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Reading "How War Changed Rondo" to Open Conversations about the War in Ukraine

3/8/2022

 

by Oksana Lushchevska

Cover of How the War Changed Rondo
It takes a village to heal warriors – and it takes a warrior to teach the village how” state Raymond Monsour Scurfield and Katherine Theresa Platoni in their scholarly text Healing War Trauma: A Handbook of Creative Approaches.

Following the horrific news from Ukraine, an independent, rapidly developing country located in eastern Europe, US educators and literature advocates seek tools to facilitate starting conversations about the devastating effects of war on humanity and the support every individual can offer, regardless of where they are.

Children’s books can serve as a great tool to start deliberate, responsible conversations through classroom dialogue. Jella Lepman (1891-1970), a German journalist, author, and translator who founded the International Youth Library in Munich right after WWII, believed that children’s books are couriers of peace. She was certain that if children read books from other countries, they would realize that they share common human values and strive to preserve them.

I believe that we, as global-minded educators and literature advocates, should, to use Scurfield and Platoni’s words, become warriors of peace; peacemakers who prepare our children to grow into wise, understanding, and sympathetic global citizens who have the will and the capacity to heal the world. Being originally from Ukraine and witnessing this horrific war unfolding in my country, where all my family and friends live, I feel the cruciality of this duty urgently and viscerally. Thus, I want to bring to your attention the picturebook How War Changed Rondo, which is a Ukrainian export. The book has been recognized as a Kirkus Best Book of 2021 and as a USBBY Outstanding International Book of 2022.

Interestingly, this book was created by the Ukrainian book creators Romana Romanyshyn and Andriy Lesiv in 2014. The book won the 2015 Bologna Ragazzi Award, which is one of the most prestigious European Awards in children’s literature. I translated this book as soon as it was written. It was an imperative for me to bring it to the attention of English-speaking readers as it highlights a vital turning point in Ukraine's independent history: Russia’s annexation of Crimea and occupation of the eastern part of Ukraine in 2014 (Ukraine has been an independent country since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991). I also felt responsibility to share with global young readers that we, as human beings, all want peace and democracy; we want to create and to thrive. In the picturebook, through the fictionalized characters, Danko (a light bulb), Fabian (a pink balloon dog), and Zirka (an origami bird), Romanyshyn and Lesiv depict the horrors of invasion of one’s own country, the impact of war, and the destruction in brings to everyone.

When I translated the text, I brought it to my classroom. It was 2015 and I taught a Children’s Literature course at the University of Georgia. When my students, who were future educators, read the text of  How War Changed Rondo (the book was not yet published in the US), their empathy was sharp and deep. What’s important to know – I read the text without showing them the illustrations, so they could imagine the characters by themselves. After the reading, I invited them to write down their responses or/and to draw them. In particular, I invited them to imagine who the characters of the book are and what their injuries might look like. This was a very fruitful experience that further connected my students emotionally with the text and grounded their empathy. Finally, I showed them Andriy Lesiv’s original illustrations and they were touched by the perspective they created. You can use a similar approach  when reading this picturebook in your classroom, or you can do it your own way. The possibilities are endless. You might also like to pair it with a short professional animated video of The War That Changed Rondo recently done by Chervony Sobaka (Red Dog Studio). This will be a good set to bring an intelligent perspective on such an important topic.

The War That Changed Rondo from Chervony Sobaka on Vimeo.

In wrapping up, I wanted to leave you with some insights from the experiences of the Ukrainian people faced with the recent events. Children are not afraid to talk about serious topics. In fact, they are willing and eager to do it. While many of my Ukrainian colleagues are hiding in bomb shelters, they seek children’s books to soothe their children through the difficulties and hardship. Ukrainian publishers have distributed free digital copies of contemporary Ukrainian children’s books, some of which are books about peace and war. In this way, children can choose what they want to read and talk about. Some of them ask to read about peace to strengthen their hope. Others ask to read about war to have the possibility for catharsis.

Ukrainian Publishers and Literary Agencies Participating in the Free Book Initiative

Crocus/Krokus Publishers
Crocus/Krokus Publishers

Old Lion Publishing House
Old Lion Publishing House/ Vydavnytstvo Staroho Leva

Barabooka agency
Barabooka Literary Agency
Picture
Ranok Publishers 

Vivat Publishing
Vivat Publishers

Vydavnytstvo Publishers
Vydavnytstvo Publishers
While Ukraine is going through this terrible experience, we here in the USA  have a responsibility to help our young readers to grow into empathetic adults who will definitely create better, life-altering history for humanity to avoid tragedies such as this. In addition, I want to invite all US publishers to seek out contemporary Ukrainian books, especially books that might portray a unique perspective on the subject of war, tyranny, and shared human values. I suspect that there will be a lot of books soon, as many writers, myself included, are writing down their experiences to create a solid piece of history for the future generations. Such books can keep us accountable to the past, inspire endless possibilities of anti-war art such as the Never Again War poster created by Käthe Kollwitz in 1924,  and guide us to do our best to prevent wars and create a bright hopeful future.
For more information about Ukrainian children’s books, please write to:

olushchevska@gmail.com

Translated from Ukrainian and readily available in the United States:

Picturebooks:

How Many? (By Halyna Kyrpa and illustrated by Olha Havrylova. Translated by Oksana Lushchevska. Bratske Publishers, 2014. Kindle Edition.)

