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To Shape a Dragon's Breath: The First Book of Nampeshiweisit (Nampeshiweisit, 1)

Moniquill Blackgoose

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“An early contender for the best fantasy novel of 2023.”—The Washington Post

“A very entertaining and fun read, full of loveable characters and intricate, original worldbuilding.”—NPR.

The remote island of Masquapaug has not seen a dragon in many generations—until fifteen-year-old Anequs finds a dragon’s egg and bonds with its hatchling. Her people are delighted, for all remember the tales of the days when dragons lived among them and danced away the storms of autumn, enabling the people to thrive. To them, Anequs is revered as Nampeshiweisit—a person in a unique relationship with a dragon.

Unfortunately for Anequs, the Anglish conquerors of her land have different opinions. They have a very specific idea of how a dragon should be raised, and who should be doing the raising—and Anequs does not meet any of their requirements. Only with great reluctance do they allow Anequs to enroll in a proper Anglish dragon school on the mainland. If she cannot succeed there, her dragon will be killed.

For a girl with no formal schooling, a non-Anglish upbringing, and a very different understanding of the history of her land, challenges abound—both socially and academically. But Anequs is smart, determined, and resolved to learn what she needs to help her dragon, even if it means teaching herself. The one thing she refuses to do, however, is become the meek Anglish miss that everyone expects.

Anequs and her dragon may be coming of age, but they’re also coming to power, and that brings an important realization: the world needs changing—and they might just be the ones to do it.

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Posts about this title from Left Unread Books

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Nov 4 2024

Indigenous Books You NEED To Read This November!

If you aren't already aware, November is Native American Heritage Month. And while I think you should have Indigenous books moving through your TBR all year round, I thought this would be a good time to tell you about some of my favorites!

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Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Jun 24 2024

When you think about the best fantasy/sci-fi you have ever read, I can almost guarantee you that one of the things they all have in common is that they introduced you to characters who refused to compromise their voice. And that doesn't just go for feel-good stories or books that work to highlight systemic issues. It's also true for the stories that introduced you to your favorite villains!\ \ Think about characters like Almira (Queen and Conquerer), Rin (Poppy War Trilogy), Anequs (To Shape A Dragon's Breath) or Kiera (The Halfling Saga). One of the most endearing things about those stories is that they gave us main characters who are so firmly rooted in their own will that we almost lose sight of the fact that there is an author pulling their strings. And that is not to say that a character must have a fully fleshed out sense of self in order to hold this kind of impact. Nova (The Name Bearer) spends the first two books of this Quala having to wrestle with the fact that she has been denied any sense of identity. But that doesn't stop her from holding the kind of determination and resolve that leave us, the readers, wondering if Natalia Hernandez had any say in who Nova became.\ \ When I am reading a book, and preparing to talk about it publically, I always ask myself how consistently the character's speak for themselves. Do they make their own decisions or are they constantly compromising for the sake of the story arc? Do they stick to their guns, even when the readers will struggle with their choices (Such as the iconic moment where Ikenna kills...ok fine, i won't spoil it. But go read Blood Gifts Duology!!!)? Do their mistakes and victories make sense for who they have shown themselves to be? Do they push back when people challenge them?\ \ I don't need characters to be fully fleshed out from the beginning, but I do need them to always be consistent with however much of their identity they have come to terms with at any point in the story.\ \ Let me know some stories that do this for you!!!\ \ ​\ \ ​

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Writers, as a reviewer, I can tell you. that nothing draws me into a story faster than a main character who has owned their own voice. Read more about that down below!

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Posts about this book from across Bindery

Cozy Quill\ \ Meg\ \ • Nov 7 2025

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some sapphic fantasy books you need to read this fall <333

some sapphic fantasy books you need to read this fall <333

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Boozhoo Books\ \ Naomi\ \ • Aug 17 2025

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Hi Friends, \ \ Huge win for Indigenous authors at the Hugo Awards this year!\ \ Darcie Little Badger won the Lodestar award for Sheine Lende (prequel to Elatsoe)\ \ Moniquill Blackgoose, author of To Shape A Dragon's Breath won Best New Writer\ \ Rebecca Roanhorse won best series for the Between Earth And Sky series!\ \ Congrats to all the winners! \ \ Check out and order the award winning books below (including a pre-order for Moniquill Blackgoose's new book!)

Huge Win For Indigenous Authors at The Hugos!

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DEMIGOD BOOK RECS!!!

📚 books mentioned: - Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott - Light From Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki - To Shape a Dragon’s Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose

thank you to Vintage for the gifted copy!

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📚 books mentioned: - To Shape a Dragon’s Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose - The Ballad of Perilous Graves by Alex Jennings - May a Divine Awaken by Michael Tinsley - The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong - The Undetectables by Courtney Smyth - Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko - The Pomegranate Gate by Ariel Kaplan - Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott - The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar - The First Bright Thing by J.R. Dawson - When Among Crows by Veronica Roth - Dragonfruit by Makiia Lucier - Somadina by Akwaeke Emezi - Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger - The Women Could Fly by Megan Giddings

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Celestial\ \ Steph\ \ • Aug 21 2024

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☆ everything I mentioned (in order) ↓ - Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir - Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah - Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir - To Shape A Dragon's Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose - Junker Seven by Olive J. Kelley - The Blonde Dies First by Joelle Wellington - Never Whistle At Night - Barda by Ngozi Ukazu - Dear Senthuran by Akwaeke Emezi

☆ resources ☆ 🇵🇸 learn more about the history of Palestine: https://decolonizepalestine.com/ 🇨🇩 learn more about what's happening in the DRC: https://friendsofthecongo.org/ 🇸🇩 Sudan Solidarity Collective: https://sudansolidarity.com/

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A Day In the Life | Part I

Here’s Part I on what a Saturday at @underbrushbooks is like from my perspective.

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