so, where to start with this? i don't even know, i love it all so much. a thought i kept having while reading was that i can't wait to sell this to people at my job. it's so inclusive - rinn uses they/them pronouns and has a really heartwarming moment where they think it "sounds lovely" that dragons can shift from one gender to another at will, most characters are people of colour, one is d/Deaf and sign language is used a lot, and there is an m/m relationship. all of these things are such non-problems in this world of the book, that they're just there and no one brings attention to it like it's A Thing. of course i love media that is loud and proud, but i think these quiet ones are really important too. from just looking at this book you wouldn't really be able to tell that it's queer, and sometimes that can be a life saver for young queer kids in families who aren't very accepting.

i just need to also mention the art, because i will never get over it. i love o'neill's art with everything i've got. it's so simple looking, but there is so much emotion in it. i don't know how she does it. there are so many colours, and every time a tea dragon is on page i almost pass out because of how cute it is. i would die for the gumpy mountain chamomile, and that is a promise.

just like the tea dragon society, the tea dragon festival is a very soft and quiet story, driven by characters instead of plot. it's about life and finding your people and your calling, seeing the beauty and wonders in the world around you. it relies heavily on visuals to tell the story, so there isn't a lot of text, making it accessible to children even if they don't read fluent english yet. it makes me warm and happy inside, to a level that few things have in the past. really, do yourself a favour and read the tea dragon festival (or anything by katie o'neill, really). it'll be a quick read, but it'll make your day brighter.

<em>The Tea Dragon Festival</em> is a prequel to Katie O'Neill's <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34895950-the-tea-dragon-society"><em>The Tea Dragon Society</em></a>, which <a href="https://ladybusiness.dreamwidth.org/246962.html#teadragonkon">I read and loved last year.</a> It focuses on a small village as it gets ready for their Tea Dragon Festival – especially Rinn, a wanna-be cook, who stumbles across a real, <em>actual</em> dragon sleeping in the forest while they're out looking for ingredients!

<em>The Tea Dragon Festival</em> is like the previous book in all the best ways. The art is cute and colourful, the cast is diverse, the story is gentle and peaceful, and similar themes run through it strongly. The themes of memory and relationships are immensely important; from the desire to share memories of something important to you, to missing out on making memories, to making new ones, memory is incredibly important to the characters here. As for relationships, the way that the village bands together to support each other – even newcomers, like their dragon friend, or by the entire village learning sign language – is very sweet, and it was lovely to see how much these bonds mattered to the characters.

As for the storytelling, I found the narrative more cohesive, as the focus was on one specific issue rather than split across four. I liked the way that the use of American Sign Language was introduced and depicted in the story, and I enjoyed seeing a pair of familiar adventurers show up! If you liked <em>The Tea Dragon Society</em>, I would <em>definitely</em> pick this up, even if you just want to revel in the adorable tea dragons some more!

<em>[This review is based off an ARC from Netgalley.]</em>

An absolutely gorgeous graphic novel - a definite must-read if you're a fan of the game, or if you liked the first comic, or if you just like adorable tea dragons. Love it!

Swoon. I have read this twice already and even read it to my kids a couple times. They adore flipping through the pictures and making up stories as they go. Katie O'Neill has the ABSOLUTE BEST ILLUSTRATIONS AND CHARACTERS. You will never go wrong with any of her books. I promise. I adore the diverse cast, the whimsical world, just everything. If I could give more than 5 stars, I would.

Adorable just like the first one. I can't express how much I love Katie ONeill and her little dragons.

This series has such a simple yet rich world, I adore all the types of tea dragons and the draw of magic that comes with them. This sequel had more of a plot and less "discovery" from the others

This was my first book by this author, It was pretty enjoyable. I would give this book a 3.5 star rating! It was a pretty Quick and easy read!

This was a delightful addition to the Tea Dragon world. I have loved all the Katie O'Neill books I've read previously and this one is no different.

From beginning to end, this book had me enthralled. I was so ecstatic that O'Neill was creating another book in her Tea Dragon world, and this book does a wonderful job with expanding the world that she gave us in the first book.

*thank you to Netgalley, Oni Press and Katie O'Neill for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*


4 stars.

Ohh the beauty of this is amazing! There is so much to love about this Graphic Novel. The story is so good it leaves you feeling quite happy once you have finished reading it. The illustrations are just absolutely stunning! I could spend ages just looking at the pictures. The colouring and just the artwork themselves are truly beautiful. 

I really love Middle Grade Dragon themed stories and this didn't disappoint me. This is my second book by this author and once again, she's given us a winner. Definitely recommend.

Another cute addition by Katie O’Neill. Illustrations are just as beautiful as always, making you want to live in the world she created. Loved seeing more species of Tea Dragons, each one cuter than the last.

LOVE!!! I love this book so much. The writing is perfection and the storytelling is amazing. The illustrations are just as amazing. I can't say enough good things about this book.

