On the annual Day of Sacrifice, the Elders of the Protectorate leave the youngest baby in the village as an offering to the witch in the woods. And once a year a 500-year-old witch named Xan waits to rescue a baby that is mysteriously abandoned, taking it to a good home far away. One year Xan mistakenly lets a baby drink moonlight. The girl is enmagicked, and Xan keeps the child. Xan’s companions, Gleck, a friendly, philosophical bog monster, and Fyrian, a sweet, tiny dragon who thinks he’s enormous, complete young Luna’s family. For safety, Xan encapsulates Luna’s magic with a spell that holds until Luna turns 13. Meanwhile, Antain, growing up in the Protectorate, once witnessed a baby being taken from the mother for sacrifice. The woman went mad with grief and was locked in the Tower of the Sisters of the Star. After Antain marries a young woman who boldly left the mysterious sisterhood, they have a baby, the youngest in the village as the Day of Sacrifice approaches. Determined to hunt the witch down before that day arrives, Antain sets off, just as Xan’s power is weakening, the woman in the tower escapes, and Luna comes of age. A story propelled by wonderful characters, deft plotting, and depths of human emotion leaves no doubt about love being stronger than sadness, grief, and fear. (Ages 9–13)

Winner of the 2017 Newbery Award
The New York Times Bestseller

An Entertainment Weekly Best Middle Grade Book of 2016
A New York Public Library Best Book of 2016
A Chicago Public Library Best Book of 2016
An Amazon Top 20 Best Book of 2016
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2016
A School Library Journal Best Book of 2016
Named to KirkusReviews’ Best Books of 2016
2017 Booklist Youth Editors’ Choice

Every year, the people of the Protectorate leave a baby as an offering to the witch who lives in the forest. They hope this sacrifice will keep her from terrorizing their town. But the witch in the Forest, Xan, is kind. She shares her home with a wise Swamp Monster and a Perfectly Tiny Dragon. Xan rescues the children and delivers them to welcoming families on the other side of the forest, nourishing the babies with starlight on the journey.

One year, Xan accidentally feeds a baby moonlight instead of starlight, filling the ordinary child with extraordinary magic. Xan decides she must raise this girl, whom she calls Luna, as her own. As Luna’s thirteenth birthday approaches, her magic begins to emerge--with dangerous consequences. Meanwhile, a young man from the Protectorate is determined to free his people by killing the witch. Deadly birds with uncertain intentions flock nearby. A volcano, quiet for centuries, rumbles just beneath the earth’s surface. And the woman with the Tiger’s heart is on the prowl . . .

The Newbery Medal winner from the author of the highly acclaimed novel The Witch’s Boy.