The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

 Benjy's Blanket adapted by Miguel Gouveia, illustrated by Raquel Catalina Green Bean Books Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Rachel J. Fremmer Buy at Bookshop.org Benjy’s Blanket , adapted by Miguel Gouveia and illustrated by Raquel Catalina, is the eighth (that I know of!) picture book that retells the old Yiddish folktale, Something from Nothing . A grandfather sews something - usually a coat, here a blanket - for his grandchild. The child outgrows the item or it becomes too worn to use, and the grandfather keeps reusing smaller and smaller scraps - turning them into a jacket, a vest, and so on. When there is nothing left of the original blanket, it turns out something remains - the story! With a beautiful, soothing palette of browns, greys, turquoise and touches of yellow, endpapers that show sewing patterns, and a smaller trim size for smaller hands, Benjy’s Blanket is a lovely - but not necessary - addition to the books that have already adapted this folktale. As in all vers

 When the World Was Ours  by Liz Kessler Aladdin (imprint of Simon & Schuster) Category: Young Adult Reviewer: Meg Wiviott Buy at Bookshop.org When the World Was Ours follows the lives of Leo, Elsa, and Max from 1936 to 1945. Opening on Leo’s ninth birthday, the three best friends ride Vienna’s giant ferris wheel. When Leo accidentally collides with an English couple, a friendship blooms. The joy of that day does not last long, however. Despite the rising tide of Nazism, Leo’s family remains in Vienna. His father is arrested and sent to Dachau and then to Auschwitz. Leo and his mother scramble to get visas out of Austria, but to no avail. Finally, the couple Leo bumped into on the ferris wheel three years ago agree to sponsor them. Elsa, who is also Jewish, and her family escape to Czechoslovakia, but are eventually sent to Theresienstadt and then to Auschwitz. Max’s father, an ardent Nazi, moves to Munich to work at Dachau. To please his father, Max joins the Hitler Youth. Suppr

 The Shelter and the Fence: When 982 Holocaust Refugees Found Safe Haven in America by Norman H. Finkelstein Chicago Review Press Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Dena Bach Buy at Bookshop.org The Shelter and the Fence , a non-fiction narrative by Norman H. Finkelstein, a retired librarian, history teacher and winner of two National Jewish Book awards, richly recounts the true story of the Fort Ontario Emergency Refugee Shelter in Oswego, NY. During World War II, the fear and distrust of refugees by most Americans almost entirely eliminated immigration. In stark contrast was Fort Ontario, the sole site in the United States that welcomed Jews escaping war-ravaged Europe.    Finkelstein begins his well-researched, readable account by describing the journeys taken by many of these 982 refugees to get to Oswego. He continues with an account of the working community they built behind the barbed wire fence of the fort. Included are names, detailed stories, and archival photos of s

 The Sun Will Come Out by Joanne Levy Orca Book Publishers Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Shirley Reva Vernick Buy at Bookshop.org Painfully shy twelve-year-old Bea Gelman can’t wait to attend her first sleepaway summer camp—that is, until her BFF backs out and Bea has to go to Camp Shalom alone. Bea’s social anxiety manifests itself in unsightly hives, which embarrass her in front of her crush and elicit merciless bullying from two mean girls in her cabin. When Bea sprains her ankle and then apparently gets betrayed by her one new friend, she decides to spend the summer in the infirmary. There, she meets Harry, the camp directors’ 13-year-old son, who has the terminal condition progeria. Harry’s strength and positivity inspire Bea to face her own challenges and even to participate in the camp musical production of Annie (hence, the book’s title).    Both humorous and heartwarming, The Sun Will Come Out offers a tightly plotted arc that authentically portrays the emotiona

 The Singer and the Scientist by Lisa Rose, illustrated by Isabel Muñoz Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner Publishing Group) Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Karin Fisher-Golton Buy at Bookshop.org In this picture book, almost all the action takes place on one evening in 1937—an evening that speaks  volumes about the people involved and the times when they lived. African American singing icon Marian Anderson performed that night before an all-white audience at the McCarter Theatre in Princeton, New Jersey. Young readers will get a sense of what that meant in 1937—for Ms. Anderson to see no one who looked like her in the audience, for the people who had just enthusiastically applauded her to ignore her after the show, and for her to be denied access to a hotel room because of the color of her skin. Enter the famous Jewish physicist Albert Einstein, on the surface so different—his wild hair and wrinkled clothing contrasting with Ms. Anderson’s impeccable outfit and click

 Abby, Tried and True by Donna Gephart Simon & Schuster Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Judith S. Greenblatt   Buy at Bookshop.org Donna Gephart has built an audience that awaits each of her books. In this latest of her books she tackles important difficult subjects. One concern is the self-image of an introvert, the other is the effect of life-threatening illness on not only the ill person, but the whole family.  Almost twelve year old Abby is an introvert who has one friend. Unfortunately, that friend, Catriella, is moving to Israel. Her house next door is rented and eventually Abby allows herself to become friends with her new neighbor, Conrad. Abby’s beloved older brother Paul is diagnosed with testicular cancer. Abby, her Moms, the extended family and Paul’s friend Ethan work together to get through Paul’s diagnoses, surgery and chemotherapy. Abby is supported by Catriella via text and phone and Conrad, and helped by talking to her pet turtle, and by writing poetry.  Cancer i

The Fabulous Tale of Fish & Chips by Helaine Becker, illustrated by Omer Hoffman Green Bean Books Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Freidele Galya Soban Biniashvili  Buy at Bookshop.org Who knew fish and chips has a place in Jewish history? The Fabulous Tale of Fish & Chips , written by Helaine Becker and illustrated by Omer Hoffmann, brings this interesting part of food history to the picture book format. Joseph Malin, a descendant of Spanish Jews, ‘loved fish. He loved catching fish from the sea. He loved selling fish in his family’s shop. And, most of all, Joseph loved eating fish.’ His grandmother had taught him how to make it and explained ‘the secret of this scrumptious recipe. “It’s the crispy crust that makes the fish so delicious. And that’s why it still tastes good when we eat it cold on the Sabbath.” ’ Written in delightful prose that young readers will easily be able to follow, the story unfolds and explains how the popular combination dish of fish and chips evolved