On the day Luna is left in the woods, Antain, an Elder-in-Training, is changed forever by his participation. There, she is guarded by the Sisters of the Star, a military force of highly trained, academic assassins headed up by Sister Ignatia. Back in the Protectorate, Luna's mother is locked in the Tower in the center of town, where she is now known as the Madwoman. The Witch dallies on her way to the Free Cities and, enchanted by the baby's gaze, accidentally feeds her moonlight instead of starlight and the baby becomes "enmagicked." Knowing that this gift of magic will need special attention, Xan names the baby Luna and becomes her grandmama.
And the baby that is sacrificed, with her big, round eyes and black curling hair, is precious to Xan. When we first meet Xan, Glerk and Fyrian, it is the Day of Sacrifice and, instead of docilely complying with the annual ritual, the mother of the infant girl to be sacrificed resisting. Every year, Xan makes the trek to the circle of sycamore trees and rescues the infant, taking her or him to outlying, free cities where families are waiting for them, feeding them starlight along the way. Along with an eternally juvenile pocket-sized dragon named Fyrian who thinks he is fierce and enormous and a poetry writing, slightly morose swamp monster named Glerk who is as old as the world, the witch named Xan lives in the center of the forest at the edge of a swamp that sits atop an underground volcano. There does happen to be a witch living in the forest, but she is far from terrible. The people of the Protectorate believe that a baby must be left in a clearing in the forest every year on the Day of Sacrifice to satisfy the terrible Witch who lives there. To keep the people of the Protectorate compliant, the Elders ensure they have "a frightened people, a subdued people," by perpetuating a lie. There is the Protectorate, also known as the City of Sorrows, a grim, fog covered town ruled by Elders who live in wealth and riches while their townsfolk eke out humble livings. The world of The Girl Who Drank the Moon is bleak and gray, with pockets of coziness and kindness. As with all good fairy tales, world building is important. Kelly Barnhill's The Girl Who Drank the Moon, winner of the 2016 Newbery Medal, has all the rich details and magical curiosities that you find in enduring, classic fairy tales, making it hard to put down.
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