The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

Mystery at Landscape Farm by Freidele Galya Soban Biniashvili, illustrated by Deena Weinberg Menucha Publishers, 2025 Category: Early Chapter Book Reviewer: Dena Bach   Buy at Menucha When Tova and Ari’s grandparents take the city kids out for a nice spring outing to Landscape Farm during Chol HaMoed Pesach, the intermediate days of Passover, they decide to begin their tour of the farm at the goat feeding. For Tova, Ari, Bubby, and Zeidy this turns out to be an exciting day at the farm when they learn that the farm’s prize baby goat, Gertrude, has disappeared. But after Zeidy slips and falls, he and Bubby need to sit down for a while, so the curious kids head off on their own in search of the missing goat. Ari and Tova follow clues, question the farm’s staff and visitors, and in the end, solve the mystery and find the goat. This book is the third in a series of books aimed at an Orthodox audience, that involves 9-year-old twins Tova and Ari, who solve mysteries while learning abou...

The House on the Canal: The Story of the House That Hid Anne Frank by Thomas Harding, illustrated by Britta Teckentrup Candlewick Press, 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Jeff Gottesfeld   Buy at Bookshop.org I write this review having visited the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam not even a month ago, for the first time since I was in my 20s. And also, as the author of a sometimes-loved, sometimes-criticized (not to worry, some of the criticizers are still good friends!) story of Anne Frank from the perspective of the horse chestnut tree in the courtyard behind the secret annex. In this beautiful volume, Thomas Harding and illustrator Britta Teckentrup show off a dazzling amount of research, deft and purposefully detached writing, and glorious artwork as they trace the course of 263 Prinsengracht (in whose Annex hid Anne Frank and others from Nazi persecutions, with a terrible outcome) from before it was built right through to today, where people "learn about the girl with the ...

Avi the Ambulance Goes to the Beach by Deborah Bodin Cohen, illustrated by C.B. Decker Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Ronda Einbinder   Buy at Bookshop.org Avi the Ambulance is the youngest and smallest ambulance in Jerusalem. His four shiny wheels take him everywhere. He is a cute white ambulance that giggles when Zach the med tech puts air in his tires. What Avi doesn’t expect is that Zach is taking him to the beach in Tiberias to meet his friend Esti and her new ambulance partner. Avi pictures himself wearing sunglasses and sipping a pink drink out of a straw on the beach. Avi loves the beach! Cohen delights readers with onomatopoeias of Zoom! Whoosh! and Zip! Esti greets Zach and Avi, but the ambulance partner is nowhere to be found. When questioned, Esti points to a yellow waterboat docked on the pier. Decker draws curious eyes and a tilted mouth on Avi, showing a bit of confusion. Avi doesn’t understand how Noah, t...

The Center of the Earth by Darlene P. Campos Blue Handle Publishing, 2025 Category: Young Adult Reviewer: Merle Eisman Carrus   Buy at Bookshop.org The plot for The Center of the Earth is based on real life accounts by Holocaust survivors. Their experiences are embedded in the characters in this novel. Meet Dahlia Aviles, twelve years old, a courageous and compassionate young lady, who has moved to Berlin with her parents. Originally from Ecuador, Herr Aviles is a diplomat who is working on assignment in Germany. The year is 1938. Living next door is Rabbi and Frau Rubenstein and their nephew Werner, and the families become friends. As the pressure on Jews increases, Werner’s father and Herr Aviles discuss the future. When the Aviles are recalled to Ecuador, they have a plan in place to bring Werner with them. They draw up false papers and bring him home with them. They concoct a plausible story about Werner being an orphan and Frau Aviles being his nanny, bringing him home with...

