To be loved is to be seen 🥺

Adored this book so much!!! Minimal text, lovely illustrations, no big conflict or drama, yet I savoured every page and the reading experience was stellar. Despite the adventure and fantasy-like elements, this is essentially a beautiful story about identity, belonging and healing. I love how it conveys so much without the need to say much at all.

The character development was subtle yet outstanding. And gosh... the art and colours are breathtaking as always, just like the author's other works.

K. O’Neill is honestly one of the more exceptional artists I’ve had the pleasure of reading. Everything put out by this author is gorgeous and engaging and the stories are heartfelt through and through. <i>A Song for You & I</i> is exactly what you’d expect to see from O’Neill, filling in all the warm fuzzies that any reader of theirs can come to expect. Following ranger in training, Rowan, and Leone the sheep herder who loves music, <i>A Song for You & I</i> explores gender identity, themes of self-confidence and ambition, and the bolstering powers of friendship in adversity.

While I, admittedly, have loved some of K. O’Neill’s other books far more than this one, there’s a ton of heart and merit to the story shown in this graphic novel. The artwork, as ever, is absolutely gorgeous and truly makes you feel a part of the world and the characters’ journeys. The tale is a bit slower than some of O’Neill’s other works, which I think is largely where I lost myself with this one, but that does seem to be the vibe and overall goal of the novel as a whole.

Definitely a read worth picking up as far as I’m concerned!

While the artwork was absolutely beautiful, the story overall fell flat to me. There were significant events throughout the book that did not have a lot of explanation...

A Song for You and I is yet another fantastic middle grade graphic novel by K O'Neill! The large size and beautiful art make it stand out on the shelf, and our tween readers are keeping the circulation numbers high so I can certainly recommend it for a school library or public library with an active tween patron group. The story focuses on personal growth and risk taking, but in an extremely gentle way. Readers who are looking for high stakes adventure may be disappointed, but A Song for You & I is perfect for readers who prefer their magical journey focused on self discovery over external drama..

A quiet cozy fantasy about finding yourself. A great recommendation for fans of K. O'Neill's previous title, The Moth Keeper, and a good bridge story between middle grade and YA

I knew there was something familiar about this graphic novel! I've read several of K. O'Neill's other titles, like the Tea Dragon Society and Princess Princess Ever After, so I went into this excited for a new story, and it did not disappoint!
I appreciated how much was conveyed in the beginning without dialogue, the pictures and colors were so expressive that we could 'hear' the story regardless of chatter, and it easily sucked me in with the level of detail. Then as the story began to progress, we got introspective quotes about humanity and its reference to nature, which is a common theme that was illustrated with care as we got to know our main characters. This is a journey of not just physical destination, but a journey of self-discovery, acceptance, and finding one's place in the unknown. This was a quick read, but mostly because once I started, I couldn't put it down until I knew what was to become of the characters. This was an enjoyable read, and I feel a bit more assured of myself after going though this journey with them.
Thank you K. O'Neill, Random House Children's | Random House Graphic, and NetGalley for the ARC.

Actual Rating 2.5

This is a MG fantasy graphic novel that includes themes such as gender dysphoria and wanting to prove yourself. But this topic wasn't really introduced until much later in the book, and it wasn't ever really included in any of the action but rather the character's thoughts. There wasn't really any conflict of exploration or clarifications in the MC's gender struggle, which left me feeling unsatisfied with this aspect.

It was difficult to really connect with the characters. Everything is kept surface level, almost no real background is introduced for the characters so they feel like they're missing important depth, and the secondary characters are even weaker. Similarly, worldbuilding is just as weak and never really incorporated.

I loved the colors of the illustrations and they were good overall, making them the strongest aspect of this work. MG readers may not mind the aspects mentioned above, and there are still some good lessons incorporated throughout the book that can make it worth the read. My thanks to NetGalley and Random House Children's for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

What I liked: This book starts by introducing you to Rowan as they get their assignment as a ranger. Rowan isn’t too thrilled with their assignment, and they end up causing injury to their flying horse causing them to be reassigned to the outskirts with Leone, the shepherd. Rowan isn’t so sure about this assignment either until they journey gets further along and they begin to learn more from Leone. It’s through this journey that Rowan embraces themself and learns that they don’t have to live up to other’s expectations.

The relationship between Rowan and Leone is amazing from the start. It’s great to see how Leone accepts Rowan without them having to explain themselves or meet any qualifications which Rowan is accustomed to. Rowan also helps Leone come out of their shell as they travel and Leone begins playing for others. The ways in which they both encourage each other to embrace themselves showcases the care that they develop through the course of the book.

