The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

Max and Emma Discover the Meaning of Manna by Carl Harris Shuman, illustrated by Leo Trinidad Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2025 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Merle Carrus   Buy at Bookshop.org   Max and Emma are back for another adventure. Traveling back in time, they visit historical characters who help them understand a Jewish holiday or concept. It is the holiday of Sukkot, and the Rabbi is teaching Max and Emma’s class about the lulav and etrog. They discuss the Israelites traveling in the desert. The Rabbi explains that there were not actual huts but protective clouds that hovered over and around the Israelites as they traveled across the desert. That is why today we recreate that effect by erecting a Sukkah in our yards. As the children imagine the Israelites traveling they wonder what they ate along the way. The Rabbi explains about the manna falling each day. Emma wonders what manna was and what it tasted like. Emma, Max and their friend Eita...

Shabbat Is... by A.J. Sass, illustrated by Noa Kelner Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Julie Ditton   Buy at Bookshop.org   In "Shabbat is ..." A.J. Sass shows children that there is no one right way to be Jewish. Jews come from a diverse population with many backgrounds and personalities. This book follows three very different families as they celebrate the Sabbath in their own way. Different pages alternate first person narrative about how they spend Shabbat. By telling the story in first person point of view for all three kids, any Jewish child will find a character to identify with. The text and the art pair perfectly to send the message that there are many different types of people who are Jewish and many ways to celebrate Shabbat, reinforced by the vibrant, colorful, detailed illustrations by Noa Kelner. Just as the traditions that these families choose when they celebrate Shabbat differ, the families are different in composi...

New Moon, Hiding Moon: A Playful Action Rhyme by Amy Vatner, illustrated by Patti Argoff Hachai, 2025 Category: Board Books Reviewer: Arlene Rosenfeld Schenker   This board book introduces the littlest tykes to the moon’s phases with short rhyming verses and big bold, color-saturated illustrations. Each page is a delight to look at and read. The verses begin with a dark sky and then continue with a crescent moon, a half-moon, a three-quarter moon, a full moon, and then back again to a hiding moon. Each phase is associated with something familiar to very young children: smiles, pizza, the boy’s kippa, a circle. Children will be drawn into the story even more by the illustrations which prompt them to trace their own smiles and make circles in the air. The children in the story are clearly from an observant Jewish family as the two boys are wearing kippot and the older boy is wearing tzitzit. The fact of the new moon signaling a new month in the Jewish calendar is only indicated on th...

The Three Little Sheep: A Tale for Sukkot written and illustrated by Ann Diament Koffsky Green Bean Books, 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Jodie Sadowsky   Buy at Bookshop.org   Jakey, Joey, and Jennie are three not-so-little sheep who’ve outgrown their family’s sukkah. This Sukkot, it’s time for them to build their own. Like the characters in the well-known fairy tale The Three Little Pigs, each brings their own personality to the celebration. Jakey builds his sukkah with straw for a solo silo, Joey uses sticks for a hut big enough to share with a friend, and Jennie goes all out with elaborate columns and bricks to welcome a crowd. As readers may expect, a wolf shows up and ruins the more delicate sukkahs with his huffing and puffing. Readers will be surprised by what comes next — Wolfie doesn’t want to eat the three little sheep, he only wants to be included in their Sukkot festivities! The sheep welcome him in, and a funny and adorable dialogue and friendship ensues....

10 Nesting Swallows: A Biblical Counting Book by Tammar Stein, illustrated by Chloë Manasseh-Benjamin Morehouse Publishing, 2025 Category: Board Books Reviewer: Heidi Rabinowitz   Buy at Bookshop.org   On each page of this countdown board book, we find a different species of bird: 10 nesting swallows, 9 chattering cranes, and so on. The activities or characteristics of each bird correspond to a biblical quotation in small print on the same spread, all from "Old Testament" sources. The author and illustrator are both Jewish but the book is from a Christian publisher, which may explain the emphasis on quoting scripture.    Young children may enjoy counting backwards and seeing the various birds, but the biblical aspect may be lost on them. Parents who are biblical scholars may be the best audience for this book. The quotations include citations but no context, and will make little sense to the toddlers at whom a counting board book is ostensibly aimed. Older children ...

