Review: Shira the Singing Puppy
Shira the Singing Puppy by Ilana R. Wieder, illustrated by Alexandra Colombo Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner), 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Cindy Rivka Marshall Buy at Bookshop.org We first meet the puppy, Shira, in a colorful garden with musical notes floating across the landscape. Shira - whose name appropriately means "song" in Hebrew - loves to sing and howl. The opening pages of nature imagery, with flowers, ladybugs, snail and bee, immediately conveys Shira’s joy in life. Each day of the week, the puppy tries to sing for her human family. But repeatedly, they say, “Hush and shush, Shira. Not today.” The children are doing homework or have music lessons. They are watching TV or have playdates. The puppy’s howls are not appreciated, but the reproach is gentle. The repetition of “sh” sounds in the refrain, “Hush and shush, Shira,” reminding one of comforting a baby. The book has an added layer of teaching the days of the week, with Shabbat and Havdalah a...