The Blessing Cup

The Keeping Quilt (1988) began with Polacco's great-grandmother Anna's arrival in America. In this sort-of prequel, Anna and her family are forced to leave Russia during the pogroms. Though the czar's soldiers are a dark threat from the first page, the family treasures its cozy home, community, rituals and, especially, a "magic" tea set: "Anyone who drinks from it has a blessing from God. They will never know a day of hunger. . .They will know love and joy. . .and they will never be poor!" And so it will be, as long as love is riches enough. Ordered to leave their village, they take little besides a few books and the precious tea set. When Papa falls ill after grueling months on the road, a widowed doctor takes the family in. "Uncle Genya" cares for Papa; Mama cooks. Then, forbidden to house Jews, Uncle Genya sells his most beautiful rug to pay their passage to America, and they leave him the tea set -- save one cup, whose later history concludes the tale. The understated telling is beautifully supported and extended in art that harks back to Polacco's early books. The illustrations are rendered in soft gray pencil. Backgrounds are roughly yet adroitly sketched, while faces and body language are particularly expressive, and panoramic views of the shtetl are lively with detail. A few strategic features draw the eye with brilliant red and blue: small accents such as the tea set and Anna's headscarf; once, a double-page spread of the village temple in flames. This is family history at its dramatic and iconic best, a well-shaped story and a fine addition to Polacco's oeuvre. joanna rudge long