Mr. Catsky, Mira, and the Sea (By Oksana Lushchevska and illustrated by Violetta Borigard. Bratske Publishers, 2015. Kindle Edition.)

And more from the team of Romana Romanyshyn and Andriy Lesiv:

Sound: Shh…Bang…Pop…BOOM!  (Chronicle Books, 2021)

Sight: Glimmer, Glow, Spark, Flash! (Chronicle Books, 2020)

Stars and Poppy Seeds (Tate, 2019)

Loudly, Softly, in a Whisper (Wonder House Books, 2017)

I See That (Wonder House Books, 2017)

Chapter Books and Longer Books:

Letters on the War: Children Write to Soldiers (Edited by Valentyna Vzdulska, Oksana Oksana, Julia Berezenko, and illustrated by Olena Staranchuk. Translated by Oksana Lushchevska and Michale Naydan. Bratske Publishers, 2015. Kindle Edition.)

Heart in Flames: Tales of Action and Intrigue (By Antaoly Koetesky and illustrated by Olexandr Zastanchenko. Translated by Oles Kovalenko and Vasil Baryshev. Dnipro Publishers, 1990.)

Set in Ukraine or Related to Ukraine:

Picturebooks:

The Mitten (By Jan Brett. Putnam’s Sons, 2009.)

The Mitten (By Alvin Tresselt and illustrated by Yaroslava. HarperCollins, 1989.)

The Birds' Gift: A Ukrainian Easter Story (Retold by Eric A. Kimmel and Illustrated by Katya Krenina. Holiday, 1999.)

The Spider's Gift: A Ukrainian Christmas Story (Retold by Eric A. Kimmel and Illustrated by Katya Krenina. Holiday, 2010.)

Chapter Books and Longer Books:

Alias Anna: A True Story of Outwitting the Nazis (By Susan Hood with Greg Dawson. HarperCollins, 2022.)

The Midnight Zoo (By Sonya Harnett. Candlewick, 2011.)

The Blackbird Girls (By Anne Blankman. Puffin (Reprint Edition), 2021.)

The Winter Horses (By Philip Kerr. Knopf, 2014.)

My Real Name is Hanna (By Tara Lynn Masih, 2018.)

Radiant Girl (By And
rea White, Black Spot Books, 2018.)

The Secret of Priest's Grotto: A Holocaust Survival Story (By Peter Lane Taylor & Christos Nicola, Kar-Ben, 2007.)


Donating to Help

If you are looking for donation options to support the people of Ukraine, here are some outlets for your consideration. 
  • Polish Literacy Foundation: Raising funds to buy books for refugee children from Ukraine (and support Ukrainian publishers at the same time)
    • For details, you can read Joanne O'Sullivan's article on Publishers Weekly: Polish Literacy Foundation Leads Relief Efforts for Ukrainian Kids
  • Ukrainian Red Cross: They organize educational services, provide sanitary materials and coordinate blood donations. 
  • UNICEF: They provide medical aid, food, and psychological support to children.
  • Voices of Children: They provide psychological services to Ukrainian children impacted by armed conflict. You may be interested intheir digital storytelling project.
  • International Rescue Committee: The IRC provides food, medical care and emergency support services to refugee families in several countries, including Ukraine.
  • Come Back Alive: They provide assistance to around 100 combat units of the Ukrainian armed forces to cover the real-time needs of defending Ukraine.
  • ArmySOS: They provide support to the Ukrainian army.
  • Future Ukraine Fund: They support the most vulnerable children in Ukraine. Currently they provide assistance to the Ohmadit Children’s Hospital in Kyiv that cares for children and mothers affected by the war.
  • Help Ukraine Win: They are fundraising to provide essential supplies to Ukrainian people who fight against Russian aggression on the front line.
​References
Lepman, J. (2002). A bridge of children’s books: the inspiring autobiography of a remarkable woman. Dublin, Ireland: The O’Brien Press, Ltd.
Romanyshyn, R., Lesiv A., How War Changed Rondo. New York: Enchanted Lion Books.
Scurfield, R. M., Platoni, K. Th. (2012). Healing War Trauma: A Handbook of Creative Approaches. New York: Routledge.

Oksana Lushchevska, Ph.D. is an independent children's literature scholar and a Ukrainian children's book author and translator. She is a publishing industry and government consultant in Ukraine and founder of Story+I Writing Group. She was a recipient of the 2015 CLA Research Award.
Website: http://www.lushchevska.com

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