The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

  This Is My Shabbat by Chris Barash, illustrated by Aviel Basil Green Bean Books, 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Shirley Vernick Buy at Bookshop.org This warmhearted picture book follows a boy and his family on a Saturday as they celebrate Shabbat together–synagogue services, a picnic with extended family, and an impromptu meetup with neighbors. The boy, who happens to be blind, experiences the Sabbath using his other senses, especially hearing. (The text never says that the child is blind, but the outdoor scenes show him using a white cane and wearing sunglasses.) The story ends with the family drifting off to sleep in anticipation of Havdalah, making it a great choice for bedtime reading. The repeated refrain, "This is my Shabbat" adds a lullaby-like quality to the tale. The story is written in both printed text and Braille. The illustrations' bright color palette and detailed panoramas will absorb readers and amplify the joyful atmosphere surrounding Shabb

A Beautiful World by Yael Gover, illustrated by Paul Kor, translated by Gilah Kahn-Hoffman Green Bean Books (first published in Israel in 2003 by Kinneret, Zmora-Bitan), 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Rachel J. Fremmer Buy at Bookshop.org With upbeat text perfectly complemented by a cheerful palette and childlike illustrations, A Beautiful World takes us through the creation story. A nameless narrator - apparently Hashem - begins with a black page and adds light and color, water and land, plants and animals, and so on, until the world is almost complete. What is missing? Why, you, the reader! Just as Hashem invites us to be partners in creation, the narrator invites the reader to be a partner in enjoying the world - and reading this book! The final page has a mirror on it so the child reader can see herself. Young children love seeing themselves in the mirror, so that would certainly add to the fun! I had to read A Beautiful World more than once to realize that it does not co

Mrs. Maccabee's Miracle by Elka Weber, illustrated by Amélie Videlo Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner Publishing Group), 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Shanna Silva Buy at Bookshop.org Welcome to the Maccabee house. Five brothers are always misplacing their things, and look to their mom to locate the objects. Mom gently reminds them that items remain where they are left. This repeating theme will strike a familiar chord with both parents and children. As the story progresses, the situation in Modi’in worsens for the Jews when the Greek ruler, Antiochus, demands that Jewish life and practice cease. The Maccabee boys, like many other Jews, continue to study Torah and practice Judaism in secret. When the great battle between the Jews and Greeks ensues, Mama Maccabee’s lessons about locating lost items is an integral part of the Hanukkah miracle. It’s wonderful to see a woman of importance play a part in a story that’s usually male centered. Illustrations by Videlo help mak

An Extraordinary Dreidel: A Hanukkah Story from Israel by Devorah Omer, illustrated by Aviel Basil, translated by Shira Atik Green Bean Books, 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Rinat Hadad Siegel Buy at Bookshop.org The Extraordinary Dreidel is a fun and engaging picture book about Hanukkah for young readers.  Devorah Omer is one of the legends in the Israeli kidlit book world. I grew up reading many of her exquisite stories, and The Extraordinary Dreidel is no different. What seems to be, at first glance, straightforward language and plot turns out to be a story that provides a level of sophistication that gets children’s attention from the start and engages their curiosity and independent thinking while igniting their imagination. When Uncle Haim makes a soccer ball-sized wooden dreidel for Gil and Nurit, the excitement level rises, but when they find out that there is a secret compartment under the letter nun, the children are beyond themselves. The reader follows along and t

The Mexican Dreidel by Linda Elovitz Marshall and Ilan Stavans, illustrated by Maria Mola Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner Publishing Group), 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Suzanne Grossman Buy at Bookshop.org Celebrate Janucá (Hanukkah) in Mexico with Danielito as he visits his grandmother for the holiday. When he adds his dreidel to the neighborhood game of spinning tops, friendships grow, bridging the cultural divide between Danielito and the children who are celebrating Christmas. His dreidel rallies all the tops and leads them on a wild race allowing the reader to see daily life in the village. With Spanish words and phrases sprinkled naturally throughout and needing no translation, young readers will feel as if they are walking in the town. After Danielito invites his new friends to his grandmother's home to celebrate with menorah lighting, latkes, and donuts, plans are made to play again the next day. It's refreshing to see the children being naturally curio

Wishing on Matzo Ball Soup! (Ellie's Deli series) by Lisa Greenwald, illustrated by Galia Bernstein Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2023 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Laurie Adler Buy at Bookshop.org Veteran tween author Lisa Greenwald’s newest book is about a sympathetic eleven-year-old who is determined to save her family’s failing Jewish deli. Ellie comes from a close knit Jewish family and has supportive friends at home and at school. Her small town's dwindling Jewish community, however, and her bubby’s declining health means that her family will likely have to sell their beloved fourth-generation kosher deli. Ellie’s ambitious plans to save the deli form the backbone to this gentle and upbeat book, and though there are some heavier subplots, such as anxiety, loss, and gentrification, all topics are addressed with a light hand. With the help of her community, Ellie’s plans to save the deli are successful and all problems, big and small, are neatly resolved by the last page. E

Come and Join Us! 18 Holidays Celebrated All Year Long by Liz Kleinrock, illustrated by Chaaya Prabhat Harper (imprint of Harper Collins Publishers), 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Lila Spitz Buy at Bookshop.org   Come and Join Us by ant-bias and ant-racist educator Liz Kleinrock invites readers to listen and learn from a diverse group of students about eighteen holidays celebrated throughout the year. Each holiday is introduced by a student whose family participates in its traditions. Important clothes, foods, and activities integral to the holiday are described and their importance is explained. The book concludes with the message that celebrating holidays with loved ones is the best part of all. Vibrant digital illustrations appropriately complement the themes of celebration. Word color alternates between black and white to provide contrast with the colorful background. The glossary provides helpful and accurate definitions of terms related to specific holidays for referen