The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

Wayward Creatures by Dayna Lorentz Clarion Books (imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), 2022 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Shirley Reva Vernick Buy at Bookshop.org Twelve-year-old Gabe feels unmoored by the stress of his father’s unemployment and the shifting friendships of junior high. He acts out by setting off fireworks in the park, accidentally causing a forest fire that destroys acres of public land. When Gabe enters a restorative justice program, he gets the chance to repair some of the damage he has caused. It’s through this program that he gets to know and help Rill, a young coyote who was seriously injured in the fire. Told in the alternating first-person voices of Gabe and Rill, this story agilely explores relationship dynamics, community, self-empowerment, and ecology. Lorentz imbues her faced-paced story with relatable characters who possess both humor and heart. Hard truths about consequences and responsibility are balanced by uplifting messages of personal transformat

The Chocolate King by Michael Leventhal, illustrated by Laura Catalán Green Bean Books  (distributed in the US by Apples & Honey), 2022 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Cynthia Levinson Buy at Bookshop.org Little Benjamin, who immigrated to France from Spain with his family when he was a baby, longs to be a Chocolate King, just like his grandfather, Marco. But, in 1630, no one in France had tasted chocolate—and, when they did, they hated it. Still, Benjamin loves to hear Marco’s tales of life in Spain before they were forced to become conversos. Trying to learn the family trade, Benjamin sneaks into the kitchen, stumbles, makes a mess of the chocolate cooking on the stove, and literally slips out the door, landing in front of the carriage of the real King of France. Whereupon, the king downs four cups of cocoa and declares it delicious. From then on, the French people love chocolate, and the family prospers. Back matter contains “A Bite-Sized History of Chocolate” and depictions

On this final day of the 2022 Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour, we have two wrap-up posts for you. The Book of Life: A Podcast About Jewish Kidlit (Mostly) features a group audio interview with this year's four gold medalists: Susan Kusel and Sean Rubin ( The Passover Guest ), Veera Hiranandani ( How to Find What You're Not Looking For ), and Aden Polydoros ( The City Beautiful ). The Whole Megillah: The Writer's Resource for Jewish-themed Story: Fiction, Nonfiction, and Poetry , has been hosting a virtual panel discussion as a blog tour wrap-up for many years , and this year is no exception. Here are the final two blog tour stops for this year: Gold Medalists on The Book of Life Virtual panel of gold/silver authors and illustrators on The Whole Megillah The Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour February 7-11, 2022 Click here for full blog tour schedule

Two more Sydney Taylor Honor Books are featured on today's Blog Tour stops. In the Picture Book Category: Nicky & Vera: A Quiet Hero of the Holocaust and the Children He Rescued written and illustrated by Peter Sís , an illustrated biography of a Righteous Gentile. In the Young Adult Category: The Last Words We Said by Leah Scheier , an exploration of grief among a Modern Orthodox group of friends. Here are today's blog tour stops: Nicky & Vera at Vivan Kirkfeld's Blog The Last Words We Said at Kayla Reads and Reviews The Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour February 7-11, 2022 Click here for full blog tour schedule

Today's Blog Tour stops bring you three more Sydney Taylor Honor Books. In the Picture Book category: The Christmas Mitzvah by Jeff Gottesfeld , illustrated by Michelle Laurentia Agatha , a holiday story of bridge building across religions. In the Middle Grade category: The Genius Under the Table by Eugene Yelchin , a whimsically illustrated memoir of life behind the Iron Curtain. In the Young Adult category: The Summer of Lost Letters by Hannah Reynolds , a summer romance and the discovery of family history. Here are today's blog tour stops: The Christmas Mitzvah at Pragmatic Mom The Genius Under the Table at Jewish Books for Kids The Summer of Lost Letters at Bookishly Jewish The Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour February 7-11, 2022 Click here for full blog tour schedule

On Day 2 of the 2022 Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour, we meet three of our Honor Books. In the Picture Book category: Dear Mr. Dickens by Nancy Churnin , illustrated by Bethany Stancliffe , a historical tale of a single activist reader impacting the writing of Charles Dickens. In the Middle Grade category: Linked by Gordon Korman , a contemporary story of kids banding together to fight antisemitism. In the Young Adult category: Whistle: A New Gotham City Hero by E. Lockhart , illustrated by Manuel Preitano , a graphic novel that introduces a new Jewish teen superhero with canine powers to Batman's hometown. Here are today's blog tour stops: Dear Mr. Dickens at Good Reads with Ronna Linked at 100 Scope Notes at School Library Journal Whistle at A Fuse #8 Production at School Library Journal The Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour February 7-11, 2022 Click here for full blog tour schedule

We kick off the 2022 Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour with the gold medalists! In the Picture Book category: The Passover Guest by Susan Kusel , illustrated by Sean Rubin , a retelling of I.L. Peretz's "The Magician."  In the Middle Grade category: How to Find What You're Not Looking For by Veera Hiranandani , an exploration of Jewish intersectional identity set during the Civil Rights movement. In the Young Adult category: The City Beautiful by Aden Polydoros , a gothic fantasy thriller. Here are today's blog tour stops: The Passover Guest at the Horn Book's Out of the Box blog How To Find What You're Not Looking For at Mr. Schu Reads The City Beautiful at the Jewish Book Council's blog, The Paper Brigade The Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour February 7-11, 2022 Click here for full blog tour schedule