Katie O'Neill creates amazing books. I will read everything she creates!

The Tea Dragon Festival was such a sweet beautiful book to read. The art is so colorful and just projects brightness and positivity. The story was easy to follow from start to finish and is perfect for all ages.

The art in my e-book Netgally copy is different that the Tea Dragon Society. I'm unsure if this will change once printed but I was a little let down. The style in Tea Dragon Society is perfection, and in Tea Dragon Festival is great just a little lacking.

Thanks Netgalley for a copy! #TheTeaDragonFestival #NetGalley

I want a tea dragon. I’m not sure it’s possible to love a sequel more than the first book. It has to be though. Note that it took me a bit longer this time to get into the story. The first 3rd didn’t have the same charm as the first book. But I stuck with it, mostly because the art is so freaking adorable, and loved how the story came together.
ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Once again, Katie O'Neill wins my heart over with a beautiful and heart warming story. I loved reading "The Tea Dragon Society" and once I found out that "The Tea Dragon Festival" was coming out I knew I had to read it. Set in the same universe, both books are connected by some elements but you do not need to read one to understand the other.
The artwork is impeccable and the story has a mix of great character building, world building and adventure that makes it impossible to put it down. I love all the characters and how they represent and approach racial diversity, sexual orientation, gender identity and disability in a responsible and natural way.
I am a huge fan of O'Neill's work and I have no doubts everyone will fall in love with this one too. <3

I received an ARC of this book through NetGalley in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

Rinn is learning to be a chef from her Gramman and is excellent at finding various foods in the forest near their village. While harvesting food one day, she finds a dragon who has been asleep for 80 years. Rinn is familiar with the tea dragons of her village but has never before met a real dragon. Aedhan, the dragon, is ashamed to have fallen asleep for so long when he has been tasked with taking care of Rinn's village. The village welcomes Aedhan, and together, they all celebrate the festival of the tea dragon.

I adored the first book about the tea dragons, so when I saw this companion novel, I knew I had to read it. I love how all the people and other creatures take care of each other in this world. Even when Rinn's uncle Eric and his partner Hesekiel go in search of the creature that put Aedhan to sleep, once they meet the creature, they understand its point of view and let it go after talking to it rather than bringing it in for the bounty on its head. This book is very inclusive. It includes people of all skin tones and includes a deaf character, with others in the village having learned sign language to talk to her. The end of the book contains extracts from the <i>Alpine Tea Dragon Handbook</i> showing the species of tea dragons that were included in this book; it is adorable. I loved this book as much as the first!

This book was definitely one of my most anticipated releases of the year and has fully cemented the fact that I will probably buy anything Katie O'Neill writes in the future.

This story is a prequel to The Tea Dragon Society and you do meet some characters in this story that are in that one as well, which was a great surprise. It really feels like O'Neill is building a world for these stories and I desperately hope there will be many more installments featuring tea dragons and these characters.

I love how seamlessly she works diversity and inclusiveness into her stories, it isn't there as any kind of novelty or anything, it's there because these things are part of everday life and part of people's worlds. This book specifically features a non-binary character and also highlights the use of sign language. Along with that it featured information at the beginning and end for resources regarding sign language, which I thought was a great way to provide information for anyone who is curious after reading.

I will also forever love O'Neill's art style, she has the perfect balance of simplicity and detail and the color are so vivid that the scenes easily come to life. These stories are whimsical and full of fantasy, but still grounded and full of important messages.

The Tea Dragon Festival was absolutely adorable! I’m thoroughly impressed by the author’s ability to write AND illustrate her own book. The art style is so colorful and immediately draws you in!

One aspect I really appreciated was the unique way in which sign language was included. I enjoyed learning sign language as a child, and I think it makes this novel stand out from all the others.

I can’t wait to see what other dragon adventures Katie comes up with!

I received with thanks an ARC copy of The Tea Dragon Festival from Oni Press and Netgalley.

This is my review of The Tea Dragon Festival by Katie O'Neil. This will be published on 17th September 2019

This was beautifully written but I am defiantly not the attended audience but I am glad that I read this cute graphic novel.

The Tea Dragon Festival is another beautiful graphic novel by Katie O'Neill. The style and use of color in the artwork is gorgeous and really brings to life this wonderful world of dragons, tea dragons, magical forest creatures and village life. The story takes places before The Tea Dragon Society, and I really enjoyed meeting the younger versions of Hesekiel and Erik, two loveable characters from that book.