The illustrations in this book go along well with the story and do a great job of telling the story without there being much text. The fantastical elements of the book go along well with the realistic images of the settings of the book, such as the fields.

Final Verdict: A Song for You and I is a book that takes you on an adventure as Rowan tries to figure out where they belong. This book is perfect for children ages 10 and up who enjoy graphic novels, adventure, and coming of age journeys.

Whenever I see a K O'neill Graphic Novel I really get excited as I know that it will be amazing. The Song of You & I did not disappoint me. I fell in love with everything from Rowan and Leone, the setting, the stunning illustrations but my favourite thing of all was the ability to tell the story without words throughout the story which is due to K's utter talent.

I will always read a graphic novel written by the amazing K O'Neill and for this and other reasons I had to give ths wonderful book 5 stars

I love fairy tales, and K. O’Neill’s “A Song for You and I” has all the hallmarks of a good one. I’m not a big graphic book reader (at least not yet), but this MG book is prettily illustrated.

I love the Pegasus, Kas, and the other characters as well, I just wish that the author added more text to carry the story. The end of the story seemed a bit stilted, with story abruptly ending. Overall, though, this is a sweet story that MG readers are sure to love.

I received an ARC of “A Song for You and I,” by K. O’Neill from NetGalley and Random House Children’s in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

✨THIS WAS ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL!✨


A Song for You and I took my breath away! The stunning artwork and heartfelt storyline had me all up in my emotions. This was such a gorgeous journey of self love and the beauty of coming into one’s own. This read will 100% stick with me for awhile!

A Song for You and I has all of the hobbity cottagecore vibes so I just had to make a playlist to reflect that!!

✨Would That I by Hozier
🎻Hobbit by The Middle-Earth Orchestra
✨Willow Tree March by The Paper Kites
🎻Soldier, Poet, King by The Oh Hellos
✨Shooting Star by Hovvdy & runo plum
🎻crooked the road. by Mon Rovîa
✨Tavern by Tracy Bush
🎻Ho Hey by The Lumineers
✨Ripple by Grateful Dead

K. O’Neill is one of my all time favorite graphic novelists! 100% recommend checking out A Song for You and I as well as their entire backlog!

Thank you so much TBR&Beyond Tours & Random House Graphic for sending a copy my way!

In a Nutshell: A middle-grade fantasy in graphic novel form. Excellent illustrations. Good potential in the story, but leaves a lot of things half-baked. Might work better for young adults than middle-graders. Mine is an outlier review.

Plot Preview:
Rowan is a trainee ranger, protecting the area under them with the help of their Pegasus, Kestrel. The region Rowan monitors hardly has any danger, much to Rowan’s frustration. The only person active and about in the area is Leone, a laidback shepherd who is more interested in playing his violin than in watching his sheep. However, when Rowan’s eagerness to prove their capabilities to the senior rangers results in an injury to Kestrel, Rowan is forced to work on land-based duties with Leone. Can this forced working partnership turn into friendship when both Rowan and Leone are battling personal secrets?


The official blurb gives me a strong YA vibe. However, this is a middle-grade fantasy, and that stumps me a bit. Nothing about the story or the writing approach screams “middle-grade.” (I am not saying this because of the gender dysphoria; that’s a welcome topic in any book.)

The blurb clearly hints at Rowan, the main character, using the they/them pronouns. However, for almost the entire book, we see Rowan referred to by their birth name “Rose” and feminine pronouns. So either that the blurb leaked out a big spoiler about the lead character’s identity conflict, or that the blurb was deliberately misleading. Whatever the reason, this early reveal of a later plot point left me dissatisfied as I learnt the source of Rowan’s struggle even before it was brought up in the story.

I love the existence of a gender identity conflict in a middle-grade work, but I wish Rowan’s struggle hadn’t been restricted to thoughts alone. Their conundrums should have been indicated more strongly on paper. After a point, it was clear that they wished to be known as Rowan, but the transition is almost instant in the story. No clarifications, no contradictions, no questioning. Real life isn't that easy for LGBTQ+ people!

This problem of raising issues in a undeveloped manner is persistent throughout the book. A lot of the conflict is only internalised, without letting us know why or how or what next. Leone’s secret passion gets a tiny mention in a verbal flashback reference; Rowan’s background isn't even brought up. It is tougher to invest in a character we don’t have a backstory for.

