The Moth Keeper by K. O'Neill is a beautiful graphic novel about a girl named Anya, who is called the new moth keeper for her village. There is such wonderful art done throughout the book and very enjoyable to look at. The story touched on essential matters such as responsibility, loneliness, burnout, and differences in the other villages. The story also touched on friendship and a nice blend of magic interweb together. I really like how Anya learns about family, how to help others and accept help in return when it's not always easy. This book is so amazing and beautifully done. I know this will for sure become the next favorite to whoever reads it.

I would like to take a moment to thank NetGalley and the publishers for my advanced reader copy in exchange for my review.

I initially read The Moth Keeper as an e-ARC, but quickly pre-ordered it for my home library. From the author and illustrator of the beloved Tea Dragon Society series, comes another stunning and charming graphic novel.

What I love most about K. O'Neill's graphic novels is the way that they blend magic and friendship into gentle tales with a respect for the natural world. With enchanting illustrations and precious characters, this author has easily become a favorite in my home.

I also very much enjoyed and appreciated the author's notes at the back of the book regarding the delicate balance of ecosystems and the interconnectedness of flora and fauna.

Another easy 5 star read from a 5 star author!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

The Moth Keeper is such a great story. It is a beautiful graphic novel about a child name Anya who becomes the new moth keeper for her night village. It’s a huge responsibility for anyone, let alone someone Anya’s age, and requires a lot of time spent alone through the night making her wonder about the sun village. This story talks about some deep and important topics such as burnout, loneliness, and differences in other communities and people. This was done with fantastic art throughout with unique original characters. It displays the importance of a community, how love and friendship can be healing, and how we don’t have to carry our burdens alone.

I would have given it five stars, however, there were a few times that I got lost and didn’t quite understand what was going on, but that sometimes happens in graphic novels, at least for me.

But overall, this was beautifully done from the graphics to the storyline and I would highly recommend this one for all ages.

This was a stunning book that gently created a fascinating fantasy world of night-dwelling folks who cared for each other and a mystical group of moths. In all of that it found a way to tell a story about extremely realistic troubles and struggles. O'Neill fans will not be disappointed, people who haven't read her work will fall in love immediately.

This was a really sweet story with lovely artwork. I loved watching the main character change and evolve.

This was so beautiful and lovely. The artwork is gorgeous and I loved all of the characters. The pages just showing their daily lives and how they work to help each other and build up their town.

The Moth Keeper is a story about isolation, finding your family, the things we do to help the people we love, and learning to let them help us in return. It left a major impression on me and I'm going to be making everyone I know read it.

The Moth Keeper is a quiet, gentle story about finding your place and purpose. The tiny, busy vignettes contrasted masterfully with the vastness of the open desert to create a sense of loneliness, without saying it in so many words. Beautifully illustrated, and made me tear up at the end.

Loved this! It was so cute and I loved the art. The story was great and I enjoyed the pace of the plot.

This art style kind of reminded me of Shera and the Princesses of Power, more than the other books I've read by K. I liked the story. I was impressed with how much world-building they fit into a graphic novel.

Yet another beautifully illustrated work by K. O'Neill. If you loved The Tea Dragon Society, then you will definitely want to pick this one up.

A small village in the desert is a "moon village," which means that its society comes to life as the sun sets. Their livelihood is thanks to the moon moths who were gifted to them some time ago by the moon spirit. The Moth Keepers tend to the moths, guiding them out of their keep as the sky darkens and shepherding them back as night wanes. The moths, in turn, pollenate the special tree that helps the desert keep its fragile life cycle.

Anya is a young person who has decided to take the path of a Moth Keeper, one that can be extremely lonely as they lead the moths away from the bustling village to soak up the light from the moon. Anya struggles with the darkness and, also, knowing where her place in the village is. Her quiet nights leave her pondering where she belongs, even though she is clearly shown love from her companions.

Eventually, she realizes the love and care from others is something to behold and the graphic novel wraps up with Anya understanding herself, her village, and the moths a little more.

It was a gentle read, with several pages of panels where you can see the villagers or Anya going about their lives without any dialogue. I believe it was helpful in displaying the quiet of the night and all of the important things that continue on under the moon's watch.

I'd love to get more of these characters the same way that the Tea Dragon Society series slowly explored its storyline.

Thank you to Netgalley for my advanced reading copy.

O'Neill's art is distinct with beautiful coloring and recognizable character themes. This story is longer than their previous works but retains the reflective quality of life in the fantastical world on the page and how that translates to our own surroundings.

