Book Review: Mysteries of the Mountain Moon Tribe

Mysteries of the Mountain Moon Tribe by Jack Ruedisueli
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

“Imagine a mountain so high that it overshadows every peak in every realm, a mountain so tall that the people who live within its highest peaks know nothing of the world below the clouds.”

This opening request to use your imagination nudges you into the right mind frame to experience this adventure. This is the story of Mia, the first and only child in her generation. As such, she’s been burdened with the task of being the tribe’s “child elder”. She will be the guide for any future children of her generation – whether she wants to be or not. She rails against this, wanting desperately to find her own truths, her own meaning of her life.

A stranger brings a gift to Mia’s village, and this becomes the inciting incident that sends Mia and her pygmy water ferret named Francis, on a quest. For the first time in her life, and against everything she’s been taught, she leaves the village. Her experiences beyond the village are surreal, beautiful, frightening, breathtaking.

Every aspect of her journey is captured in the artwork that fills each page right to the edges. The illustrations are astounding, filled in turn with wonder, sparkle, shadows, gloom, joy, mystery and hope.

An interesting style choice appears in many of the illustrations; people, including Mia, are represented in a simple style, flat and less realistic, overlaid on the complex artwork . I thought this was a brave choice. For me, it highlights the separation between humanity and nature. See what you think and make your own interpretation.

Take time at each turn of the page to immerse yourself in what Mia’s experiencing. I lost track of time while reading and savoring the artwork, to the point of being startled when the real world suddenly intruded.

As for the story being told… my advice is to take it personally. There’s interpretations waiting to be discovered, and your personal viewpoint will make the story your own. What might life be like beyond our own familiar boundaries? What are our responsibilities to our families, ourselves, our world, the universe?

A note about the text. Each page has a small amount of it, enough to move the story forward and let you know what’s going on. The text has the challenge of sharing space with the artwork, not an easy task. The formatting works well on pages with dark art, but not so well on lighter pages. A little patience is needed.

My thanks to author Jack Ruedisueli, Collective Ink Limited, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital advance review copy of this book. This review is my honest and unbiased opinion.