Main Characters
How to Xan and Luna meet? What happens between them that starts the events of the whole story?
Xan saves baby Luna from being sacrificed to the woods. When bringing her to the Free Cities, Xan accidentally feeds Luna moonlight, which gives her magic, and falls in love with her, so she decides to keep Luna.
Describe Fyrian and Glerk? Who are they in the story and why are they important to the story so far?
Fyrian is a tiny Simply Enormous Dragon and Glerk is a 4-armed swamp monster. They are part of Luna and Xan's family and help support, love, and guide both of them.
What are 2 Big Ideas we have discussed so far?
Sacrifice, family, love, sorrow...
"...couldn't take her eyes off the baby's eyes. Suns and stars and meteors. The dust of nebulae. Big bangs and black holes and endless, endless Space. The moon rose, big and fat and shining. Xan reached up. She didn't look at the sky. She didn't notice the moon."
"'As the Poet says, "Oh ever changéd Earth–"'"
Glerk
What is Antain training to be in the beginning of the book? What does he really want be doing for work instead?
He is an Elder-in-Training. He really wishes to be a carpenter.
Who is the Madwoman? How does she become this way?
The Madwoman is Luna's mother. She looses her mind when the Elders take Luna as an infant, then she is locked in the Tower and becomes the Madwoman as she begins to forget who she was before, and as Sister Ignatia feeds on her immense sorrow.
What are the different ways we see family come up in the book? Are they traditional types of family?
We see family in the chosen family of Luna, Xan, Glerk, and Fyrian. We see family in how Luna's mom loses her chance at family. We see family in Antain's dysfunctional family. None of these are traditional types of family.
"The birds squawked and keened and screeched. They sharpened their paper wings like knives. They massed in great murmurations–swelling and contracting and swelling again. They reared up for the attack. Antain covered his face with his hands. And then they were upon him."
In this passage, Antain is being attacked by the paper birds that were enmagicked by the Madwoman. He ends up becoming severely scarred as a result.
"Sit still, precious," ___ said over and over and over as she tried to get the girl to direct her magic at a single candle. "We need to look inside the flame in order to understand—Young lady. No flying in the classroom."
Xan said this.
Who is Elder Gherland? What motivates his character?
Elder Gherland is the leader of the town, the Protectorate. He is motivated by power and greed and anger.
Who is Ethyne? Why is she different from other characters in the Protectorate?
Ethyne is Antain's wife. She is one of the only ones to choose to leave the Sisters of the Star. She is different because she has Hope and doesn't let the cloud of sorrow over the town, the Head Sister's influence, infect her mind.
What does sacrifice mean? What are 2 examples of sacrifice from the book?
Sacrifice means to give something up, usually for a good cause. Some examples are: Zosimos and the Simply Enormous dragon sacrificing themselves to the volcano to stop is from erupting and save everyone. Xan sacrifices her magic and, ultimately, her life for Luna. Luna, though out of her control, sacrifices her access to magic to allow herself to learn and grow. The youngest child is sacrificed each year to "the Witch" to keep the town "safe."
"She couldn't believe it. After all these years, she had never been late. Never. The poor little thing. She closed her eyes tight and tried to send a flood of magic to her legs to give them a little more speed. Alas, it was more like a puddle than a flood, but it did help a bit. Using her cane to spring forward, Xan sprinted through the green. 'Oh thank goodness!' she breathed when she saw the baby—red-faced and enraged, but alive and unharmed. 'I was so worried about you, I—'"
Here Xan is rushing to save the latest baby sacrificed by the Protectorate when she sees Antain. He is holding a weapon and scares Xan, so she turns into a bird, shouts, knocks Antain down, and flys away with the baby.
"Has Auntie Xan gone mad?"
What happens to Luna's magic? How does it transform throughout the story? How does this affect her?
Luna's magic is locked away in her mind by Xan for her and everyone else's protection. Slowly though, the magic starts to break through. At first, Luna's mind goes blank at any mention of magic, but over the years, she can begin to perceive and do magical things (not on purpose), until Chapter 25 when she can finally say the word "magic."
Who is Zosimos? What important role did he play? Who else played that important role with him?
Zosimos is a wizard who was like Xan's father. He raised her and as she gained her magical powers, he lost his, much like what is happening between Luna and Xan. He and Fyrian's mother, the Simply Enormous Dragon, played an important role in the book because they sacrificed themselves to the volcano and saved everyone, even though no one remembers it.
Power and control are two connected themes in the book. Provide one example of how power and control is used to help others (for good) and how it is used to harm others for personal gain (for bad).
Possible answers: Xan taking charge of Luna's magic and locking it away in her mind is an example of using power for good. Elder Gherland and the Council sacrificing babies and gaining from it is an example of abuse of power, using power and control for bad reasons.
"Long ago, you see, before the forest became dangerous, the Witch was just a little thing. an ant, practically. Her powers were limited...Anyway, the boots,...allowed her to go from one side of the world to the other in an instant. And then she was able to find more magic. She stole it from other magicians. She stole it from the ground. She snuck it out of the air and the trees and the blooming fields. They say she even stole it from the moon. And then she cast a spell over all of us—a great cloud of sorrow, covering the world."
In this passage, a villager is telling the story of how the Witch came to be and cursed the Protectorate. The village believes that this Witch is demanding their babies for sacrifice and lives in the woods, like Xan. But in actuality, the story she is telling is about the Head Sister, Sister Ignatia, and how she got her magic and cursed the town.
"Be careful of your sorrow,"..."Your sorrow is dangerous. Don't forget that she is still about."
Zosimos said this to 13-year old Xan.
Why can Xan not remember Zosimos or the most important thing he says, that sorrow is dangerous?
There could be a few reasons why Xan does not remember. One is that she is over 500 years old, but the more likely reason is that she had a magical spell put over her so that she would forget what happened and not feel the immense sorrow that she would probably feel for losing such important people in her life, which would attract the attention of the Sorrow Eater.
Who is Sister Ignatia to the Protectorate? Who is she really? How was Sister Ignatia able to remain hidden for so long?
To the Protectorate, Sister Ignatia is the Head Sister of the Sisters of the Star, a group of woman that hold all the knowledge and physical strength in the town. She is really the Sorrow Eater, a witch that feeds off the sorrow of others. She was able to remain hidden for so long because she cast the fog over the town and supported (initiated?) the yearly sacrifice of infants to "the Witch" in the woods.
What is something we can learn about our own lives after reading this book? Where do you see that in the book?
Answers is expected to connect back to one of the Big Ideas and provide and example.
"She pressed her hand to her chest and felt her sorrow—the merciless density of it, like a black hole in her heart, swallowing the light. Perhaps it had always been so...And it one profound, sudden flash, she felt it transform. Hope, her heart said. Hope, the sky said...Her sorrow was gone. Only hope remained. She felt it radiate outward, filling the Tower, the town, the whole world. And, in that moment, she heard the Head Sister cry out in pain."
This is a pivotal, important moment of change, for the Madwoman and Sister Ignatia, the Sorrow Eater. The Madwoman no longer feels trapped and held back by her sorrow, the second prison she was kept in besides being locked in the Tower. She can now feel freer and powerful to try to escape and find those she still loves, Luna. Sister Ignatia, on the other hand, loses her main source of sustenance, food, and immediately feels the repercussions, or consequences.
"Clever," ____ said, her mouth a thin, grim line, "You have locked me out. For now."
Sister Ignatia, the Head Sister, said this to the Mad Woman when she started to feel Hope.