Minli is a young ten-year-old girl with a fast and eager spirit, and is constantly ready for , what she especially enjoys are her father, Ba's stories, which are often told at the dinner table.

When she does so, the goldfish tells her directions to Never-Ending Mountain, where a wise immortal known as the Old Man of the Moon lives.

According to the goldfish, the wise man can answer Minli's question on how to bring good fortune to her family and the village.

The following day, Minli then sets out, freeing the goldfish so as not to burden her parents further, and leaves the village to find "the old man of the moon".

Outside the city, Dragon also obtains a red string of destiny that is used to tie people destined to meet and marry together, which he believes is the borrowed line.

The twins explain that their village's name is due to raining seeds that fall from the moon every night, allowing flowering trees to bloom there.

Jennifer Rothschild from School Library Journal stated in her review: "The author's writing is elegant, and her full-color illustrations are stunning.

"[6] Andrew Medlar from Booklist said: "Lin creates a strong, memorable heroine & mystical land [...] children will embrace this [...] story..."[6] A companion, titled Starry River of the Sky, was published on February 11, 2014.

[8] [9] A stage adaptation based on Lin's book was performed at Wheelock Family Theater in Boston, in April 2014.