The Art of Exile by Andrea Max Margaret K. McElderry Books (imprint of Simon & Schuster), 2025 Category: Young Adult Reviewer: Laura Schutzman   Buy at Bookshop.org Ada Castle is a senior in high school whenher family sends her to Rome for a specific mission. The problem is, she does not know what her mission is until she meets a man by the statue of David, named Michaelangelo or Michael for short. Ada’s whole life is changed by this supposedly chance encounter. After she is kidnapped and then rescued by Michael, he informs her that she is a Sire (magic user) with a special power to manipulate and heal the world through “Hai” the lifeforce. He recruits her to go to a special school, Genesis, to hone her talent. Upon arrival Ada is faced with a dilemma: do what the family expects of her and steal the texts of this secluded sect, or try and do what she wants, selfishly improving her skills to be an alchemist? The book is the first of a series, so it ends on a little bit of a cli...

Interrupted Lives: Nine Stories of Child Survivors of the Holocaust by Amanda Friedman and Kelley Szany Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner Publishing Group), 2025 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Rochelle Newman-Carrasco   Buy at Bookshop.org This book is an inspiring collection of autobiographical stories developed using insightful interviews. A note from the authors even before the opening page speaks to a powerful purpose: “For all the survivors. Thank you for your strength, courage, and resilience, reminding us of the need to remember the past in order to transform the future.” The nine stories also remind us that it won’t be long before hearing directly from survivors, in their own words, is a thing of the past. Authors Amanda Friedeman and Kelley Szany bring their expertise as Holocaust educators to this powerful work as they frame each story with an optimistic life lesson of relevance to the interviewee. These include: "Try to be Optimistic In Life," "Learn fr...

Spark by Chris Baron Feiwel & Friends (imprint of Macmillan), 2025 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Laura Schutzman   Buy at Bookshop.org Writing about wild fires is not a new concept. What makes this novel in verse unique is the sensitive writing and descriptions that Chris Baron includes in his story. It begins with Phineas Katz (aka Finn), and his friend Mirasol (aka Rabbit) putting hidden trail cameras in the local California forest to monitor animals. They create a field journal to document their observations, especially as the drought spreads and affects the flora and fauna. When the small brush fires begin to spread and change the landscape, Finn and Rabbit are determined to document everything, even as they escape from a massive wildfire with their lives.  The story is divided into segments that document the progression of the destruction, beginning with the “spark” in the air, the fast and destructive power of fire, and the aftermath of fire. Each section is beau...

Maccabiah: The Long Ride to the International Sports Games by Deborah Bodin Cohen & Kerry Olitzky Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House),2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Rinat Hadad Siegel   Buy at Bookshop.org   Many of us are familiar with the Maccabiah, an athletic competition in Israel that brings together Jewish and Israeli athletes from around the world. Some refer to it as the Jewish Olympics, and the 2025 Maccabiah Games are just around the corner.  This child-friendly picture book biography takes the reader back to 1912, where the seeds of the Maccabiah were sown when a 15-year-old Yosef Yekutiel listened to radio broadcasts from the Stockholm Olympics. The story highlights a problem: on the one hand, Yosef was happy to learn that Jewish athletes won medals, but at the same time, he discovered that not all countries allowed their Jewish athletes to participate in the Olympics. That drove Yosef to find a solution, which came in the shape of ...

Beinoni by Mari Lowe Levine Querido, 2025 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Leah Cypess   Buy at Bookshop.org In this unique take on the “chosen one” trope, 12-year-old Ezra has been trained since birth to fight a monster. If he succeeds, he will keep the world “beinoni”—in an in-between-state in which nothing terrible can happen. But after Ezra is nearly kidnapped at a classmate’s bar mitzvah, bad things begin to happen in his neighborhood and in the larger world—things that should be impossible in a “beinoni” time. Meanwhile, Ezra himself is falling out with his best friend, falling behind in school, and falling in with a bad influence—foster kid Aryeh, who spreads chaos wherever he goes. His life feels like it’s spiraling out of control, and no one will tell him why. But his pursuit of the truth will make him question everything he’s been told about his place in the world. Ezra, his family, and his friends are all Orthodox Jews, and the depiction of his community is deep and aut...

