Every year, Lucía looks forward to watching the northern migration of the monarch butterflies —but this year, her Papá is leaving with them. He needs to find seasonal farm work to support his family. Lucía spends the warm months without him or her beloved monarcas, strumming on his guitarra when she gets lonely—“Songs soothe weeping hearts,” Papá says—and as autumn returns, Lucía counts down the days until those she loves return to her.
Author Cynthia Harmony and illustrator Devon Holzwarth have crafted a beautiful story about the life of the monarch butterfly and what it represents to a migrant farmer’s family in A Flicker of Hope: A Story of Migration. Though Lucía and Papá’s desire to see each other again is bittersweet and moving, the real standout is Holzwarth’s colorful illustration work. Monarch butterflies litter nearly every page and morph into what Lucía and Papá need them to be: the music strummed from a guitar, a path the car takes to work, Día de los Muertos skulls.
Back matter gives information about the monarch reserve in Mexico and elaborates on the connection between indigenous Mazahua culture and the butterfly, particularly its connection to Día de los Muertos. Readers desiring more extensive ecological and political details about seasonal work will need to find them elsewhere, as the back matter limits itself to discussing the metaphor of the book and only touches upon the hardships posed by seasonal harvesting in America, and how this is the only choice for many Michoacán workers.
For those who love butterflies or those looking for picture books that explore an aspect of the immigrant experience, A Flicker of Hope will be a meaningful, beautifully illustrated addition to their shelves.
