The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

Does Your Dog Speak Hebrew? A Book of Animal Sounds by Ellen Bari, illustrated by Holly Clifton-Brown Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Sandy Wasserman Buy at Bookshop.org A delightful very beginner picture book, of five Hebrew words for the youngest set! How humorous it is, that words for animal sounds differ among languages. Preschoolers love to imitate animals and how clever they will feel as they learn to speak the Hebrew of these five animals. Artful illustrations set the scene for the both the American and Israeli locations where the animals reside; one is never to young to learn a bit of geography and know some famous American and Israeli pastimes and locales! Child and parent both will meet a dog, a rooster, a frog, a bird, and of course a cow. And how convenient for all that a cow says 'moo' in every language. The illustrations very subtly and creatively are a child's first glimpse into the American landscape and Israel's, too! We see the dog at the Capitol, a...

The Girl from Over There: The Hopeful Story of a Young Jewish Immigrant by Sharon Rechter, illustrated by Karla Gerard  Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Judith S. Greenblatt   Buy at Bookshop.org An unnamed Israeli kibbutz, post World War II, is the setting for this work of historical fiction. A tattered and terrified 11 year old girl, Miriam, has arrived from “over there.” The adults in the kibbutz welcome her, but 11 year old Michal, self described as the “class queen,” is consumed by jealousy and hatred. While Michal’s clique are initially suspicious and cruel, soon only Michal continues to play mean tricks. Not surprisingly, Miriam returns Michal’s hatred. However, Miriam, helped by Michal’s boyfriend Dan, learns to accept her new surroundings, and decides to reach out to Michal. As more new arrivals are welcomed and tell their stories of the horrors of the war. Michal gradually comes to understand how much Miriam has suffered, and after much hesitation apologizes. Writte...

...Too Far From Home by Naomi Shmuel, illustrated by Avi Katz Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Stacy Mozer Too Far From Home is about a Jewish girl named Meskerem who lives in the Golan Heights. Meskerem's mother is an Ethiopian Jew who has just gotten an important job helping the country transition when Operation Solomon brings a large number of Ethiopian Jews to Israel. When the family moves to be closer to the center of Israel for her mother's job, Meskerem is surprised by the racist comments of her new classmates and finds herself telling everyone she's an American, like her father, instead of admitting her real background. With help from her grandmother, Meskerem has to find a way to appreciate and love her heritage before she can help people at her new school get to know the real her. Meskerem's story is relatable to anyone who has experienced any kind of bullying. As an American Jew who only knows a small amount about what happened in Israel with Oper...

My Sister is Sleeping by Devora Busheri, illustrated by Michel Kichka Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Fern Richardson My Sister is Sleeping is a quick picture book tale of an older sister waiting for her younger sister to wake up from a nap. The older sister spends nap time describing the younger sister’s various characteristics and activities while she draws or paints portraits of her life with her sister. She anticipates holding her sister in her lap, feeding her oatmeal, and taking her for a walk in a stroller. While the story was originally published in Hebrew, it is not particularly Jewish or uniquely Israeli. The text on each page is simple, allowing the illustrations to really shine. The book’s artwork was created by Michel Kichka, a highly regarded Israeli cartoonist. Each scene is incredibly detailed and a charming combination of Kichka’s style as well as how he imagines a young child might draw. The last spread in the book is especially nice and depicts the moth...

Hard Hat Cat! by Jamie Kiffel-Alcheh, illustrated by Maxine Lee Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Mirele Kessous This picture book tells the story of how a stray cat, who hangs out at a construction site in Israel, comes to find his forever home. The story is told from the perspective of Ari, a young boy who notices the cat but whose mom won’t let him keep it. Children will be able to relate to Ari’s desire to keep the stray animal and they will follow along as Ari visits all of his neighbors, trying to entice them to adopt the cat. Kiffel-Alcheh’s writing is an unusual blend of poetry, prose, and sounds. While the plot will appeal to children as old as 8, the writing contains onomatopoeic words geared towards a much younger audience ("meow meow, bzz bzz!, bang bang," etc.). Some older children might be put off by that. Still, the pacing of the story is engaging, and Kiffel Alcheh incorporates Hebrew vocabulary as well as characters unique to Israel (the boreka man,...