{"id":21887,"date":"2013-11-04T23:36:50","date_gmt":"2013-11-05T03:36:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=21887"},"modified":"2013-11-04T23:36:50","modified_gmt":"2013-11-05T03:36:50","slug":"review-of-the-blessing-cup-by-patricia-polacco","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=21887","title":{"rendered":"Review of The Blessing Cup, by Patricia Polacco"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The Blessing Cup<\/em><\/p>\n

by Patricia Polacco<\/p>\n

A Paula Wiseman Book (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers), New York, 2013. 42 pages.
\nStarred Review<\/p>\n

Patricia Polacco knows how to tell true stories with punch. This is a picture book for school age kids, with lots of text on each page. The story told is powerful, and will mesmerize readers and listeners.<\/p>\n

The story begins when Patricia\u2019s great-grandmother, Anna, was a little girl in Russia. Anna\u2019s mother was given a beautiful china tea set for her wedding. The tea set had a blessing with it:<\/p>\n

This tea set is magic. Anyone who drinks from it has a blessing 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.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I like when they explain that the blessings work:<\/p>\n

And even though their lives were humble because there was never enough money, Anna\u2019s papa would say to her, \u201cOh, there is rich and there is rich. We<\/em> are richer than kings, and do you know why?\u201d Then he and Anna chanted together, \u201cBecause we have each other!\u201d Anna felt that in Roynovka everyone<\/em> was rich. They had one another!<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

But then the Tsar\u2019s soldiers come to Roynovka and they\u2019re told they must leave Russia, along with all the Jews. On the long, hard journey, they bring the tea set. But Anna\u2019s papa falls ill and almost dies.<\/p>\n

However, a kind widowed doctor takes the family in and brought their father back to health. They called him Uncle Genya. But when Uncle Genya is told he cannot keep Jews in his house, he buys them tickets to America.<\/p>\n

In gratitude, they leave the tea set with Uncle Genya \u2013 all except one cup. And that cup is handed down through the family, all the way to Patricia Polacco, with the blessing always recited along with it.<\/p>\n

I can summarize the story, but of course you need to read it, in full, with the repeated blessing, in Patricia Polacco\u2019s words, with Patricia Polacco\u2019s illustrations. Again and again, she writes a story that packs an emotional punch.<\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Picture_Books\/blessing_cup.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.<\/p>\n

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.<\/p>\n

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