How to Heal a Gryphon - (Giada the Healer Novel) by Meg Cannistra

About the Book

"With her thirteenth birthday just around the corner, Giada Bellantuono has to make a big decision: Will she join the family business and become a healer or follow her dreams? But even though she knows her calling is to heal vulnerable animals, using her powers to treat magical creatures is decidedly not allowed. When a group of witches kidnaps her beloved older brother, Rocco, and her parents are away, Giada is the only person left who can rescue him. Swept into the magical underground city of Malafi, Giada will need the help of her new companions to save her brother--or risk losing him forever." --

Book Synopsis

"A funny, fantastical mystery. . . Perfect for fans of Rick Riordan." --Laura Ruby, Two-Time National Book Award Finalist and author of the YORK Trilogy

"I could live with these characters and in this world for a good long while. Bring on the sequel!" --New York Times bestselling author Julie Murphy

To save her family, she'll have to make a dangerous bargain and tip the scales of balance.

With her thirteenth birthday just around the corner, Giada Bellantuono has to make a big decision: Will she join the family business and become a healer or follow her dreams? But even though she knows her calling is to heal vulnerable animals, using her powers to treat magical creatures is decidedly not allowed.

When a group of witches kidnaps her beloved older brother, Rocco, and her parents are away, Giada is the only person left who can rescue him. Swept into the magical underground city of Malafi, Giada will need the help of her new companions to save her brother--or risk losing him forever.

Review Quotes

"Take one headstrong, lovable heroine, one snarky cat familiar, a family of gryphons, a rich and immersive magical world plus a search for a missing brother and you get How to Heal a Gryphon, a funny, fantastical mystery with nods to Italian history and mythology. Perfect for fans of Rick Riordan."--Laura Ruby, Two-Time National Book Award Finalist and author of the YORK Trilogy

"I could live with these characters and in this world for a good long while. Bring on the sequel!" --New York Times bestselling author Julie Murphy

"Cannistra's entertaining narrative features wonderful descriptions of places and events that will transport readers. Stupenda!" -- Kirkus Reviews

"Via a world where magic and modern medicine coexist, and a secret spell-casting community lives undetected year-round, Cannistra writes a compassionate quest that interrogates tradition, legacy, and humans' effect on the natural world." -- Publishers Weekly

"Cannistra's wonderfully engrossing and atmospheric story is replete with intriguing Italian folklore, locations, and language... Giada is a joy to befriend; she's aware of her shortcomings but also confident in her magic, and she unapologetically delights in her fat body and all that it's capable of. It's worth a trip to this enchanting (and enchanted) Italian coast." -- Booklist