GLITCH GIRL! by Rainie Oet Kokila (imprint of Penguin Young Readers), 2025 Category: Middle Grade  Reviewer: Esty Schachter   Buy at Bookshop.org GLITCH GIRL! is a heartbreaking verse novel by Rainie Oet that begins with a content warning: "This book contains depictions of difficult subjects that some may find triggering. These include trauma, physical abuse, emotional abuse, violence, self-harm, misgendering, transphobia, homophobia and bullying." This is important, as Oet’s book, taken from personal experiences, is a painful exploration of a child experiencing emotional and physical abuse at home, and the significant impacts that result. The main character, J—, uses a crossed-out name in reflecting on the past because she identifies as a nonbinary girl and uses she/her and they/them pronouns interchangeably. Oet acutely shows J— from 4th to 7th grade as they struggle with rejection, very low self-esteem and isolation, finding some respite through a video game they play. J...

On the Wings of Eagles by Tami Lehman-Wilzig, illustrated by Alisha Monnin Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Leah Cypess   Buy at Bookshop.org On the Wings of Eagles is a beautifully written and gorgeously illustrated picture book. It tells the story of the evacuation of the Jews of Yemen in 1949, when they were flown to Israel in Alaksa Airline’s planes. By combining the narratives of two individuals—a Yemeni girl and an Alaskan Airline pilot—the author creates a story that is both tense and heartwarming. The exquisite illustrations not only complement the story but form an essential part of it. While reading, I wondered whether a certain incident in the picture book was actually true. The short but clear afterword answered all my questions about the historical facts. (And the incident I had wondered about was, in fact, true. It's a spoiler, so you'll have to read it for yourself.) This important and expertly-crafted ...

A Place Called Galveston by Andrea Shapiro, illustrated by Valerya Milovanova Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Shanna Silva   Buy at Bookshop.org   A Place Called Galveston showcases both Jewish hardship and triumph. Life for Russian Jewry was bleak; antisemitism and oppression occurred throughout generations. Nothing ever improved. Prospects of a better life in America (not without its own difficulties) tempted those who could scrape together the ship-passage fare. Galveston, Texas was believed to be a welcome refuge for Jewish immigrants, where there was an established Jewish community and trade work could be found. In this story, two young men make the arduous journey, leaving their families behind in Russia with promises for future reunions. After weeks at sea, the men are greeted by bicycle-riding Rabbi Henry Cohen in Galveston. The Jewish community there welcomed them with lodging, food, and job prospects. The t...

All the Things We Found by Joanne Levy Orca, 2025 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Lisa Trank   Buy at Bookshop.org In Joanne Levy's All the Things We Found , 11-year-old Ruthie is navigating big, difficult changes from the aftermath of her baby brother’s stillbirth and her mother's subsequent postpartum depression, to her parents' divorce, new stepfather, and standoffish older stepbrothers. When Ruthie’s mother announces that she is pregnant, Ruthie’s grief and anxieties about her baby brother’s passing are reignited. Ruthie finds solace with her dog Izzy, and her best friend, Jenna, and their shared passion for the fantasy book series Unicorns of Faravelle . The two girls eagerly anticipate book number eight, but when they learn it's been canceled, Ruthie is determined to uncover why, even attempting to write the book herself. On a walk with Izzy to the cemetery where her brother is buried, Ruthie encounters an older woman sitting on a bench, writing in a red noteboo...

The Sky Was My Blanket: A Young Man's Journey Across Wartime Europe written and illustrated by Uri Shulevitz Farrar Straus Giroux, 2025 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Judy Ehrenstein   Buy at Bookshop.org Employing a conversational, first-person narrative, the late author and illustrator Uri Shulevitz writes in the voice of his uncle, Henri, whom he met after both survived World War II. Born Yehiel Szulewicz in early 20th century Poland, Szulewicz showed early on that he was curious about the world beyond his Polish village and wouldn’t let obstacles get in his way of seeking adventure. Striking out from home at 15 ½ years old, thinking he would walk to the Holy Land, he traveled through Poland, much of central and southern Europe, eventually landing in Spain and joining the fight against Franco, all the while either staying with fellow Jews and earning small amounts of money to help him get by, or sleeping outside, “with the sky as my blanket”. When money or official papers were...