#907 of 1001 · January 24, 2023

For today, have a fairy tale retelling with sparks of wonder and enchantment: Rafe Martin and Vladyana Langer Krykorka’s The Twelve Months. Young Marushka’s parents have died. She lives with her wicked aunt and cousin, who force her to perform all the menial household chores. One day in midwinter, the two women order her to go and gather a bunch of violets. Without much hope, Marushka reluctantly heads out into the snow. However, instead of freezing to death, she climbs up to a mountain peak, where she encounters a circle of mystical beings gathered around a fire—twelve brothers who represent the months of the year. The benevolent figures take pity on her and melt the snow to reveal a meadow filled with violets, which Marushka takes back home. Unsatisfied, her cruel relatives continue to make outlandish demands in the following days, instructing her to bring first strawberries and then apples. Vexed by her continuing success, they go out to the mountaintop where the twelve months sit. However, their rudeness displeases the frosty deities, and they are never heard from again. Martin’s lively writing and Krykorka’s energetic, scratchy illustrations make for a rousing adaptation. A note for folklore enthusiasts: This story is a variant of “The Kind and the Unkind Girls”, a plot found the world over. The front matter identifies it as a Slavic tale. #month #aunt #cousin #violet #strawberry #strawberries #apple #apples #magic #book #books #childrensbooks #picturebook #picturebooks #picturebookillustration #picturebookart #childrensbookillustration #childrensliterature #illustration #kidlit #kidsbooks #bookworm #booklover #booklovers #bibliophile #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookstagrammers #instabook #instabooks