Starry River of the Sky by Grace Lin

Starry River of the Sky by Grace Lin is a lovely little book which incorporates Japanese folklore and mythology with a young hero's quest.

Rendi is running away from home, but when the merchant whose cart he was hiding in discovers his presence, Rendi is stranded in the tiny village of Clear Sky. Worse, every night his sleep is disturbed by a pitiful moaning sound: the sky mourning because the moon is missing. Rendi may be the only one who has noticed that the moon is gone. Is it because he, like the moon, is not in his proper place? Through the stories shared by the villagers and visitors to Clear Sky, Rendi will go on an introspective journey that will lead him to the point where he is able to share his own story -- and, yes, to find the missing moon in an unexpected place.

This book is a companion to the Newbery Honor-winning Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, and I found it just as charming. The two books feature different protagonists, and stand alone perfectly, but they also work beautifully together.

(Reviewed from a copy borrowed through my library system.)