The rest of the characters are also inadequately sketched. We get to see who they are at that point of the story, but there’s nothing to make us actually know or understand them or their behaviour. This applies even to Leone, who is only somewhat defined despite being Rowan’s co-lead. There are hardly any parents in the book, which means that the primary relationships are either peers (Rowan’s fellow rangers – a motley group), teachers (the senior rangers; wish some of them had a greater role to play), and local villagers (hardly any substantial depiction.) The ages of the characters are never clarified, but I presume Rowan and Leone to be teens. The only character I absolutely loved was Kestrel, Rowan’s Pegasus. She had strength, courage, grace, and even a temper, making her an ideal animal companion for a fictional work.

The plot itself is decent as far as the rangers’ work-related content goes. But the worldbuilding is utterly vague. The locations are there but I couldn’t *feel* any of them. A good middle-grade book has a strong and well-defined ending, but this one goofs up even on that. The overall story is divided into chapter-like parts, but the last part comes after a time-jump of unknown duration. We see some of the final developments through the illustrations, but almost everything that’s important is left unsaid.

The illustrations are great, probably the best feature of the book. Though not as ethereal as in ‘The Moth Keeper’, the colour scheme, the animals (especially the various Pegasuses) and the nature scenes are all a delight. Quite a few pages have no text bubbles, so this 240-page graphic novel goes by even faster. But this further highlights the issue I had – the text was given much lower priority. As such, the plot feels surface-level and rushed.

There are some good life lessons here, most of which could be valuable for the target readers. No need to focus only on proving yourself to others, live for yourself and not by others’ standards, think before you act, try to ignore judgement, and do what your heart wants – worthy points, all.

Overall, this book was mostly vague in its character development and jumpy in its plot development. I have read this author’s ‘The Moth Keeper’ and really loved it. Thereby, my expectations from this work were quite high. The execution though left me mostly disappointed.

However, the ratings clearly prove that mine is an outlier opinion. So please do take a look through other opinions and take a more informed call on this work.

Recommended mainly to those who read graphic novels for illustrations. With the story being so vague about ages and backgrounds, I think this might work better for older teens/YAs than middle-graders, but the official target age is 10+.

2.5 stars, rounding up for the theme and the illustrations.

My thanks to A Song for You and I for providing the DRC of “A Song for You and I” via NetGalley. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book. Sorry this didn’t work out better.

This sweet book is exactly the story I needed this week. I’ve been a fan of O’Neill’s work for a while, though I still have some books to catch up on. So, when I saw this book coming out this year, I knew I would have to read it.

The gentle pacing and gorgeous landscapes that appear throughout the story swept me away. I’m not sure I’d call this cozy precisely, but maybe cozy-adjacent? There is at least one moment with some real tension, though a lot of the story centers on relationships and personal growth or healing.

The two main characters have really different personalities. Leone is generally positive and optimistic, but struggles with confidence in playing music. Rowan resents the slower pacing that Leone lives life and feels anxious to get out into the world serving as a ranger. As the story progresses, though, they realize that Leone’s way of approaching life offers things they lack.

I honestly couldn’t have read this book at a better time. The color palettes are stunning, the characters made me smile, and the pacing felt like taking a long, full breath after a stressful day. It’s a fabulous book.

If you’re unfamiliar with K. O’Neill’s work and you like cozier fantasy, you definitely do not want to miss this one.

I received this book from TBR and Beyond Tours + the publisher in exchange of an honest review.

5 reasons I would recommend to read this book!

1. The art Always have to start it with that when it is about a K O’Neill book. Their art is just gorgeous, amazing, pretty, and wonderful. It is always my #1 reason to try out their books. I also loved those gorgeous gorgeous illustrations to indicate a new part in the story. I want those on my walls as prints~
2. Gorgeous worldbuilding You will be amazed by the world created by K O’Neill. She has written another world, created another gorgeous place you just want to visit. We see seas, fields, small towns, read about far away places, and more.
3. How the story is mostly told through imagery/illustrations There are plenty of bits with text, but there are also tons of bits told just purely through imagery. We see characters go through their days, get shots of sceneries, see our characters wander as they bring about deliveries and discover the world, see food being made, see other things happening. I love it when a story can also be told through images alone. It is so powerful. It doesn’t always work, sometimes words are needed, but in this one, I wouldn’t even have minded if there had been no words.
4. The characters and their growth. In this one we mainly follow Rose (who wants to be Rowan) and their journey as a ranger. I wasn’t always a fan of her attitude because she thought she was so much better than everyone else, and sure, she did some amazing things, but that is no way to be hurtful or shame others when they don’t have that drive. For instance Leone who just wants to play the fiddle (and keeps a casual eye out for the sheep). But after the accident that has her grounded on the floor and in charge of deliveries you can see her grow. Discovering the plants around her, the sceneries in the place she is designated to do her training, discover new talents and new things to do.
And Leone who loves his music and is practicing hard, but we see that something is holding him back. He acts all lackadaisical and aloof but I could see there is more to him. And I was curious to see him grow. I loved how Rowan (as they wanted that name from that point) encouraged Leone to try out more. I loved seeing both of these characters grow. Not just individually but also get closer together. See them talk. Have fun. Travel.
5. So many emotions This book made me feel all the feels. First that I wanted to shake Rowan for how they acted. Then see that they were just dedicated and inexperienced. Seeing Leone and what he wanted and how he grew. To see Rowan grow, get more comfortable in their skin, find happiness, find belonging. And then so much more. In the end I was just crying tears.

