The Moon Within (Scholastic Gold) - by Aida Salazar

About the Book

Eleven-year-old (nearly twelve) Celi Rivera, who is a mix of Black-Puerto Rican-Mexican Indian is uncomfortable about her approaching period, and the changes that are happening to her body; she is horrified that her mother wants to hold a traditional public moon ceremony to celebrate the occasion--until she finds out that her best friend Magda is contemplating an even more profound change of life.

Book Synopsis

The dazzling story of a girl navigating friendship, family, and growing up, an Are You There God, It's Me Margaret? for the modern day, from debut author Aida Salazar.

The Moon Within joins the Scholastic Gold line, which features award-winning and beloved novels. Includes exclusive bonus content!

* "A worthy successor to Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret set in present-day Oakland." -- Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Celi Rivera's life swirls with questions. About her changing body. Her first attraction to a boy. And her best friend's exploration of what it means to be genderfluid.

But most of all, her mother's insistence she have a moon ceremony when her first period arrives. It's an ancestral Mexica ritual that Mima and her community have reclaimed, but Celi promises she will NOT be participating. Can she find the power within herself to take a stand for who she wants to be?

A dazzling story told with the sensitivity, humor, and brilliant verse of debut talent Aida Salazar.

Review Quotes

Distinctions and Praise for The Moon Within:

International Latino Book Award Finalist

NCTE Notable Poetry Book

A Spring 2019 Kids Indie Next List selection

* "A worthy successor to Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret set in present-day Oakland.... Salazar's verse novel is sensitive and fresh.... An authentically middle school voice and diverse Latinx cast make this book a standout."-Kirkus Reviews, starred review

* "An excellent addition for upper middle grade and middle school readers, especially for maturing tweens in the midst of puberty."-School Library Journal, starred review

"This story is told in beautiful poems.... A lovely, relatable story....The words really use up the space on the pages in creative ways, and the author reveals cultural aspects of Latinx (especially Xicana) and Caribbean peoples in rich detail." -Booklist

"Lyrical.... The characters leap to life and eloquently evoke the passion and pain of a girl's coming-of-age. Absolutely beautiful, reverent, and intensely personal, the book would make a valued gift for pre-teen readers, especially a young Latina." -School Library Connection

"This is a fascinating tale that blends ancestral traditions from two cultures, while portraying modern dilemmas. Salazar's poetry is as lovely and graceful as the dance scenes."-Margarita Engle, National Young People's Poet Laureate and Newbery Honor winning author of The Surrender Tree

"With conga-pulsed lyrics, Aida Salazar pulls us into the coming of age of eleven year Celi. She initiates readers into the conversation of Bomba, the girl-woman circle, divine twin energies and the many moon-tide powers of a Latina pre-teen. This is a book whose form and content, vision and depth, I find revolutionary and culturally ecstatic. In these times, here is the liberation verse our youth and all have been waiting for - Brava-Bravo!" -Juan Felipe Herrera, U.S. Poet Laureate and author of Jabberwalking

"Aida Salazar has reached deep into our indigenous past to explore in beautiful, poignant poetry what it means to become a woman at the intersection of community and self. Rooted in ancestral lore yet vibrantly modern, The Moon Within is a touching, powerful, and important novel in verse." -David Bowles, Pura Belpré Honor-winning author of The Smoking Mirror

"In a vivid, magical debut, Aida Salazar's lyrical poetry deftly pulls you into Celi's vibrant world as she reluctantly dances towards womanhood, adjusting to the drumbeats of first love and true friendship while exploring her ancestral roots as she finds her role within family and community." - Naheed H. Senzai, award-winning author of Shooting Kabul and Escape From Aleppo

"Lovely and amazing...a heartbreaker, in every wonderful way. Salazar's vivid and accessible verse brings us the coming-of-age story we've been longing for. Poignant, funny, and deeply moving, The Moon Within is a story told with an abundance of love and respect-a gift straight from the center of Salazar's heart to readers everywhere." -- Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich, author of Eighth-Grade Superzero and co-author of Naomis Too

About the Author

Aida Salazar is an award-winning author and arts activist whose writings for adults and children explore issues of identity and social justice. She is the author of the middle-grade verse novels Ultraviolet (a Golden Poppy Book Award finalist), The Moon Within (International Latino Book Award Winner), and Land of the Cranes (Américas Award Winner), as well as the picture book anthology In the Spirit of a Dream: 13 Stories of American Immigrants of Color, and the Caldecott Honor Book Jovita Wore Pants: The Story of a Mexican Freedom Fighter illustrated by Molly Mendoza. Salazar is a founding member of Las Musas, a Latinx kidlit debut author collective. She lives with her family of artists in Oakland, California.