The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

Attack of the Black Rectangles by Amy Sarig King Scholastic, 2022 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Heidi Rabinowitz Buy at Bookshop.org Mac's sixth-grade reading group discovers that their school copies of the Holocaust classic The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen have been censored with black rectangles. The blacked-out the passages, "hands over her breasts" and "She motioned toward her own undeveloped chest," take place in a harsh concentration camp setting and are in no way sexual, but their teacher is uncomfortable with these references to human body parts and thinks she is protecting the twelve-year-old readers with this action. Mac and his friends resent being dictated to, lied to, and not being taken seriously by the adults around them. They organize and bring the matter to the school board, helping their uptight town wake up: "Until we started our protests, people thought they had to follow rules no matter how weird the rules were. We reminded

The Incredible Shrinking Lunchroom by Michal Babay, illustrated by Paula Cohen Charlesbridge, 2022 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Shirley Reva Vernick Buy at Bookshop.org The Incredible Shrinking Lunchroom is a hilarious contemporary retelling of the Yiddish folktale popularized by Margot Zemach’s 1977 book, It Could Always Be Worse . In Babay’s story, the students at Parley Elementary tell their principal, Mrs. Mensch, that the cafeteria is too noisy and crowded. Mrs. M. responds by moving more and more things into the lunchroom – things like science projects, classroom pets, and school sports teams. When the situation reaches peak chaos, the principal finally returns the cafeteria to its original state. The students are now thrilled with their suddenly roomy and quiet lunchroom. The end note summarizes the original Yiddish folktale and explains the story's importance to the author. The Incredible Shrinking Lunchroom is a warm, smart, and funny demonstration of the importance

Strangers in Jerusalem by Kerry Olitzky & Inas Younis, illustrated by Maryana Kachmar Brandylane Publishers, 2022 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Shanna Silva Buy at Bookshop.org Strangers in Jerusalem is, at its core, a book about kindness and embracing people who are different from oneself. Three girls, strangers at first, help each other locate holy sites in Jerusalem. Each has been asked to visit a house of worship that is not her own: Muslim Leila visits a church for a Christian friend, Jewish Rachel visits a mosque to give charity on behalf of a Muslim neighbor, and Muslim Asma visits the Western Wall to place a note for a Jewish friend. Differing backgrounds are no barrier to friendship here, as kindness and helpfulness bond the girls in friendship. The story shows an idealized and hopeful world of peaceful co-existence, where commonalities are more important than differences. The innocence of the children, who are naïve to the frictions between religious groups in Israel,

The Brass Charm by Monique Polak, illustrated by Marie LaFrance Scholastic Canada, 2022 Category: Picture Books  Reviewer: Cynthia Levinson Buy at Amazon.ca   The Brass Charm is a Holocaust story with an endearing twist. It does not take place during the Second World War, but in the current day. After a storm blows the roof off Tali's house, she goes to stay with Oma, her Holocaust survivor grandmother. Tali is sad about the loss of her home, her bed, and her books, but Oma gently lets her know that people have survived much worse. She explains that kindness and generosity make hard times easier, and shares her own story and the brass monkey man charm given to her by a fellow prisoner in Terezin on her birthday many years ago. This story gives Tali the courage to reach out to a lonely neighboring child and make friends. Using storm metaphors and realistic details, the story is based on true events. In the backmatter, the author briefly explains the Holocaust and that her mother

Apples, Apples, All Year Round: A Year of Jewish Holidays by Barbara Bietz & June Sobel, illustrated by Ruth Waters Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2022 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Suzanne Grossman Buy at Bookshop.org Apples join the joy of Jewish holiday celebrations in this rollicking, perfectly rhymed journey through the Jewish year. Traditional apple treats include apples and honey for Rosh Hashanah, apple decorations for the Sukkah, applesauce to accompany Hanukkah latkes, apples in the Passover charoset and more, making this a book to share all year long. The artwork is bright and cheery, with lots of holiday symbols. Lively animal characters celebrating the special days will have young readers turning pages and coming back for more. Yum! This book is eligible for Sydney Taylor Book Award consideration. The book has literary merit with its spot-on, smoothly rhyming, memorable text. Bright, lively digital art with adorable animal characters and bold

Chunky Goes to Camp by Yehudi Mercado Katherine Tegan Books (imprint of HarperCollins), 2022 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Rebecca Klempner Buy at Bookshop.org In Chunky Goes to Camp , a semi-autobiographical graphic novel, we follow Hudi, the protagonist of 2021’s Chunky . Hudi is a junior high student with a flair for comedy. Unfortunately, Vice Principal Hyatt doesn't share Hudi's sense of humor. Hyatt decides that since Hudi is Mexican and doesn't "follow the rules," Hudi must be a hoodlum. He accuses Hudi of one “offense” after another and sends Hudi to detention over and over. While we laugh at the absurdity, we also feel outrage against the punitive school discipline depicted. When the school year ends, Hudi’s parents send him to Camp Green, a Jewish sleepaway camp, to prevent more trouble (although they agree that the administration treated him unfairly). Before Hudi even reaches camp, things get Jewy. There are four friends all named Josh. Camp events

Salt & Honey: Jewish Teens on Feminism, Creativity, & Tradition Anthology edited by Elizabeth Mandel with JGirls Magazine, illustrations contributed by teen artists and photographers Behrman House & JGirls Magazine, 2022 Category: Young Adult Reviewer: Eva L. Weiss   Buy at Bookshop.org This kaleidoscopic anthology brings to life authentic voices of American teens (ages 13-19) who explore their lives, emotions and coming of age through the prism of their identity as Jews. They express themselves through essays, poetry, illustrations and photographs. If the thematic division of the six chapters is a bit blurry, the overarching motif is unmistakable. This collection is a jubilant anthem to diversity and inclusion, written by "self-identifying Jewish girls, young women and nonbinary teens." Teens are also editors of their contributions, drawn from JGirls magazine. A teen with cerebral palsy matter-of-factly shares the accommodations needed to celebrate her bat mitzv