Mooncakes by Wendy Xu & Suzanne Walker

Nova is a young hearing-impaired witch of Asian-American heritage, who helps her grandmas run the Black Cat Bookstore in their small New England town. When her childhood friend, Tam, comes back to town, their return sets off a tale of magical adventure, family conflict and sweet romance.

This is a gentle, charming tale that reads as YA despite slightly older characters. Suzanne Walker writes of characters under-represented in YA fantasy with a real grounding in what magic might mean for them. I really appreciated the extra material included in the volume that explores the challenges a hearing-impaired character might have in navigating the setting’s magic system. The romance is queer but chaste, and there’s some magical violence, so it kinda feels like a shojo manga transplanted to American soil. Wendy Xu’s art reflects this, blending the best of Japanese and European comic styles, well suiting the subject matter.

Overall, a cute urban fantasy that centers minority characters, seamlessly integrating non-mainstream American lifestyles and cultures in an affirming manner. I think it would have had a more profound impact on me had I been much younger upon first encountering the book, tho.

This volume was reviewed as part of my voting slate for the Hugo Awards 2020 Best Graphic Story category.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2020/06/13/mooncakes-by-wendy-xu-suzanne-walker/

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