A Sukkah for Bella by Jodie Sadowsky, photos by Frannie Wilson Lovevery, 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Julie Ditton   Buy at Amazon.com   This cute nonfiction early reader introduces children to the holiday of Sukkot. Bella explains to the reader that her family is Jewish and she is excited to help the family build a sukkah, and we follow along as they build it together. Bella describes the holiday, the sukkah, and a few of the customs to the readers. Her explanations are appropriate for the intended reader who would be in early elementary school. A few of the sentences are written in a simpler, bigger font allowing emergent readers who are listening to the book to read a few sentences for themselves. A few words are written in large colorful font which will appeal to these youngsters. However, there are also a few fine print insets which give parents further explanations and definitions of the few Hebrew words. Kids will identify with Bella because she wants to help,...

Days of Awe: Stories for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur by Eric A. Kimmel, illustrated by Sarah Green Holiday House, 2025 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Jeanette Brod   Buy at Bookshop.org   If the title Days of Awe: Stories for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and its selection of stories seem familiar, it is because they are. The book is a new edition of an old favorite with all new illustrations. The three stories included represent the important Jewish concepts of Charity, Prayer, and Repentance. The classic retellings remain the same. The fully saturated color pages and evocative new artistic motifs provide new possibilities for engagement with a High Holiday standard. The first story involves Elijah the Prophet, disguised as an officer posted to a distant province. He leaves Rivka with a very tarnished samovar she is unable to clean. Rivka discovers that the samovar brightens with each act of Charity she performs. Over the next seven years, she and her husband take only wha...

Kayla and Kugel's Super Sweet Rosh Hashanah written and illustrated by Ann D. Koffsky Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2025 Category: Picture Book Reviewer: Judy Ehrenstein Buy at Bookshop.org Kayla and her dog Kugel set off for the farmer’s market to get ready for Rosh Hashanah in this richly illustrated book for newly independent readers. Kugel runs in circles, which Kayla equates with the round challahs for the holiday, and accidentally knocks over honey jars, an example of a mistake in need of an apology. Other holiday related things included are the blowing of a shofar, picking apples, and taschlich. A note to readers offers up some discussion questions and a brief glossary. This story, part of a series, offers Jewish children age appropriate ways to connect to the preparations and meaning of Rosh Hashanah. The humorous antics of Kugel are used to convey some facts, which Kayla clearly understands and takes joy in sharing, although they are not particularl...

My Shofar written and illustrated by Ann Diament Koffsky Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2025 Category: Board Book Reviewer: Judy Ehrenstein   Buy at Bookshop.org A young elephant girl explores the concepts of quiet and loud while trying to blow a shofar. Readers will enjoy the humorous twist of the horn being filled with peanuts, thus causing the lack of volume. The illustrations feature a personable elephant and her loving mother, arranged with plenty of blank space on each page. The text is spare, appropriate for the age and interest level of this book. This book, part of a series, offers Jewish families a unique way to use a ritual object to teach an age appropriate concept, in this case the opposites of quiet and loud. The text at the end and on the back of the book, which is directed at adults, assumes knowledge of the use and purpose of a shofar.   ARE YOU INTERESTED IN REVIEWING BOOKS FOR THE SYDNEY TAYLOR SHMOOZE? CLICK HERE   Reviewer Judy ...

The Pirate Rabbi by David Sherrin, illustrated by Barbara DiLorenzo Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Rachel J. Fremmer   Buy at Bookshop.org The Pirate Rabbi is based on the life of Samuel Pallache, a real Sephardic rabbi… and pirate! Sherrin’s adaptation of his life story focuses on Rabbi Sam’s good deeds rather than any true acts of piracy. In his telling, he is not so much a “pirate” as a sailor who rescues many of his co-religionists. Rabbi Sam even convinces a real pirate, a bit unrealistically, that “there is no need to steal… when we can all share.” With its illustrations of big ships, billowing sails, and vast oceans, The Pirate Rabbi is sure to appeal to those who like a good adventure. In addition to its emphasis on helping people, its subtler message is that people can combine seemingly disparate interests and callings. The backmatter does address the darker side of pirate life, acknowledging that “most pirate...

