A review by libwinnie
The Moon Within by Aida Salazar

1.0

The free verse was nice, though nothing outstanding. I appreciated the honest discussion of a girl's emotions around the changes in her body and her experience of her first period. I also really appreciated the gender fluidity of her best friend and the way their culture embraced it. The Mexica culture was vividly portrayed. My main issue with this book was the mother forcing her daughter to participate in a moon ceremony. Though I understand that the premise of the ceremony is to celebrate, it felt a bit too much like taking the power away from the girl rather than giving it to her. It might be my personal bias and it may very well be a cultural difference.