And I could give you more reasons, but I have to keep it to 5. But be sure to check out this book. And all K O’Neills other books as well!

Thank you NetGalley Random House Graphic for the ARC! A Song for You and I is the latest from K. O'Neill (Tea Dragon Society and Moth Keeper) and follows Rowan who longs to be ranger, protectors who ride flying horses. But when Rowan makes a reckless decision and injures Kes (the horse), Rowan worries that they'll be deemed unworthy of being a ranger.
Set on a quest to travel with the sheepherder and musician, Leone, Rowan must learn a different way to travel and protect. Learning to see the beauty of the world around them and perhaps discover more about themselves. A perfect tale of self discovery and friendship with tons of emotional impact.

After reading and enjoying the delight that is The Tea Dragon Society, I knew I wanted to read more from the author. A Song for You and I features was a visual delight as I adore K. O’Neills art style and illustrations. The colour palette really helped bring the cozy and charming world of the book to life. The landscape itself could honestly be described as the third main character. Speaking of main characters, I enjoyed the character growth of Rowan and Leone, as well as the growth of their friendship. However I had hoped for more of an emotional impact from the story and more magical creatures from the world. But with that said, A Song for You and I is a super sweet read that has such a tender way to handle gender identities and self-discovery that is very much needed in today's landscape of negativity regarding non-binary and trans gender identities.

A Song for You and I follows Rowan on the journey to becoming a ranger. They make a reckless choice and their horse gets hurt. And they are set on a path of examining if they have what it takes to be a ranger.

While their horse is recovering, Rowan has to help a local, Leone, with some of their wool deliveries. Both Rowan and Leone have their own struggles, and as they become friends, they help each other work through them.

I love K. O'Neill's graphic novels so much. They are beautifully illustrated and the worlds are idyllic. The characters have very real struggles but they find belonging and acceptance by the end. I always turn to them when I'm feeling down. A Song For You And I has definitely lived up to my expectations and more. I highly recommend it.

Thanks to NetGalley, Random House, and K. O'Neill for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

absolutely stunning illustrations as always!!! not my favorite from this author but I still really enjoyed it. the artwork is SO gorgeous, I am obsessed with the art style and how it was done! I just wasn’t quite as interested in the plot of this one. K. O’Neill is definitely one of my absolute favorite graphic novel authors :)

At this point, I will read any story that O’Neill puts down in whatever medium or format they decide. Without fail, their stories are always full of heart, warmth, and kindness. Their stories always include big life lessons told in such a gentle and nurturing way, and their latest graphic novel is no different.

A Song for You and I is about self-acceptance, growth, and courage. It’s about learning what fits best for you, allowing yourself to be vulnerable with others to grow, and having the courage to do it all regardless of how terrifying it is but also acknowledging that it’s okay to do so at your own pace. There is wonderful representation in these pages. Rowan and Leone are lovely characters whose stories will make many readers feel seen and heard. I loved their journeys of healing and acceptance and both characters filled my heart with a calming sense of joy. This isn’t a story full of action rather it’s a quiet and wholesome tale that takes place over several parts and across multiple locations. I loved everyone they met and everywhere they went!

It goes without saying that the accompanying artwork is just as amazing as the writing. I’m a huge fan of O’Neill’s artwork because even though their illustrations aren’t the most complex, they have a brilliant way of conveying so much through the character's expressions that it leaves readers with no doubt about the story's emotional depth. It’s fantastic and the way the art matches the story so well in terms of softness and peacefulness creates this perfectly magical and whimsical blend that readers can easily get lost in. I loved the colour palette in this graphic novel so much, as well as the close-ups and wide shots of the places Rowan and Leone travel through and to.

Overall, you don’t need to belong to a certain group or even believe a certain thing to understand, appreciate and connect to the stories that O’Neill crafts—you simply need to be human. 💜

I love the worlds this author creates, and this one was magical. Just so cozy. I liked the coming of age part just as much, the connections between people and nature, rangers and their winged horses, and the unexpected friendship who accepts you just as you are and want to be. Perfect ending, too.