The Tea Dragon Festival

I didn't think this graphic novel would live up to the beauty and enchantment of The Tea Dragon society but it did! Once again Kate O'Neill has created a tale of magic, humor, marvelous well-rounded characters, diverse beings, and mystery also this time! I'd love to live in her idealistic small-town communities (and drink tea dragon leaves).

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this comic!

Title: The Tea Dragon Festival
Author: Katie O'Neill
Rating: 5 stars

I am a huge fan of Katie O'Neill's work, this is the 3rd comic I have read by this author now and I loved it! After reading "The Tea Dragon Society" earlier this year and also rating it 5 stars, I have been eagerly anticipating this new novel, so when I saw it on NetGalley I was over the moon! This is a prequel to the first book and I would say you can definitely read this as a standalone, but I also highly recommend the previous book too!

The illustrations and colours were so beautiful. The story and characters so effortlessly diverse, it was a very lovely read. I honestly didn't want it to end!

One of the things that I absolutely loved was the use of sign language throughout the comic. In the beginning, there is a short introduction on how to identify when the characters are using ASL. The whole village learned after one of the residents was born deaf. There are also lots of resources at the end about sign language.

Overall, I loved it! I won't hesitate to pick up more work by this author.
Review to be posted on my blog, closer to the release date.

This is a companion novel to Katie O'Neill's The Tea Dragon Society, which I was lucky to receive a copy of in an Owlcrate box. After reading The Tea Dragon Society I really wanted to know more about Hesekiel and Erik, two of the main characters in the story. They portrayed such a depth of knowledge about tea dragons and the world in which they lived. My wish came true in the form of this wonderful prequel!

We're introduced to a few new characters, a remote mountain village and an actual fierce dragon in this instalment. There's a deaf character amongst these new additions and so the author has amazingly incorporated the use of sign language by most of the characters into the illustrations.

I would have like to have learnt a little bit more about the magical creature in the forest who Hesekiel and Erik stumble upon, but otherwise this instalment was pure perfection. It is such a wonderful story of friendship and companionship.

I really hope there are more instalments planned for this world, as I would love to find out more about the tea dragons.

The Tea Dragon Festival is a companion story to the beautiful The Tea Dragon Society and let me assure that this volume is as stunning as the first one. The colors are gorgeous and the illustrations are to die for. This story is set before the events of The Tea Dragon Society since we can see a much younger Hesekiel and Erik. I also loved the new characters that were introduced in this story.

Aedhan is a dragon, a real one, and can shift forms and so become human. It was very nice to learn more about dragons in general and not only about tea dragons, the lovely creatures that were the focus of the first volume.
I loved how in the end everyone helped with tea leaves so that Aedhan could experience the memories of the past 80 years and see what he missed while he was asleep. It was such a thoughtful gesture. I’m really happy that he found Rinn and also a place that he can finally call home.

In this book characters use both American sign language and voice to communicate and I thought it was such a nice addition to this volume, it was well explained at the beginning of the book and there were different-colored texts so that the reader could understand what language the characters were speaking.

If you liked The Tea Dragon Society, you’ll love this one!

Katie O'Neill's companion story to her award-winning, The Tea Dragon Society, is a triumph. This artist's ability to create intimate and beautiful stories of love, friendship, and inclusion is unmatched. I am completely head over heels in love with the worlds and characters that she creates and this book is no exception.

The Tea Dragon Festival follows Rinn, an aspiring cook with an affinity for harvesting all of the best wild herbs and vegetables for their village. They stumble upon Aedhan, a young dragon who has been asleep for nearly 80 years. Rinn helps Aedhan to adjust to the world now that he is awake and their journey together is so incredibly precious and timely.

The representation in this book is absolutely incredible and so effortless. Rinn is a non-binary character. Hesekiel and Erik, two queer characters from The Tea Dragon Society, return. Nearly every character is a person of color and almost all of the inhabitants of the village use ASL while talking because the town cook is deaf.

The art throughout the novel is spectacular and, honestly, some of the most beautiful illustrating I've ever seen.

