Synopses & Reviews
andlt;Bandgt;A bond of love unites a family throughout generations in this companion to the beloved and bestselling classic andlt;Iandgt;The Keeping Quiltandlt;/Iandgt;.andlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;As a young Russian Jewish girl in the early 1900s, Anna and her family lived in fear of the Czarand#8217;s soldiers. The family lived a hard life and had few possessionsand#8212;their treasure was a beautiful china tea set. A wedding gift to Annaand#8217;s parents, the tea set came with a wish that and#8220;Anyone who drinks from this will have blessings from God. They will never know a day of hunger. Their lives will always have flavor. They will know love and joy and they will never be poor.and#8221;andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;When Annaand#8217;s family leaves Russia for America, they bring the tea set and its blessings. A source of heritage and security, the tea set helps Annaand#8217;s family make friends and find better lives in America. A cup from the tea setand#8212;andlt;Iandgt;The Blessing Cupand#8212;andlt;/Iandgt;became an anchor of family history, and it remains a symbol of lasting love more than a century later.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;This tender tribute to the importance of loving lineage is a prequel and companion to the perennial bestseller andlt;Iandgt;The Keeping Quilt andlt;/Iandgt;and is told and illustrated with authenticity and tremendous heart.
Review
THE BLESSING CUP [STARRED REVIEW!] andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; Polacco has a gift for turning her own family stories into picture books that can touch the hearts of all. andlt;BRandgt; The Keeping Quilt is now 25 years old. In this brand-new companion, Polacco turns to her great-grandmother Annaand#8217;s story of how she came to America. The pictures, vibrant and brilliantly suggestive of movement, are mostly black-and-white, shaded with her signature use of color to highlight certain details. Devotees of The Keeping Quilt will recognize Annaand#8217;s babushka, which became the border of the quilt, on the young Anna when the czarand#8217;s soldiers come to their Russian town to burn the temple and expel all the Jews. The family packs up its most precious possessions, including her papaand#8217;s sewing machine and the beautiful china teapot and cups that were a wedding present. Even as they travel, they continue the ritual of drinking from the cups for Godand#8217;s blessing, breaking bread so they will never know hunger and using salt so that their lives will have flavor. When Annaand#8217;s papaand#8217;s health breaks down from hauling the cart with all their possessions, a widowed doctor takes the family in and cares for them until, once again, they are forced to leave. In gratitude for the doctorand#8217;s care and for his supplying them with passage to America, they leave him the tea set, save for one cup. Polacco closes with the journey of that particular cup to the present day. andlt;BRandgt; History, religious persecution, immigration, and the skeins of faith and love that connect a family are all knit together in this powerful, accessible and deeply affecting story. (Picture book. 6-10)
Review
In this prequel to The Keeping Quilt, readers learn how Polaccoand#8217;s great-grandmother Anna and her parents were forced from their shtetl in Czarist Russia and made their way to America. Among the few treasures the family took with them was a vibrantly painted tea set, a kind of familial talisman (and#8220;This tea set is magic. Anyone who drinks from it has a blessing from God,and#8221; says Annaand#8217;s mother, explaining its lore), which also served as a reminder that they would always be rich in what matters: resilience and love. Only one cup from the tea set made it to their new home, but it played a central role in the familyand#8217;s traditions and milestones through the generations. Polacco opens her heart to readers as few authors can, inviting them to become intimates in her familyand#8217;s low and high points. As in The Keeping Quilt, she renders her unabashedly sentimental scenes of immigrant life in exuberant, fluid gray pencil, reserving the splashes and spots of color primarily for the tea set andand#8212;in a link to the earlier bookand#8212;the babushka that will become part of the quilt. Ages 4and#8211;8. (Aug.)
Review
THE BLESSING CUP [STARRED REVIEW!]
Polacco has a gift for turning her own family stories into picture books that can touch the hearts of all.
