The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

Every Scoop of Light: A Story About Repairing the World by Ilene Cooper, illustrated by Omer Hoffmann Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Julie Ditton   Buy at Bookshop.org   Ilene Cooper brings children a new book just as fantastic as her 2007 picture book, The Golden Rule . This charming book retells the midrash of how God decided to give humans wonderful gifts such as happiness, health, wisdom, kindness, love, laughter, imagination, celebration and peace. But the vessels shattered, leaving people to find and gather the sparks. Cooper tells the tale in a simple manner that kids can understand. She even includes people that question God, asking why God needs our help. Others ask why they should do the hard work of gathering sparks. Why doesn't God do it? God replies that it is people's world and they should have the responsibility to help make it a better place.    Omer Hoffmann's colorful illustrations include people of various ra...

Shabbat on Mars by Jeff Ward, illustrated by Gila von Meisner Intergalactic Afikoman, 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Julie Ditton   Buy at Bookshop.org "It's not exactly rocket science," but this book is "what happens when a Jewish aerospace engineer marries a Conservative rabbi." Jeff Ward gathers current scientific theories about life in a future Mars colony and applies them to how Jewish Mars colonists would celebrate Shabbat. Readers learn all about life on Mars, from what types of buildings would be created to what food colonists might be able grow or make. Much like vegan "hotdogs" which are not made of meat, the brisket or pishkado might be made from algae instead. By comparing Shabbat on Earth to Shabbat on Mars, this fantastic picture book for older readers teaches science and Jewish culture at the same time. In the afterward, which asks "What does Jewish look like...On Mars?" the author points out that there are different w...

The Rebel Girls of Rome by Jordyn Taylor Harper (imprint of HarperCollins), 2025 Category: Amy Brook Cohen Reviewer: Young Adult   Buy at Bookshop.org   In The Rebel Girls of Rome , Taylor has written an epic, important and moving story. The story is told from the perspective of two characters: Lilah and Bruna. Lilah is a Jewish American college student who travels to Italy with her grandfather, Raffa (a Holocaust survivor with a tremendous amount of survivor’s guilt), looking for answers after receiving an intriguing email. Lilah and her grandfather are grieving after having recently lost Lilah’s mother to cancer, and a purpose-filled trip to Italy comes at an opportune time. Lilah and Raffa have no idea just how important and transformative this trip to Italy will be. Their visit to Rome leads them to uncover answers to questions about their family history, which will change their lives forever. The second perspective offered is that of Bruna - Lilah’s great aunt, and Raffa’...

Sammy Spider's Big Book of Jewish Holidays by Sylvia A. Rouss, illustrated by Katherine Janus Kahn Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner), 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Ronda Einbinder   Buy at Bookshop.org In the long-running Sammy Spider series, Sammy Spider and his mother, Mrs. Spider, live secretly with Mr. and Mrs. Shapiro and their son Josh. Sammy is quite inquisitive and is fascinated by the many Jewish holidays the Shapiros celebrate. There are individual Sammy Spider books for most Jewish holidays, but this title combines a number of holidays, with short original stories and mostly original artwork.   The story begins with the Shapiros hanging up the Jewish calendar. Sammy also wants to hang a calendar, but Mrs. Spider tells him that spiders don’t hang calendars, spiders spin webs. The cute catchphrase  continues as the reader learns about each of the Jewish holidays: when Sammy asks to participate in a holiday, Mrs. Spider responds with “Silly little S...

Refugee: The Graphic Novel by Alan Gratz, art by Syd Fini Graphix (imprint of Scholastic), 2025 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Rachel Aronowitz   Buy at Bookshop.org Refugee , a new graphic novel version of an Sydney Taylor Book Award winning fictional middle grade book, recounts the story of three different children and their families, in three different historical time periods, all forced violently and dramatically into refugee status. The children show resilience, strength and courage, and play a big part in helping their families find a path to peace and safety. Whether they are Jews escaping the Nazis in World War II, Syrians fleeing Aleppo, or Cubans making the perilous journey to the US, all must face harrowing obstacles. The graphic novel features rich character development and readers will sympathize and feel an emotional connection to the plight of the refugee families. The full color illustrations are riveting and lend context to the geographic areas and historical de...

Threat of the Spider (The Web of the Spider series) by Michael P. Spradlin Margaret K. McElderry Books (imprint of Simon & Schuster), 2025 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Judith S. Greenblatt   Buy at Bookshop.org   Germany, 1930. Twelve year old Ansel’s father has gone missing. No help will be had from the police, as his father was fighting for a free press in Germany. It’s up to Ansel and his friends. Ansel applies what he has learned from reading his favorite books, the “Dirk Goodly, Boy Detective” novels. First considering possible kidnappers, Ansel focuses on Hans and his friends in his town’s Hitler Youth chapter. Ansel, who is quick to speak up against what he sees as wrong, and who is smart and funny, has been Hans’s enemy for a long time. Enmity between the two boys grew as Hans became more arrogant and even more of a bully. Can Ansel be right? Threat of the Spider  is a fast paced and compelling story: readers will want to know what happened to Ansel’s fath...

What Louis Brandeis Knows: A Crusader for Social Justice Becomes a Supreme Court Justice by Richard Michelson, illustrated by Stacy Innerst Calkins Creek (imprint of Astra Books for Young Readers), 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Heidi Rabinowitz   Buy at Bookshop.org The life of lawyer Louis Brandeis is outlined in this picture book biography, from childhood to his appointment to the Supreme Court. His common sense approach to life is evoked through the repeated phrase "Any fool knows..." that all people should be treated equally, that joy is more important than wealth, and so on. We see Louis growing and learning, building his persuasive skills and fighting for justice. Key events in his life are touched upon briefly, and are later fleshed out in a thorough and fascinating endnote. We learn that Louis was not only significant for being the first Jewish Supreme Court Justice, but that he set crucial precedents that have contributed greatly to the fairness of our demo...