Finding Forgiveness by Rebecca Gardyn Levington, illustrated by Diana Mayo Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Rochelle Newman-Carrasco   Buy at Bookshop.org Finding Forgiveness might be called a Rosh Hashanah story, but the magic of this moving picture book in rhyme is the way it centers two key relationships – one between two sisters, and the other between the oldest sister and her own sense of self. It opens with a quick verse about Rosh Hashanah. Diana Mayo’s soft but powerful illustrations, a blend of soft pastels and brighter pops of color, set the tone and introduce us to a congregation of a diverse Jewish community. Gardyn Levington immediately zooms in on the sisters, and we realize our narrator is the older of the two young girls. There was a fight the night before and the older sister is processing how she might make things right. The narrator’s internal personal journey also includes observations about the Rosh Hashanah rituals – shofar b...

Laila Tov, Grover! by Joni Sussman, illustrated by Tom Leigh Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner), 2025 Category: Board Books Reviewer: Sarah Clarke   Buy at Bookshop.org   It’s time for bed, Grover! This sweet board book, featuring everyone’s favorite Sesame Street monster Grover, follows a nightly bedtime routine. It is the fifth book in Kar-Ben’s Shalom Sesame series. We follow our pal, Grover, as he puts on pajamas, brushes his teeth, listens to his Imma read him a bedtime story, says Shema, snuggles with his stuffed bunny and receives kisses from Imma before it’s lights out. He is off to sleep; Laila Tov, Grover! While this board book is short, only 12 pages, it truly hones in on the subject of (re)introducing little ones to a nightly routine. It uses thoughtfully crafted sentences that are direct and use ordinary language. The illustrations showcase a familiar friend, doing things that many children already do each night. There is no confusion as to what is shown in ea...

Lily's Hong Kong Honey Cake by Erica Lyons, illustrated by Bonnie Pang Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Amy Brook Cohen   Buy at Bookshop.org Lily’s Hong Kong Honey Cake is a beautiful book which follows a young Jewish girl and her family who move from Vienna to Shanghai in 1939, and then later to Hong Kong. The book is set over a decade, and Lily’s story echoes the stories of other Jewish refugees who left Europe for Asia during the Second World War. When Lily is three, she and her family leave Austria, where they run a bakery. Eating their honey cake on a ship bound for China, Lily’s mother says, “For a sweet year, my sweet one.” This refrain repeats throughout the book. For the next few years, Lily and her family run a successful bakery in downtown Shanghai: “But the honey cake still tasted like home.” War is hard, and by Lily’s eighth Rosh Hashanah, there are no ingredients available to make honey cake. Soon, Lily and h...

Anyada Buena, Shanah Tovah by Sarah Aroeste, illustrated by Maria Mola Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner), 2025 Category: Board Books Reviewer: Lauren Kasiarz   Buy at Bookshop.org   With rhyming text, this Rosh Hashanah board book softly welcomes in the Jewish new year and walks young readers through Sephardic new year traditions, such as the blessing over eight symbolic foods. Readers also learn how to say happy new year in both Ladino and Hebrew with the refrain “anyada buena, shanah tovah”. The story concludes with the family coming together to celebrate the new year. For ages one to four, Anyada Buena, Shanah Tovah honors accessible Rosh Hashanah traditions that young readers can participate in such as blowing (or listening to) the shofar, eating apples dipped in honey, and having a round challah. Maria Mola’s illustrations are youthful with muted, warm tones that are reminiscent of the autumn season during which Rosh Hashanah occurs. Readers may also scan the QR cod...

It's a Mitzvah! Small Deeds with Big Heart written and illustrated by Suzy Ultman Rise x Penguin Workshop, 2025 Category: Board Books Reviewer: Elizabeth Suneby   Buy at Bookshop.org   It's A Mitzvah: Small Deeds with Big Heart joins two previous Jewish-themed board books ( I Like Your Chutzpah and Shabbat Shalom ) that Ultman has written and illustrated. In her latest, she continues her trademark bright colors, bold graphics, and cute drawings of people and animals that appeal to little ones. She uses the kid-friendly refrain "I like when..." to introduce the concept of good deeds/mitzvot, such as telling the truth, asking questions, and even rescuing an earthworm stranded on the sidewalk! She follows each "I like" statement with "It's ..." with the Hebrew word for the good deed showcased. Last, she includes a parenthetical description of each mitzvah. (FYI, rescuing an earthworm is tikkun olam, the mitzvah of repairing the world.) While the...

