The Book Basket's Author Feature: Patricia Polacco
Good books to share in August
Hi everyone,
I hope you’ve been taking extra joy in nature this summer. We are enjoying a fairly rainy summer in Charlotte this year, which (in my mind) is an improvement over the dry seasons we have had in the past. That means the flowers are blooming and the weeds are growing. We welcome one and try to keep up with the others.
This month’s Book Basket is an author feature on one of our most prolific American children’s authors: Patricia Polacco. Polacco is the descendant of a Russian Jewish family on one side, and Irish immigrants on the other. She credits this heritage for her inclination toward storytelling.
Her illustrations are lifelike but also whimsical. The colors are always vibrant, giving a sense of motion to the reader.
At last count, Polacco has written or illustrated about seventy children’s books, and many of them are autobiographical. I’ve included a handful below, but you may enjoy checking out all her titles. Some of them contain difficult topics, and some are longer than others, so I’d advise you to preread before deciding on a title for your particular little readers.
The Keeping Quilt: A generational story about a family quilt, which functions at different times as a baby blanket, a chuppah, and a lap quilt for an aging relative. The illustrations are all sepia-toned with the exception of the brightly-colored quilt on each page.
The Blessing Cup: A companion to The Keeping Quilt, this book is also a sweep of generations, but this time with a tea set. It is said that “Whoever drinks from the cup 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!” Both the quilt (above) and the tea set come from Russia to America.
Thunder Cake: This is a sweet story about how Patricia’s grandmother—her Babushka—helped her overcome her fear of thunderstorms.
Palace of Books: When her family moves from the country to a big city, little Patricia worries if she will ever come to love her new home. Eventually, she finds her way in the city, thanks to a heroic librarian named Mrs. Creavy, and an introduction to the work of John James Audubon. Yay, books!
Pink and Say: This book retells the true story of Patricia’s great-grandfather, a Union soldier who befriended Pinkus Aylee, a young black man who also fought for the Union. They were prisoners at Andersonville together. The book is part of Patricia’s commitment to her family’s vow to always tell “Pink’s” story. (Note: this is a very difficult read, but valuable. Older readers only.)
Other classics I’d recommend:
A note on purchase links: I’m a happy supporter of independent bookshops, so the links I provide will almost always go to my affiliate link at bookshop.org. For my local readers, I heartily recommend you buy them through our favorite, Goldberry Books, but you might have a shop closer to you. Of course, you can always find these selections on That Big Website That Ships Quickly, But Not As Quickly as It Used To, and Remember How They Sucked Us All In By Being a Bookstore to Begin With? I’m also a big fan of saving money and patronizing your local library. Happy reading!
thank you for the recs!
Fun story: in the Peterson household, the words to the hymn “How Great Thou Art” include “I see the stars/I hear the rolling thunder (cake)” 😂 because of some long-forgotten situation that probably involved reading “Thunder Cake” right before heading to church where that hymn was sung 🤷🏼♀️