Song of a Blackbird

Ages 14 to 18

Fictionalized but based on actual events, Song of a Blackbird is a graphic novel with two intertwined timelines: one is a modern-day family drama, the other a courageous tale of art and resistance under Nazi occupation.

In 1943 Amsterdam, Emma Bergsma’s world changes when she witnesses Jewish families being forcibly deported to concentration camps. In that moment, she decides to joins the Dutch Resistance.

In 2011 Amsterdam, Annick’s world has changed as well. A search for a bone marrow donor for her beloved oma leads to a shocking revelation: her grandmother was secretly adopted as a child. The only clues to finding their lost family are a series of art prints hanging on the wall—each signed by a mysterious “Emma B.”

In Song of a Blackbird, these two intertwining timelines reveal how art, in the face of nearly insurmountable adversity, can become our greatest lifeline.

About the Author

Maria van Lieshout was born and raised near Amsterdam, where she spent many weekends in the Museum Quarter row house with her artist aunt and metalsmith uncle. Drawing while her aunt painted, and pecking stories on a typewriter while her uncle soldered metals inspired her love for creating. After high school in Leiden, Maria studied Visual Communications at GWU in DC. In 2000, Maria became an illustrator full-time. She has illustrated/written 15 picture books. Song of a Blackbird is Maria’s first graphic novel.