The plot was excellent and very satisfying. A perfect happy read for children and adults alike. I wish I could live in O'Neill's worlds. She is a master at her craft and I can't wait to see what else she releases in the future.

"Just because something comes easily to you, does not mean it has no value. You find it effortless because you love it, and that is why it is your gift."

After having absolutely adored The Tea Dragon Society, I didn't know how quickly to request this companion graphic novel. And just like in The Tea Dragon Society, this was once again a breathtakingly beautiful graphic novel, full of seemingly effortless diversity.

This novel moved a little slower than its predecessor, and it was amazing to see more of a background unfold. In this story, we meet Hesekiel and Erik again, but at an earlier period in their lives, when they've only been together for a few years. The novel is centered around Erik's family, however, and the peaceful, loving village they live in.

I just fell so completely in love with this story. There are were so many incredibly heartwarming, sweet aspects, and reading it felt like a warm hug.

Rep: multiple characters of colour, non-binary character, Deaf character & use of ASL.

Comics by Katie O'Neill just fill me with such deep happiness and peace that I want everyone in the world to read them. 😭💛The art is so so beautiful and magical, especially the foresty parts here...I felt like they were glowing off the page?! And the overall softness of the style the warm colours, and the expressions that so perfectly capture emotions (they're lovingly surprised faces when kindness happens just makes my heart swell). Look, I definitely am not an artist, but I can appreciate art 1000% and the Tea Dragon series is my favourite ever!

And I also have to mention the beautiful inclusivity, with characters who are queer, a nonbinary protagonist, all skin colours but especially brown and black characters, and deafness and gender fluidity. It's beautiful and loving and carefully crafted.

These comics are a soft journey of wishes and beauty and I love every page!

** Thank you to Netgalley and Oni Press for providing me the digital ARC for this book in exchange for my honest review. **

my actual rating: ALL THE SPARKLY STARS IN THE WHOLE UNIVERSEEEE

reading Katie's books always makes me happy and this one has been in my most anticipated reads of this year list, if i have one. the first book, The Tea Dragon Society is one of the best graphic novels i've ever read, so of course when i saw this book i got all grabby hands!!

let's talk about why y'all gotta pick this book up too when it comes out in 3 months:

- the adorable as hell tea dragons that you can't help but to love. tag yourself, i'm the mountain chamomile!!!

- the gorgeous and astounding illustrations; every single panel is nothing but a feast to the eyes. what an incredible work aaa i've decided to stan this author forever!! (yes, we do stanning authors too)

- it was a fantasy story targeted to middle graders but i believe everyone's gonna love it as much too!

- did i already mention how cute these lil tea dragons are???

- it is so diverse!! it has queer, disability (sign language in a comic book, y'all!!!) and POC reps. i can go on and on about how important it is to find more diversity in books nowadays but i bet you've read about it enough, so yeah.

in a conclusion, if you haven't read The Tea Dragon Society yet AND not planning to pick this book up next, what are you doing with your life?

This graphic novel is so so peaceful and heartwarming. So many times while reading this I could feel myself getting caught up in the beautiful artwork and it felt so magical. Katie O’Neill’s comics fill me with such happiness and warmth it’s unreal.
And the diversity and inclusiveness in this story is wonderful. I was so happy to see lgbt and poc characters incorporated into a story as well as they were.

Overall I am in love with The Tea Dragon series and sincerely think no matter your age you should read these adorable comics.

Thank you to Oni Press via NetGalley for the ARC!

A wonderfully peaceful book, the art is fantastic and the gentle story line and characters have been written perfectly.
A story for all ages.

This was an adorable prequel to the Tea Dragon Society. Im so happy we got to see one of the tea master Hese and his partner Eriks bounty hunting adventures. We also follow Eriks niece Rinn and the dragon she discovers sleeping in the woods while foraging for her village. I loved the sweet relationship that develops between them. The story has this wonderful message about finding ones passion and where they belongs. I really appreciated the sign language representation and how the entire village learned it when one of their girls was born without hearing. The talk about the shapeshifting dragon clan being able to change gender made me very happy. I absolutely love the art style and with the festival going on we got some mezmerizing scenes. This is probably aimed at a much younger audience as it doesnt have much writing, but I still adored it. Its just an overall super heartwarming story that anyone can enjoy.

