In this exquisitely illustrated and poignantly narrated children’s picture book based on her family history from the last century until the present day, Patricia Polacco expresses her love and admiration for the country of her ancestors and their traditions and religious beliefs.
As she relates the stories of three generations—Fedir and Alina, their daughter Yana and her husband Andriy, and their daughter Oksana—she celebrates the rich heritage of sunflower farming that sustained their communities from before they gained their independence in 1991 until Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.
Polacco’s rendering of what the latest invasion meant for the young Oksana, Yana, and Alina, as well as others who fled for their lives, is age-sensitive yet captures the horror, violence, and displacement of Ukrainian citizens.
In a lovely surprise ending to A Sea of Gold, Oksana, who hasn’t spoken since the war began and the family immigrated to America, finds her voice as she realizes that, unbeknownst to her, she carried seeds of hope with her to her new country.
In an author’s note, Polacco writes, “My heart is broken at the horrors these people are enduring during these very troubling times. There is an innocence about a Ukrainian citizen that has to be witnessed to truly understand the miracle of their resilience given the invasion of their country. Their lives are touched with music, art, and a very strong sense of who they are as a people.”
(Simon &Schuster Books for Young Readers)
Editor’s Note: This review was planned weeks ago to publish Feb. 24 to coincide with the three-year anniversary of the war between Russia and Ukraine. A medical emergency in the Mixed Media editor’s family delayed that plan, so we are posting this now.
About the Author
Sonya VanderVeen Feddema is a freelance writer and a member of Covenant CRC in St. Catharines, Ontario.