I can’t sing enough praises for this graphic novel! I love how beautiful this story is! The artwork is exquisite and the story is heartwarming. It’s wonderfully inclusive as well! The story represents represents people of different backgrounds and does it well. The story is a slice of life set in a world where dragons exist. The dragons, however, are small finicky creatures that have things that can be used to make tea growing off them (leaves, flowers, etc). It’s such a unique story and left me feeling very zen. I cannot wait until the next one is released so I can read that as well. I highly recommend this to everyone because there is something for everyone to enjoy.

*Received via NetGalley for review*

Sweet, gorgeous, cute, and with a great message. Sure to be a hit in any collection.

Katie O’Neill has yet again created an outstanding graphic novel.
The Tea Dragon Festival has a wonderful set of characters all wrapped in a beautiful world and a heartwarming story.
If you haven’t checked out this series, you really should. I recommend it so much!

*I received this book as an eARC from Oni Press via NetGalley. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

I love all of Katie O'Neill's books! The art style accompanied with the beautiful stories make them all such a great combination. This book takes place in the same world as The Tea Dragon Society, but at a different time. It can absolutely be read separate, but there are fun references.

There is such beauty within the pages of this book. The scenery is gorgeous. The details of the world make it vast. The tea dragons are adorable! The world is so big, but we get to see such quaint, pleasant areas.

Sign language is used in this book. Katie O'Neill always finds ways to be inclusive and really show representation to a diverse audience. There are some great questions about gender. The messaging of following and recognizing your passions and strengths is throughout this book.

There's a guide to tea dragons at the end of the book. I just can not get enough tea dragons. I obviously give this book a 5/5. If you haven't read any of Katie's books, I highly recommend any of them. This is technically a prequel, but that isn't the focus of the story. It's just a fun bonus.

The graphic novel was perfect !! I loved this so much. 5 stars for sur !!! Thank to Netgalley for this e-arc in exchange of my honest opinion

I really enjoyed the verity of characters in this precious little story, and thought the way sign language was incorporated was ingenious. Whether it be deafness, gender fluidity or sexuality, all these topics were subtly included which deepened the characters by stating these subjects are not the whole of there being, just a small part of it. The themes of doing what you are good at and debating the difference between what should be a hobby, and careers adds to the uniqueness of the story. Alongside the beautiful artwork there is nothing I can criticise with this story, and I will be definitely be picking up a physical copy.

I received a digital ARC through the publisher via Netgalley though all opinions are my own and aren't influenced by receiving a copy.

This sequel was just as precious as the first book and in some ways, even more so! I don't want to give too much away but I highly recommend especially if you enjoy Dragons! I also loved that there was a representation for sign language which isn't seen very often in books.

This is a prequel to the first book which follows Rinn who is Erik's neice, a large Dragon named Aedhan who is a Guardian of the area that fell asleep about eight years ago and has recently awoken, a much younger Erik, his partner Hesekiel. Erik and Hesekiel have come to Rinn's village to visit Erik's family as well as look into the mystery of someone who appears to be putting lots of people to sleep.

There's also a Festival going on which celebrates the many blessings the town has received, lots of spoiling to the wonderful Tea Dragons and generally brings people together while also honoring Dragons in general.

Over the course of the story, Rinn realizes with the help of her new friend Aedhan that she's wonderful as she is including how important her contributions of picking many of the herbs and ingredients her friends as well as family needs and that she's generally a wonderful human being.

I loved the friendships that were developed, how sign language was seen as a natural way of communicating whether deaf or not and how all of the villagers work together to help each other out. Aedhan and Rinn are two of the sweetest and so adorable with a bond that grows over the course of the book.

I also loved the way the mystery of why people were falling asleep was handled peaceably, the food looked delicious and the story gave me the warm fuzzies. The artwork was wonderfully done and really enhanced the story. I really hope that there will be more books in this world as I'm anxious to read more plus there's dragons who have tea leaves attached to them so what's not to love!

This is the sequel to The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O’Neill and I loved this just as much as I loved the first one. This story primarily follows along with Rinn and Aedhan, who is a real dragon, and their friendship. Rinn has grown up with tea dragons but she has never met a real dragon before until the day she stumbles upon Aedhan who has been sleeping for a long time. Hesekiel and Erik from The Tea Dragon Society are also in this book and I really enjoyed getting to see more of them.

This series is the cutest graphic novel series that I have ever read. I absolutely love all the characters. There is so much diversity and all the characters have such pure good hearts that I can’t help but love them all. There was also different tea dragons introduced into this book and I seriously wish they were a real thing.

The message behind this book was of friendship and really being intentional about helping our friends through their troubles. I can’t say it enough about how loving and sweet all the characters in this book are. Also, the illustrations in this book are simply stunning. The colors, the style, the details, it is all simply so perfect.

I recommend this book to everyone. You absolutely cannot go wrong with this heartwarming graphic novel series.