In this comic, we follow the story of Rinn, a young village girl who's an aspiring cook and talented forager, who stumbles upon Aedhan, a young dragon who has been asleep for 80-years. Aedhan is plagued by guilt for having not done his duty of taking care of the village residents, but he was put under a sleeping spell by a magical forest creature. Rinn brings Aedhan to the village and the two quickly form a strong, sweet bond as Aedhan picks up his dragon duties and reintegrates to village life. I loved how this story was even more diverse and inclusive than the first book. We have characters who use sign language, different ethnicities, and diverse sexualities, and none of these elements in the story feels contrived.

The tea dragons were just as freaking adorable as in the first book. I want to live in this world and I want to take care of those tea dragons, no matter how pesky they're claimed to be! At the end, O'Neill also included additional information about the tea dragon varieties, and more wonderful history about dragons like Aedhan.

This was a very quick read full of sweet and fluffy things! Recommended to everyone who wants to experience all the good and happy feels! Thanks to NetGalley for providing the e-ARC for an honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I was able to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
***
Tea Dragon Festival by Katie O’Neill is a beautifully illustrated graphic novel that is set before her Tea Dragon Society.
You’ve seen the ridiculously adorable tea dragons from Katie O’Neill’s previous book but this time be prepared to meet an actual dragon (as well as more tea dragons because I’ll never get enough of those little guys)!
Rinn stumbles across Aedhan, a dragon sent to guard her village many years ago whose was put into an enchanted sleep. While Rinn’s Uncle Erik and his partner Hesekiel (if you read Tea Dragon Society yes, yes it’s them. It’s a younger version of them and I was so ridiculously happy to see them again) search to find the mystery behind the slumber Rinn accompanies Aedhan as he finds his place in the village.
O’Neill’s works are soft, sweet, beautifully inclusive, and just plain beautiful. The Tea Dragon Festival is a visual delight and a sweet story about finding yourself, being true to yourself, and what makes a home.

We discover the life of Rinn, a young girl wishing to become a cook. In his village, we live with Tea Dragons, small domesticated dragons. She will meet Aedhan a real dragon, guardians of the village, who unfortunately stayed asleep for 80 years and could not accomplish his mission ...
This is how they will try to unravel the mystery of this long sleep and integrate Aedhan into the current life of the village.

What to say, except that it's sweet and cute?
The story reveals slices of daily life that we discover at the same pace as Aedhan.
We focus quickly on the characters, and the only regret I have is that the volume ends too quickly!

I discovered at the end of the book that it was not the first of the author in this universe, and all of his books now give me a great desire to learn more about this world of Tea Dragons!

The characters in this comic, probably thanks to the pencil of the author, are all endearing.
I really liked Rinn and his family, and I particularly loved the different dragons, and the couple formed by Erik and Hezekiel, which I found filled with sweetness.
The small plus lies in these "small" representations, which are inserted into the story in a non-forced and gentle way: the different variations of skin color and species, the use of sign language to overcome deafness of a character, homosexuality or even a hermaphrodite character (or non-binary, I'm not sure).

A crush on the style of the author ! The line is soft and very simple, with very little contour. It accentuates the softness of the pages and makes the place of colors even more important.

In short… An excellent discovery, which made me very eager to discover the other books of the universe, and more generally all the bibliography of the author! ^^

I really loved this prequel to The Tea Dragon Society. The art style is stunning which matches the story that it is telling. Katie O'Neill's graphic novels are some of my favorites and I was so happy when I was able to read this one early. The whole story of the dragon that was put under an enchanted sleep was intriguing and I just wanted to keep learning more. I love that we got to see characters from the first story and also got to learn more about the world.

I hope Katie O'Neill will continue this series.

ARC provided by the publisher Oni Press via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a joy to read. The illustrations are beautiful and captivating. This is such a heart-warming, whimsical story that I did not want to end.

This is my first book by Katie O’Neill and you can bet I will be picking up The Tea Dragon Society from my bookstore soon.

I don’t want to go into the story or detail my thoughts thoroughly as I do not want to spoil anyone from the joy this story brings. 100% recommend.

Thank you again to Oni Press and Netgalley for giving me the chance to read this.

Katie O’Neill has found a way to capture pure magic in her stories and her illustrations. They are always so beautiful, so whimsical, and bring my heart close to bursting.

THE TEA DRAGON FESTIVAL is no exception.

beautiful illustrations, amazing dialogue.


representation:

- deafness (some characters use sign language throughout the novels)
- POC (main character/her grandmother)
- they/them pronouns (main character)
- memory loss aspect.

loved it!

