Baboushka and the Three Kings

My preschooler picked this book out at the library one day, so I decided to give it a try. Oddly enough, it is about an old woman who is approached by the 3 wise men who are going to visit baby Jesus who has just been born. They want her to come with them, but she refuses, because it is snowing, she is old and tired, and there are still chores to be done. The men leave, and she begins to wonder if she should in fact go to see what is so great about this baby. Morning comes the next day. She gets some little trinket toys together (because she is poor, and that's all she has to offer) and sets out to find the baby. She travels all over the place, village to village, but can't find him, so she gives up and gives away the toys to the village kids. Then every year after that she tries again (and fails), and does the same thing, gives up and gives away the toys, waiting for next year to do it all over again. I know it was supposed to be this great award winning book about perseverance and selflessness, but it seemed a little cynical too. This poor lady is just wandering around year after year, really with no hope of ever finding this baby, but she wants to try anyways, because what else does she have? A decent book I suppose for children, mine seemed to enjoy it. A good way to show kids evolutionary stories, too. Just a little strange was all. Not quite what I expected.

One day three kings riding a cart pulled by three white horses stopped at Baboushka's simple Russian home. They were following a star, seeking a child and they were bearing expensive gifts. They asked Baboushka to journey with them, but she declined.

After they left she felt she'd made a mistake, that she should have gone with the wise men, however it has snowed and she is unable to follow their tracks. So every Christmas season for the rest of her life she went about searching and giving out small gifts in the silent night.

Baboushka is sort of the Russian version of St. Nicholas and it's well told. My girls and I liked the Picasso like illustrations of Nicolas Sidjakov's. At Christmas we always sing the Baboushka song in the back of the book. We have loved this little book at our house, we will go on loving it.

Well, it looks as if I went about this myth all backwards. Not too long ago I had the great delight in reading Ilse Plume's enjoyable, "The Christmas Witch". The story is an Italian legend about a woman that serves as a sort of Santa Claus for the children of Italy. A lovely book. Can't recommend it enough. Anywho, I read and reviewed that puppy and then set about reading some more Caldecott winning picture books. Imagine my surprise when I discovered "Baboushka and the Three Kings". To my amazement, here was the same story. Oh, a little different here and there. Now we are in Russia rather than Italy (those Wise Men certainly got around!) but the story is essentially the same. As a woman who went for 26 years of her life without hearing this story once, I was more than a little shocked to realize how prevalent it is around the world. It just falls into the category of being one of those stories they simply do not teach you in school.

Baboushka lives on her own in a small house in Russia. One day, the Three Wise Men arrive with a huge procession of (what look to be) armed guards. The three knock on Baboushka's door and ask her to accompany them on their quest to find the Christ Child. Baboushka still has some chores to finish up so the men proceed onward without her. Filled with a desire to see this miracle, however, she fills a bag with presents and sets out to find the babe. Unfortunately, the time has passed and Baboushka cannot locate either kings nor child. It is said, therefore, that every year around Christmastime Baboushka renews her search, leaving presents for other children along the way.

The book itself is small and drawn in a peculiar blocky style. I was reminded of nothing so much as Mondrian's paintings while reading. Artist Nicolas Sijakov had a way of drawing that was uniquely his own, and the book compliments that. Whether he is displaying small wooden villages or grand spires and towers, nothing but Baboushka is in color. I was particularly taken with the section where Baboushka is left standing in the doorway of her home as the kingly procession leaves to follow the star. Here we have a small red dot watching forlornly as a line of multicolored dots leave her behind to tramp into the blue snowy wilderness. The story is a little sad, leaving Baboushka forever on her impossible quest, and in a way I preferred "The Christmas Witch"'s more upbeat ending. Just the same, it's a great tale to tell around Christmastime. If you would like to inform children of the myriad of different Santa-claus like tales out there, this Caldecott winning story wouldn't be a bad place to begin.

Baboushka and the Three Kings won the Caldecott medal as the best illustrated American children's book in 1961. Stylistically, these images will remind you of stained glass windows and the abstraction of Egyptian murals with Byzantine faces. The pages are done in five colors only (black plus blue, yellow, an orange-red, and green). The result gives the book a religious tone that makes you imagine you are reading from an illuminated manuscript done during the middle ages. All that is missing are the gold highlights.

The story picks up on the Biblical tale of the three kings coming from the East following the star to the birth of Christ. The three kings have lost their way in the snow in Russia, and ask the old peasant lady, Baboushka, to help them. After hearing of their pilgrimage, she wants to finish her chores first, and spend the night resting in her warm cottage before starting out. She invites the three kings and their retainers to join her for the night. They politely decline, not wanting to miss His birth.

The next morning, Baboushka repents and decides to bring gifts to the Christ child as well. But so much snow has fallen that she cannot find their trail. She goes from village to village hoping for word of the three kings, but finds nothing. Eventually, she gives her gifts to the children along the way.

"And it is said that every year, at the season when the birth of the Child was first heralded, Baboushka renews her search across that land with new hope." "And it is said that every year little children await the coming of Baboushka." "They find joy in the poor but precious gifts she leaves behind her in the silent night."

The book points out rather well that when opportunity knocks, one had better take immediate action or possibly rue the consequences for a lifetime. But the repentence can still yield important benefits for the proscrastinator and those who know her or him.

After you and your child know this story well, you should share with your child examples you have seen where waiting was a mistake. To balance that message, also share some stories where waiting was a good idea. In this way, you can help your child prepare to perceive and act on good opportunities that require quick action.

This book obviously will raise the question of what this has to do with Santa Claus from your child, so be ready with your answer for that, as well.

Be generous as you can possibly be in your support of others and always active in seeking God's truth.

This is a little book for children that is based on the Russian Christmas tale about the old woman Baboushka who is visited one winter's night by three kings who are searching for a new born child. They ask her to come with them but she can't, saying that she has to finish her chores. Later, bearing gifts, she desides to search for the kings and the babe herself. She visits houses asking about the babe and leaves gifts behind. This becomes the basis for a Russian Christmas tradition. The illustrator of the book was Nicholas Sidjokov and the book won the 1961 Caldecott Medal for best illustration in a book for children. His illustrations enhance the telling of this old Russian Christmas story.