Good Gentles And Redoubtable Rapscallions of the Public,
the Doors of the Strip Show Are Hereby Open Once More!
On With The Show!
The creation of Katie O'Neill, the Tea Dragon Society can be read at this link.
After discovering a lost tea dragon in the marketplace, Greta learns about the dying art form of tea dragon care-taking from the kind tea shop owners, Hesekiel and Erik. As she befriends them and their shy ward, Minette, Greta sees how the craft enriches their lives -- and eventually her own.
The Rating
Put the kettle on to boil and curl up with me for a lovely read. You'll be so very glad you did.
The Raves
On Tea Dragons, I'll have to begin with the visual aspect. This work. This work is just plain BEAUTY.
Echoing the award-winning cartoon Hilda in style, Tea Dragons is a visual delight. Done in soft curves and pastel lines, its style is gentle and comforting, giving a soft 'it's going to be okay' message to your mind even when it showcases some tragedies.
It's the perfect support for this story. Oh this story. Oh, my friends, this story. To grossly oversimplify it, imagine if Pokemon was more about the work and love of being an animal caretaker than it was about Team Rocket and battles. Gentle, supportive and inclusive, Tea Dragons reminds us that there is more than one kind of strength. With compassionate determination, it shows us how to rear and care for the magical Tea Dragons, hybrid flora-fauna crosses who grow the finest tea leaves on their antlers. It goes into quite a lot of detail on a charming side page. And it follows through on its central tenant in every page. The valor of battle is a strength, true. But the patience and diligence needed to nurture life is also a strength.
The dedication it takes to perfect a craft is a strength. The ingenuity to find an answer to a problem that doesn't involve violence is a strength.
And the compassion to understand another is a strength.
The inclusion in this story is effortless, showing at least two LGBT characters in a wonderful committed relationship while keeping it kid friendly. The elder figures of Erik and Hesekiel remind me a lot of Lark and Rosethorn in Tamora Pierce's Circle of Magic series, and I ate it up with a spoon.
And all I can say is THANK YOU for a story that shows the dedication and care it takes to be a craftsperson in a positive light. Thank you. So much. This is a story I want all young kids and tweens to see; it's the perfect thing to show them (and remind us adults) that all ways of being strong are needed. And sometimes, the great work of figuring out who you need to be in this life is all the adventure you need.
The Razzes
Does 'I want more, sniff, sniff, it's too short, whimper' count? ;) Probably not.
The Revue
Pour your tea. Curl up. Read. Let the story ease in around you. Steep your soul in the story today. It will ease the aches and soften the hard edges.
I can give no higher praise.
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