In the mountains there is a small village, that can only be reached by a long walk and one train a week. The people who live there are peaceful, spending their days collecting food from the forest and looking after some moody, and rather naughty Tea Dragons. Then one day Rinn, on a search for mushrooms, comes across a real sleeping dragon. Who says that it is there to protect the village, even if it has been asleep for the past eighty years. What could possibly go wrong?

This graphic novel was absolutely beautiful. I won't lie, I hadn't heard of this before and had not picked up the previous book. I knew nothing other than it looked sweet and their were dragons in it. But this was beautiful.

The plot isn't particularly detailed. It doesn't really go anywhere. There is no big bad villain. But that doesn't matter. It was so beautifully drawn and told such a wonderful story of relationships that it was all I needed.

Not to mention that it was incredibly inclusive. We feature a poc cast in a village which uses sign language to include one of the deaf characters. This character isn't ostracised but instead is an integral part of the society. There are relationships that are hinted at being LGBTQIA+ without having to mention it. And there's dragons! It's whimsical and diverse and beautifully drawn.

I know need to get my hands on 'Tea Dragon Society' so that I can delve further into this world. I wish I had children so that I could share this gorgeous novel with them. Thank you, Netgalley, for giving me an ARC of this. I will cherish it forever!

Such beautiful artwork, wonderful creativity, amazing storytelling and it uses sign language too. This is so representative, a interesting read but full of heart.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

Katie O'Neill has crafted yet another precious story featuring stunning illustrations! Not only that, but she always finds a way to include characters with disabilities that I've never seen represented in any other novel before too.

This was a fast, cute read! I enjoy this one a little more than <i>The Tea Dragon Society</i> but they are both really great reads. I think I enjoyed this one a little more because it was longer and I got to understand the characters better. The art style and color scheme are my favorite because they're really cute drawings but still really sophisticated and the color schemes the author chooses are very mesmerizing! Rinn and Aedhan were really endearing characters and I really enjoyed their friendship. It's just an overall cute read!!

This is the prequel to The Tea Dragon Society, and I was lucky enough to pick up an ARC of this from the Oni Press booth during BookExpo this year. That's also when we got to talk to Margot, and I tried really hard not to fangirl because she's my publishing idol and I was seriously so starstruck. So, yeah. I got an ARC of this book, which is why Margot sent me The Tea Dragon Society to read before I started this one. Which I'm glad I did! So without further ado, let's get into my review.


Something that stood out to be right away, in the best of ways, is how inclusive this story is. There's a non-binary MC, and also another central character who is deaf, so the rest of the village learns sign language to communicate with her. There was a lot of inclusivity that went into this graphic novel, and I really appreciated and enjoyed that.


In terms of where the book fits in with The Tea Dragon Society, this one is a prequel, but it stands alone so you can read it without reading The Tea Dragon Society. Some characters make a reappearance, so it's nice to read the other one first, but it's not a requirement for understanding and enjoying the story! The tea dragons themselves aren't really explained in this book, though, since an extensive explanation was provided in the other book -- so that's really the only issue I can see with trying to read this book as a standalone.


I really loved seeing some of the characters like Erik and Hesekiel making a reappearance as their younger selves, especially during the ending where they allude to their future together! Those are the little things I was talking about, where the story can stand by itself just fine, but readers who read the previous book would also get a little extra layer and understand some other references and Easter eggs. So just keep that in mind before you pick up this book -- you'll get a deeper understanding by reading The Tea Dragon Society first!


Once again, Katie O'Neill knocks it out of the park with her gorgeous illustrations, especially during the nighttime festival scenes, which were so beautiful that I was in awe and had to take a few extra minutes just to flip through the images and look at all of them.


Overall, I enjoyed this one just as much as I enjoyed The Tea Dragon Society. If you're looking for a comfortable, adorable graphic novel with beautiful illustrations to settle into, with some light fantasy elements but nothing too intricate, I'd definitely recommend starting here, or with any of Katie O'Neill's work!

I love The Tea Dragon Society, and this was no different. This prequel follows Rinn, who is helping Aedhan, a dragon she comes across that has been asleep for 80 years. We also see an appearance by Hesekiel and Erik from the previous story, which was an awesome surprise! I LOVE the art in these graphic novels so much. It is vibrant and beautiful, and makes the story that much better. I loved seeing the ASL tie in as well. It really made me want my own tea dragon! There was also a small blurb at the end about a few of the tea dragons, which I thought was a nice touch. At the very end there were also resources about Sign Language.

The only critical thing I can say about this graphic novel is that I wanted it to be longer!

I was given an advanced reader's copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.