Other editions of book Baboushka and the Three Kings

A Russian folk tale [adapted by Ruth Robbins] about an old woman who, declining to accompany the Three Kings as they followed the star in search of the Babe and failing to find Him on her own, each year renews her endless search. The strikingly effective pictures are distinctive in design and rich in color. ~~Booklist (Awarded the Caldecott Medal as the Most Distinguished American Picture Book for Children in the year of its publication)

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