Hanukkah 1-2-3!: A First Counting Book by Joy Nelkin Wieder, illustrated by Aura Lewis Abrams Appleseed (imprint of Abrams), 2025 Category: Board Book Reviewer: Ann Koffsky   Buy at Bookshop.org In Hanukkah 1-2-3!: A First Counting Book , Joy Weider has done a beautiful job distilling Hanukkah down to its core, which is just what needs to be done for a board book reader. Each page has one line of text about an element of the holiday, counting our way up page by page—6 dreidels, 7 donuts, until we reach 9 beautifully lit menorahs and 10 singers for the last page. Remarkably, Weider has also managed in this sparse text to make it follow a simple rhyme structure, which makes it a lovely read-aloud, too. Lewis’s bold and deceptively simple illustrations accompany the text beautifully, and show multi-hued children and grown-ups celebrating the holiday. The Jewish representation in this book is completely authentic and accurate including the Hebrew lettering on the dreidels and the styl...

What Shape Is Your Bagel? A First Book of Jewish Food by The Macaroons, illustraed by Shahar Kober Doubleday (imprint of Random House Children's Books), 2025 Category: Board Books Reviewer: Heidi Rabinowitz   Buy at Bookshop.org   This short rhyming book introduces various Ashkenazi Jewish foods by their shapes - a bagel is a circle, a matzah is a square, and so on. Some of the shapes may be less familiar to the preschool audience - the trapezoid shaped glass of Shabbos grape juice, for example, and the cylindrical blintzes (the only 3D shape included). Some of the foods are associated with holidays, while others just represent Jewish cuisine generally. Cozy, colorful illustrations by the talented Shahar Kober show Jewish eaters with a variety of skin and hair colors, although dietary habits imply that all of these characters are Ashkenazim. The book is a companion to a cute song of the same title by The Macaroons (Shawn Fogel, Dan Saks, and Dave Schneider), which can be play...

Lilac and the Switchback by Cordelia Jensen Holiday House, 2025 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Stacy Mozer   Buy at Bookshop.org   This beautifully written novel in verse is a heartwarming must-read. After her mother’s death, Lilac moves in with her aunt and uncle, who have treated her with kindness, but she’s never truly felt at home. Her cousin has never welcomed her, and now, with twins on the way, Lilac feels more like an outsider than ever. As she starts middle school, things get even harder when her best friend joins the popular crowd, alongside her cousin, leaving Lilac behind. When she discovers a long-lost letter and a check from her father, Lilac realizes he may have wanted to be part of her life all along. Hoping for the sense of belonging she's always craved, she reaches out to him, wondering if he might finally be the one to offer her a real home. Judaism plays a meaningful and authentic role in Lilac’s journey as she seeks connection to her father and a deeper...

Ellie the Eggspert by Danielle Sharkan, illustrated by Alexandra Colombo Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Jodie Sadowsky   Buy at Bookshop.org Ellie is an expert at many things, especially cooking. At school, Ellie’s teacher hands out seeds for the children to grow into plants which will be used in recipes for the class cooking competition. Ellie’s friends instantly know how they’ll prepare their tomato, cucumber and garbanzo bean seeds, but Ellie is stumped with her eggplant seeds. She thought eggs came from chickens, not plants! Amelia Bedelia-style silliness ensues around her misunderstanding (which might fall flat for kids similarly unfamiliar with eggplant): Ellie builds a nest, sets up an incubator, waits for her egg(plant)s to hatch, then tries to use her eggplant in traditionally egg-based dishes, like omelet, souffle and cake. When all fails, Ellie seeks help from her friends, who arrive with their newly harvested...

And Eddie Had an Egg by Dina Leifer, illustrated by Sharon Spitz Green Bean Books, 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Jodie Sadowsky   Buy at Green Bean Books For Eddie, Dad’s salmon is “too fishy,” Mum’s barley soup is “yuck,” and her spinach lasagna, “[t]oo green, too cheesy.” Eggs are safe for this “fussy eater,” and the only food Eddie eats while his family enjoys special meals on Rosh Hashanah, Sukkot, Hanukkah and Shavuot. Admirably, Eddie’s family patiently accept his fussiness, without nagging or nudging, pushing or prodding. To their surprise, Eddie decides to try eggplant during one Shabbat dinner, and to their greater shock, Eddie likes it! When Eddie’s mom congratulates him for trying something new, Eddie realizes that the new dish only shares a name with his favorite food and is not actually an “egg plant.” Still, he feels proud for trying something new, and bravely continues trying new foods with satisfying results. By the time Passover arrives, Eddie enjoys...