How war changed Rondo

Hold on to this radical idea: "The truth is that even the smallest ray of light will begin to disperse the darkness." Three friends, Danko, Fabian, and Zirka, love the town Rondo, which they call home. It is an idyllic place, famous for its greenhouse and the singing flowers that grow inside. Danko, Fabian, and Zirka's days are spent honing their unique interests and hanging out at the café together. Mixed-media illustrations, like diagrams and maps, are neatly situated across the pages, giving this fantastical, allegorical story a calm sensibility. Then War comes, and the pages turn dark as Rondo's beauty is damaged. There is no explanation for the war, nor are culprits or reasons named, although an angry fist and recognizable war machinery give War a distinctly human aura. The three friends manage to save Rondo by uniting their unique skills, and despite some irreparable damage, peace is restored. This beautiful book has many layers for adults to unpack with young readers. Can be paired with 2018's The Day War Came, by Nicola Davies.

A vibrant, artistic town is changed forever. Danko (a light bulb), Fabian (a pink balloon dog), and Zirka (an origami bird) love their idyllic town of Rondo, famous for its singing flowers. The friends are happy until the terrifying and faceless War arrives and plants seeds of fear that grow into black flowers and prickly weeds, blocking out the light and silencing the wonderful singing flowers. The trio fails to reason with War and fights back with violence. At last, they galvanize the townspeople to work together to build a "huge light machine" that defeats the darkness of War. Rondo is rebuilt, but every person has been changed, scarred, injured, and red poppies spring up in places touched by War. Translated from the original Ukrainian, this allegorical picture book was originally published following the 2013-14 conflicts in Ukraine. Avoiding references to cultural or geographical markers, the universal story deftly highlights the importance of each person doing their part to battle darkness. The descriptive, lyrical text realistically depicts the impacts of war, and the visual juxtaposition of an imaginative, bright, colorful world and its war-ravaged aftermath is stark. Collage elements convey fragility and resilience in surprising yet visceral ways. Most characters are bipedal, and the three protagonists use gendered pronouns. Externally, characters are depicted in a variety of nonhuman colors (patterned, blue, green, bright white, pink). (This book was reviewed digitally.) An expertly crafted story recognizing the power of humanity amid the life-altering tragedy of war. (Picture book. 5-12) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.