The pebble

Presentation of the picture book The Pebble (Marius Marcinkevičius, Inga Dagilė) - presentation by the pupils of Starše Primary School and a round table.

The pupils of Starše Elementary School will perform a play about the Holocaust, which they prepared as part of the Krokus project, then a round table will be held on the topic of children and the Holocaust in literature, especially on the example of the Kamenček picture book. The director of the Maribor Synagogue and historian Boris Hajdinjak, the editor of the book Kamenček Zala Stanonik and the senior librarian at the Maribor Library Zdenka Gajser will take part in the round table. The event will be coordinated by Marjetka Berlič, a history teacher at Draga Kobala elementary school.

"How I would like to fly there, beyond the door... To freedom, together with him..." I whispered and squeezed the string even harder. "Freedom is not beyond the door, but here. In my heart..." Rivka placed her small but firm hand on my chest palm.

This story happened in Vilnius. It could also have happened in Warsaw, Prague or Paris during the Second World War. In fact, it could happen anywhere in Europe.

This is a story about the boy Etan and the girl Rivka and about their friendship, and about the arrival of black birds that carry fear with them. Finally, it is also a story about hope and memory.

The picture book by Lithuanian author Marius Marcinkevičius grapples with the weight of the Holocaust and communicates the idea that only keeping the memory is the way forward and that the people we lost never really left.