Okay, this settles it - Katie O'Neill is now one of my favourite artists. Her panels are gorgeous and this prequel to The Tea Dragon Society is a beauty! It has so many things to love: mythical creatures, tea, love, family and environmentalism. What I loved most was how O'Neill dealt with mature topics such as finding your calling, loving your family, gender identity, and protecting the environment - all while creating the most adorable tea dragons!

Overall, this is a beautiful books - in its story and its art. I can't wait to see what O'Neill comes up with next.

This graphic novel brings me so much joy. I love this world and I am so happy I got to visit it again. The art is so beautiful and getting to see the landscapes drawn out was amazing. The writing in this graphic novel is also superb, as it isn’t too complex while it is also not too simple. I hope that we get to continue going back to this world because I always leave with the warmest feeling inside and I finish reading with such a smile on my face.

Katie has such a way with creating seamlessly inclusive worlds that you just want to escape into and live in forever.
This book is no exception to the magic she weaves. A prequel full of heart. I am so glad I read it. I can't wait to own it. I want all of the tea dragons!

It was absolutely amazing to see so much diversity wrapped up in such a cute little package. It was well worth the read and I've fallen in love with the Tea Dragons.

This book was absolutely adorable. The characters, the plot, the illustrations; they were all so beautiful! I loved the amazing representation in this book with the nonbinary main character, POC, as well as the sign language usage. I have never seen the latter in a book before and it was so lovely to see.

Overall, this book was definitely 5/5 and had important messages of self-acceptance, knowing your worth, being a supportive friend, and helping others.

That was one of the purest things that I have ever read.

The art is so cute, the story so sweet and everything about it was amazing. And it was so diverse too without it being about the diversity. Rinn and Aedhan just want to help by people and by meeting they discover more about themselves.

I've had a rough couple of days but this short, cute read was just what I needed and I wholeheartedly recommend it.

The Tea Dragon series has quickly become a favorite on my list of fantasy worlds I would choose to live in. Heart-warming and filled with beautifully diverse characters, this will continue to be one of my go to recommendation series! I can’t wait to get my hands on a physical copy as well!

I’ve loved everything I’ve read from Katie O’Neill so far, and this was, of course, no exception. It was so lovely to return to the world of the tea dragons, and I can’t even describe how pleased I was that, despite mostly following new characters, we get to spend a little more time with (much younger versions of) Erik and Hesekiel. ♥

This was every bit as precious as I thought it would be, and it added in something new: sign language! Some of the characters actually use a mixture of spoken word and American Sign Language when they talk, and there are even ASL resources in the back of the book. It was such a sweet, lovely form of inclusion for Katie to add and just made me love her work that much more.

Thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Katie O'Neill has done it again! Every single one of her publications have been a hit for myself and for my young readers. I always recommend her titles to any young reader who enjoys magical adventures and beautiful graphics.

How adorable is this? I haven't read The Tea Dragon Society, but I didn't feel like it mattered that much. The artwork is adorable and charming and the story is filled with all sorts of creatures and magic and everyday life. I adored this read. It's sweet with a touch of fierceness and a bunch of diversity, which I love! The story itself is easy to read and even though nothing much happens, it's still interesting to follow how the dragon fell asleep for 80 years and get to know the characters.The important part is community, friendship and love. And cute, awful pets in form of tea dragons! This is for the ones who're looking for charming artwork, a unique, magical world and a diverse set of characters.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this gorgeous piece!

/ Denise

Katie O'Neill is an auto-buy. Her stories are so heartfelt and the art is just absolutely stunning. Although geared for younger children, I still would recommend this graphic novel (and all of her works) to people of all ages. Reading a Katie O'Neill graphic novel feels like getting a hug, or sitting in a cozy chair sipping some calming tea. I cannot express how much I love her work,

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!