I thought this was a really sweet graphic novel! I loved the art style and compelling story. It was very immersive and I felt like I was part of the story while reading. I have seen great things about the Tea Dragons by O'Neill so I will definitely be checking those out now, too. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Such a cute graphic novel! O'Neill once again gave us such a cute book and with a universal powerful message behind it. As someone currently struggling with burnout, it was so important for me to see young Anya learning to ask for help from her village instead of struggling through it alone. Would highly recommend this one!

Today is my stop on @tbrbeyondtours’ bookstagram tour for The Moth Keeper, the latest graphic novel release from @strangelykatie! I personally have been following Kay O’Neill’s work eagerly across their different series, so when I got the chance to read their newest book early I was excited beyond belief!

The Moth Keeper exists in a similar vein to Kay O’Neill’s previous works, in that the gentle world and beautiful art persist through this story in the same way they did in The Tea Dragon Society. This book was its own distinct adventure from any of their previous writing, set in a nocturnal desert world. The nocturnal setting provided the perfect canvas for a world teaming with light and life. The world design and storytelling in The Moth Keeper was inspiring, and set this book apart as one of my favorite graphic novels!

I was genuinely shocked with the depth from this middle grade novel. This genre continues to surprise me. Truly well done, thoughtfully written, and absolutely gorgeous! Cannot recommend enough.

Are we always drawn to that which scares us the most? That's one of the questions explored here, as young Anya tries to become the light in the dark she needed as a little girl. Anya is a resident of the night village, and she takes on the role of Moth Keeper, guardian of the sacred moths that help to keep the village alive and functioning. She's eager to try, but gradually her childhood fears of the dark take a toll on her, forcing a quiet reckoning within herself. As always, O'Neill deftly blends symbolism with gentle fantasy, and Anya's story is one about learning to acknowledge what scares you. You don't have to push through it, but you do have to understand that it exists.

At this point I will pick up pretty much anything Kay O'Neill writes as I love their whimsical art style and the worlds they create - this story was no different. I loved that this one had a different feel and color palette than previous works, which gave it more of a dreamlike feel. I did find myself wanting a little more background on some of the characters, especially Anya, but the story still felt complete without more detail.

As always I really enjoyed the representation, diversity and lessons that are woven into the story. I appreciated that when mistakes were make, even bad ones, there was support rather than outright anger or blame. It was not only a fantasy story, but commentary on responsibility and community, which I loved to see.

This is a soft, dreamy story with lots of themes to contemplate and the room needed to do so. In the story, we have a desert village whose people are nocturnal; they live their lives at night and have developed a culture and spirituality that reflects this, including taking care of the moon moths. The moths are needed to spread pollen from a sacred flower tree that blooms only one day a year, but whose pollen is necessary to the ecosystem. A keeper is needed to make sure the moths don't get lost, but few people are suited to the job, because it requires one to be away from home all night, away from home, family, and friends. As the tale begins, Anya has just become a moth keeper, and the solitude of her nights leaves her with a lot of time to ponder her life and world. She deals with abandonment, feeling like she doesn't fit in, fear of the night, and wondering what it would be like to live during the day, in the light. She makes a mistake due to taking on too much on her own; will she be able to to make things right, and will she learn to ask for help?
There's a strong theme of community running through this story, of the interconnectedness of life, and how we each play our part. There is a melancholic vibe here - Anya's dealing with some trauma (parental abandonment amongst other things) that isn't easy to work through - but there's also hope and love and joy. Plus, there's gorgeous art that sets the mood so well, and tells the story in the parts where words aren't needed. Just such a lovely book!

#TheMothKeeper #NetGalley

This book is super cute. The art is pretty and the story moves fast. It’s an easy read and the fantasy world is a breeze to navigate. I like it a lot!

K. O'Neill has done it yet again! They are my favorite middle grade author. The Moth Keeper is an adorable graphic novel about Anya who is the new moth keeper. It is a very important job in her village. She has to protect the lunar moths that help the Night-Lily bloom once a year and they collect the pollen. It may be an important job but it is a lonely job. The moths are far and she must make the venture at night leading to her feeling isolated. When thoughts about living in the sun come up and Anya is obsessed with the idea. She decided to stay awake and see how it is in the day time. This decision has great affect on the Lunar Moths and the night village.

I love that O'Neill always included LGBTQ+ rep in her novels, amazing art work, and has a clear meaning to the story. They take real world topics and break them down in a digestible way for a younger generation. I also really enjoy they put a blurb in the back about the inspiration for the novel and the history behind it.