The Keeping Quilt is now 25 years old. In this brand-new companion, Polacco turns to her great-grandmother Anna’s story of how she came to America. The pictures, vibrant and brilliantly suggestive of movement, are mostly black-and-white, shaded with her signature use of color to highlight certain details. Devotees of The Keeping Quilt will recognize Anna’s babushka, which became the border of the quilt, on the young Anna when the czar’s soldiers come to their Russian town to burn the temple and expel all the Jews. The family packs up its most precious possessions, including her papa’s sewing machine and the beautiful china teapot and cups that were a wedding present. Even as they travel, they continue the ritual of drinking from the cups for God’s blessing, breaking bread so they will never know hunger and using salt so that their lives will have flavor. When Anna’s papa’s health breaks down from hauling the cart with all their possessions, a widowed doctor takes the family in and cares for them until, once again, they are forced to leave. In gratitude for the doctor’s care and for his supplying them with passage to America, they leave him the tea set, save for one cup. Polacco closes with the journey of that particular cup to the present day.
History, religious persecution, immigration, and the skeins of faith and love that connect a family are all knit together in this powerful, accessible and deeply affecting story. (Picture book. 6-10) < -="" i="" -=""> - Kirkus Reviews - < -="" -="">
Synopsis
The skeins of faith and love that connect a family are all knit together in this powerful, accessible, and deeply affecting story. Kirkus Reviews, starred review
A New York Times bestseller
A bond of love unites a family throughout generations in this companion to the beloved and bestselling classic The Keeping Quilt.
As a young Russian Jewish girl in the early 1900s, Anna and her family lived in fear of the Czar s soldiers. The family lived a hard life and had few possessions their treasure was a beautiful china tea set. A wedding gift to Anna s parents, the tea set came with a wish that Anyone who drinks from this will have blessings from God. They will never know a day of hunger. Their lives will always have flavor. They will know love and joy and they will never be poor.
When Anna s family leaves Russia for America, they bring the tea set and its blessings. A source of heritage and security, the tea set helps Anna s family make friends and find better lives in America. A cup from the tea set The Blessing Cup became an anchor of family history, and it remains a symbol of lasting love more than a century later.
This tender tribute to the importance of loving lineage is a prequel and companion to the perennial bestseller The Keeping Quilt and is told and illustrated with authenticity and tremendous heart."
Synopsis
A bond of love unites a family throughout generations in this companion to the beloved and bestselling classic The Keeping Quilt.As a young Russian Jewish girl in the early 1900s, Anna and her family lived in fear of the Czar’s soldiers. The family lived a hard life and had few possessions—their treasure was a beautiful china tea set. A wedding gift to Anna’s parents, the tea set came with a wish that “Anyone who drinks from this will have blessings from God. They will never know a day of hunger. Their lives will always have flavor. They will know love and joy and they will never be poor.”
When Anna’s family leaves Russia for America, they bring the tea set and its blessings. A source of heritage and security, the tea set helps Anna’s family make friends and find better lives in America. A cup from the tea set—The Blessing Cup—became an anchor of family history, and it remains a symbol of lasting love more than a century later.
This tender tribute to the importance of loving lineage is a prequel and companion to the perennial bestseller The Keeping Quilt and is told and illustrated with authenticity and tremendous heart.
About the Author
Patricia Polacco belongs to a family of storytellers, poets, farmers, teachers, and artists. They came from many parts of the world, but mainly Russia. She grew up to be an illustrator, a designer, and creator of many beloved childrenandrsquo;s books, including andlt;iandgt;The Keeping Quiltandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;The Blessing Cupandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;Fionaandrsquo;s Laceandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;The Trees of the Dancing Goatsandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;Babushkaandrsquo;s Dollandlt;/iandgt;, and andlt;iandgt;My Rotten Redheaded Older Brotherandlt;/iandgt;. She lives in Union City, Michigan. Visit her at PatriciaPolacco.com and follow her on Facebook.Patricia Polacco belongs to a family of storytellers, poets, farmers, teachers, and artists. They came from many parts of the world, but mainly Russia. She grew up to be an illustrator, a designer, and creator of many beloved childrenandrsquo;s books, including andlt;iandgt;The Keeping Quiltandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;The Blessing Cupandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;Fionaandrsquo;s Laceandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;The Trees of the Dancing Goatsandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;Babushkaandrsquo;s Dollandlt;/iandgt;, and andlt;iandgt;My Rotten Redheaded Older Brotherandlt;/iandgt;. She lives in Union City, Michigan. Visit her at PatriciaPolacco.com and follow her on Facebook.