The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

Loudmouth: Emma Goldman vs. America (a love story) by Deborah Heiligman Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2025 Category: Young Adult Reviewer: Rachel Aronowitz   Buy at Bookshop.org   Loudmouth is a biography of Emma Goldman: early 20th century anarchist, talented orator, tireless fighter for woman's rights and labor rights, imprisoned many times, proponent of free love, newspaper editor and a Russian Jewish immigrant. Goldman's life is so full of adventure, idealism, and history that the reader is enthralled and engaged for the nearly 300 page book. It is a fascinating romp though the politics and everyday life of the turn of the 20th century and especially what life was like for women, laborers, and working class people of that era. As an adult reader I was captivated by Goldman's life; however, I often questioned whether a teen reader would be the right audience for this exploration. There are details of the horrors of prison life, polyamory, violent scenes of gun wounds, and...

Chesed by Karyn Friedman-Everham, illustrated by Gabby Grant PJ Publishing, 2025 Category: Board Book Reviewer: Elizabeth Suneby   Simple, rhyming text and soft, pleasing illustrations adorn this charming board book about chesed, the Hebrew word for kindness. The story shares the cycle of a girl and her family tending to a fruit sapling as it grows and bears fruit that they share with the community -- people and birds alike! The metaphor of growing chesed communicates the ripple effect of grace and goodwill. What a wonderful opportunity to encourage little ones and the adults reading to them to embrace kindness. The beauty of this book is the universal appeal of the story about one example of kindness. While the note from PJ Library references teachings in the Torah, the book is perfect for families of all faiths. It also helps non-Jewish people better understand Jewish values, which is critical at a time when antisemitism is on the rise.       ARE YOU INTERESTED IN...