characters into the illustrations.

I would have like to have learnt a little bit more about the magical creature in the forest who Hesekiel and Erik stumble upon, but otherwise this instalment was pure perfection. It is such a wonderful story of friendship and companionship.

I really hope there are more instalments planned for this world, as I would love to find out more about the tea dragons.

I requested this the second I saw it and was very excited to be able to read it despite being much older than the target demographic. I loved the first book and the charming, detailed illustrations. I am pretty sure this is a prequal, even though it has been over a year since I read the first one, and it is wonderful to see a few of the beloved characters again as well as many new ones. The grumpy and inquisitive tea dragons are there as well. The main character is Rinn who is learning to cook and loves to forage in the forest. On one such trip, she finds a sleeping dragon and invites him back to the village as the village prepares for a festival. I love the tea dragons and deeply want one. Otherwise, I recommend this to anyone regardless of age for its charming story and the illustrations of a beautiful, magical world.

That artwork is spectacularly beautiful, I couldn't get over it. I'm hoping Katie O'Neill creates some more graphic novels very soon!
I was so pleased with how diverse and inclusive the cast of characters were. It was a very cute and fun story that I thoroughly enjoyed.

The Tea Dragon Festival is a companion story to the beautiful The Tea Dragon Society and let me assure that this volume is as stunning as the first one. The colors are gorgeous and the illustrations are to die for. This story is set before the events of The Tea Dragon Society since we can see a much younger Hesekiel and Erik. I also loved the new characters that were introduced in this story.

Aedhan is a dragon, a real one, and can shift forms and so become human. It was very nice to learn more about dragons in general and not only about tea dragons, the lovely creatures that were the focus of the first volume.
I loved how in the end everyone helped with tea leaves so that Aedhan could experience the memories of the past 80 years and see what he missed while he was asleep. It was such a thoughtful gesture. I’m really happy that he found Rinn and also a place that he can finally call home.

In this book characters use both American sign language and voice to communicate and I thought it was such a nice addition to this volume, it was well explained at the beginning of the book and there were different-colored texts so that the reader could understand what language the characters were speaking.

If you liked The Tea Dragon Society, you’ll love this one!

I didn't think this graphic novel would live up to the beauty and enchantment of The Tea Dragon society but it did! Once again Kate O'Neill has created a tale of magic, humor, marvelous well-rounded characters, diverse beings, and mystery also this time! I'd love to live in her idealistic small-town communities (and drink tea dragon leaves).

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this comic!

Title: The Tea Dragon Festival
Author: Katie O'Neill
Rating: 5 stars

I am a huge fan of Katie O'Neill's work, this is the 3rd comic I have read by this author now and I loved it! After reading "The Tea Dragon Society" earlier this year and also rating it 5 stars, I have been eagerly anticipating this new novel, so when I saw it on NetGalley I was over the moon! This is a prequel to the first book and I would say you can definitely read this as a standalone, but I also highly recommend the previous book too!

The illustrations and colours were so beautiful. The story and characters so effortlessly diverse, it was a very lovely read. I honestly didn't want it to end!

One of the things that I absolutely loved was the use of sign language throughout the comic. In the beginning, there is a short introduction on how to identify when the characters are using ASL. The whole village learned after one of the residents was born deaf. There are also lots of resources at the end about sign language.

Overall, I loved it! I won't hesitate to pick up more work by this author.
Review to be posted on my blog, closer to the release date.