Review: Shoham's Bangle
Shoham's Bangle by Sarah Sassoon, illustrated by Noa Kelner Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner Publishing Group), 2022 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Rachel J. Fremmer Buy at Bookshop.org What a delight it is to be invited into Shoham’s warm, multigenerational home in Iraq via the pages of Sarah Sassoon’s Shoham’s Bangle . When the family departs for Israel, the reader, too, mourns for the home and fig tree by the Tigris River that they are leaving behind. Shoham’s titular bangle is especially missed, as the Iraqi government did not allow the emigrating Jews to bring their jewelry. Shoham’s grandmother, Nana Aziza, comforts her, comparing their journey to the original Exodus, and entrusts her granddaughter with carrying the pita (instead of matzo) to eat on their arrival in Israel. When she bites into it, she finds a wonderful (and hard to chew) surprise - her hidden bangle! This book is a lovely introduction to Iraqi Jewry and its own exodus, which is handled deftly and