Presents a collection of traditional rhymes, rewritten to feature Russian characters and scenes.
Russia
Materials from Russia
Because . . .
A young boy who lives with his grandmother is terribly embarrassed by her behavior at first, but comes to realize that she is not just having fun, she has a reason for each strange action.
Folk Tales From The Soviet Union: The Caucasus
Hamzat’s Journey
This third book in the Refugee Journeys series follows the story of a boy from Chechnya. In 2001 when Chechens were at war with Russia, he was on his way to school in the capital Grozny when he stepped on a landmine. His leg had to be amputated and eventually he and his father went to the UK for expert treatment and fitting of an artifical leg. As it was unsafe for them to return to Chechnya, the family sought asylum in the UK. Eventually Hamzat’s mother and sister joined them in London and now the family are learning to adapt to their new life after the horror of living in a war zone. This poignant and at times harrowing story reveals the bravery of Hamzat and his family in facing and overcoming their circumstances to start a new life. Simply told and atmospherically illustrated with photographs and colour illustrations, this is a powerful book that will move all who read it. Other titles in the series: Gervelie’s Journey, Mohammed’s Journey
Grandma Chickenlegs
In this variation of the traditional Baba Yaga story, a young girl must rely on the advice of her dead mother and her special doll when her wicked stepmother sends her to get a needle from Grandma Chickenlegs.
The Girl Who Wanted To Hunt: A Siberian Tale
A young girl uses her skills as a hunter to avenge her father’s death and to escape her evil stepmother.
Babushka Baba Yaga
The villagers are afraid of her, so the legendary Baba Yaga disguises herself as an old woman in order to know the joys of being a grandmother.
Rechenka’s Eggs
An injured goose rescued by Babushka, having broken the painted eggs intended for the Easter Festival in Moscva, lays thirteen marvelously colored eggs to replace them, then leaves behind one final miracle in egg form before returning to her own kind.
A Perfect Pork Stew
When Ivan the Fool meets Baba Yaga, the witch of Russian folklore fame, on a day that has begun badly for her, he outwits her by making dirt soup, getting a fine, fat pig in the bargain.
The Giant Wheel
One day a ferris wheel appears next door to the zoo, and the animals can’t wait to try it out. At night, they slip out of their cages and one by one, they climb into the gondolas to enjoy the view–but never did they dream they would see so far.