Yellow Butterfly

A young girl, perhaps six or seven years old, finds her country trademarked with the signatures of war: barbed-wire fences blocking once-traveled regions, remnants of missile attacks desecrating the earth, bullet-pocked vehicles left behind, long forgotten. The devastation leaves her breathless and enraged. Tears trickle down her pale face. If only she could reverse time and erase all the markings of the enemy. Those lost too soon would regain life; dilapidated buildings would stand tall again. She imagines this as the future of her great nation, one in which light prevails over darkness and the yellow butterflies roam free.

Yellow Butterfly is Ukrainian author and illustrator Oleksandr Shatokin’s response to the Russian invasion of his homeland, Ukraine. This timely picture book has no words, but its silence speaks volumes of the atrocities and reverberations of war. Shatokin’s imagery is brilliant; his black and white illustrations, some of which are emboldened by electric yellow and cornflower blue, illuminate the stark contrasts of war and peace, despair and revival. Children ages eight to twelve who are sensitive to the needs and lives of others will love this soundless story. Those captivated by world events will find it a deeply moving account as well.