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Last year I pulled together a few bookish gifts we were drooling over — here are some literary presents we’re giving (and maybe, hopefully getting) this holiday season.

Shoshana

I’m only actually giving this to one person, but I find myself recommending It’s Only Stanley to everyone who asks for a picture book recommendation. It has dogs! Laughs! Escalating oddities! Crazy contraptions! Flawless trochaic heptameter!

Katie

I am giving lots of bookish gifts this year: multiple copies of the Harry Potter coloring book and one of the Game of Thrones coloring book (because coloring is cool), two custom-ordered JanDaJewelry tiiiiiny book pendants, and a Felix Felicis necklace.

As for what I’d like to get, well, I may have dropped some hints about a certain book starring a killer ballerina. And maybe this qualifies as naughty, but I ordered myself a present: signed and personalized 20th anniversary editions of Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy.

Siân

I’m giving some of the things I bought at the Hunger Games exhibit as gifts: a “Peeta’s Bakery” tote bag and then a Hunger Games mug. And what’s even cooler than those gifts is the wrapping paper: the Hunger Games exhibit store wrapped my items in Hunger Games tissue paper which I then reused for as many gifts as possible.

Of course, the most bookish gift of all is…an actual book. Need recommendations? See our 2015 Fanfare list for our fave books of the year. If you’re feeling really festive, choose something from one of our annual Holiday High Notes lists. Shoshana gives you five reasons why an indie bookstore is the perfect place to finish up your holiday shopping (if you haven’t already!).

The post We wish you a merry Bookmas! appeared first on The Horn Book.

Holidays at Brookline Booksmith. Used by permission.

In our January/February 2016 issue, Abby McGanney Nolan tackles a topic dear to my former-bookselling (and aspiring children’s-book-creating) heart. Her article “Shelf Lives: From Bookseller to Bestseller” features interviews with a slew of children’s book creators who got their start working in bookstores. Plenty of current and former Horn Bookers have also spent time as booksellers, and all of us feel at home among alphabetized shelves.

This time of year in particular makes visions of book displays dance in my head, and I’ve ducked into dear old Brookline Booksmith several times to pick up holiday essentials — and always ended up with things I hadn’t realized were essential until I saw them.

In case you’ve been missing out on the perfect place for gift-shopping, here are five reasons to stop missing out:

1. In a bookstore, you can sit down and test books out in real time. You can even take them home right away, and you don’t have to pay shipping.

2. You’re surrounded by people who are really, really excited about books, whose job it is to give you recommendations if you want them (and leave you alone if you don’t). These people inhale advance reader copies and discuss them fervently on their breaks. If your giftee liked one book, booksellers know of several good readalikes — and they’ll tell you how the books are alike and how they’re different.

3. Websites *ahem* can give you age or grade recommendations in the form of numbers. Booksellers can tell you what those numbers mean. Is the book violent? Does it tackle difficult issues? Does it have complicated vocabulary and sentence structure? Not all readers of the same age have the same needs. You know more than a number about the recipient; a bookseller knows more than a number about the book.

4. When you support a bookstore, you’re supporting a lot of good things. Like books, and jobs for people who are obsessed with books. Like author events. I met Ann M. Martin at a bookstore in 1994, you guys. No, you don’t understand, I met the creator of the Baby-Sitters Club series. Basically, I met the Queen of 1994. Because of a bookstore. Because people shopped there. And I know that other bookstores gave other lucky kids the same opportunity, because there’s photographic evidence in Nolan’s article.

Sorry, got sidetracked a bit there. (Have I mentioned that people who work or have worked in bookstores are often really, really excited about books?) What I meant to say was…

5. Bookstores often do good things for their communities, including but not limited to, creating magical meet-the-author memories. They do food drives. They serve as hosts for World Book Night. They engage in friendly competition to sell diverse books. When you buy your gifts there, you give another gift — you help this sort of thing continue.

Yes, if you go to a bookstore (like any store) right about now, it will probably be a little crowded. But you’ll encounter booksellers with lots of sugar-fueled energy. You’ll find stocking stuffers at the register while you stand in line. You may even find kids around the age you’re looking for who can give you a general sense of what books they like. (I’ve seen this happen. It’s adorable.)

And hey, if you prefer a quieter shopping environment, bookstores are still there, and a little less frenzied, the rest of the year.

The post Five reasons to get your holiday gifts from a bookstore appeared first on The Horn Book.

The Festival of Lights began last night, and I’ve got the latke lunch to prove it. Here are some recent Hanukkah-themed picture books to (let’s be honest) get smothered in applesauce. Reviews are from The Horn Book Magazine’s 2015 Holiday High Notes and from The Horn Book Guide Online. For more Horn Book Hanukkah recommendations, click on the tag hanukkah-books.

Books about Hanukkah for older kids are harder to come by, but as with most Jewish holidays, that reliable (and beloved) standby, Sydney Taylor’s All of a Kind Family series, comes through. Who could forget the family members divvying up the candle-lighting duties — six kids plus a Mama and a Papa works out perfectly for eight nights — in More All-of-a-Kind Family? Take our “Which All-of-a-Kind Family sibling are YOU?” quiz, then pick up the reissues (from Lizzie Skurnik Books) to get in an AoaKF-worthy festive spirit.

Is It Hanukkah Yet?
by Chris Barash; illus. by Alessandra Psacharopulo
Preschool     Whitman     32 pp.
10/15    978-0-8075-3384-0    $16.99

“When frosty winds blow and snow’s all around / And there’s no sign of green on the trees or the ground… / Hanukkah is on its way.” In a quiet text, two children eagerly await the holiday, first frolicking outdoors with forest animals, then playing inside. Anticipation builds as the trappings of Hanukkah appear — decorations, guests, a menorah, dreidels. Warm, soft-hued illustrations have an old-fashioned look.

Hanukkah Is Coming!
by Tracy Newman; illus. by Viviana Garofoli
Preschool     Kar-Ben     12 pp.
9/15     978-1-4677-5241-1    $17.99
e-book ed. 978-1-4677-8837-3

In this board book, yarmulke-wearing dad, pigtailed big sister, and strawberry-blonde mother and son — plus cheerful dog — light candles, fry latkes, sing songs, spin dreidels, and pretend to be Maccabees, all shown in warm digital-looking illustrations. The “Hanukkah is coming” refrain, coupled with simple, child-friendly rhymes, is reassuring, and effectively builds anticipation for the Festival of Lights.

Dear Santa, Love, Rachel Rosenstein
by Amanda Peet and Andrea Troyer; illus. by Christine Davenier
Primary   Doubleday   40 pp.
10/15     978-0-553-51061-4    $17.99
Library ed. 978-0-553-51062-1    $20.99
e-book ed. 978-0-553-51063-8

When Rachel Rosenstein’s pleas for twinkly lights and a tree go unheeded in her Jewish household, Rachel takes matters into her own hands. There’s humor in the text and in the lively, scribbly illustrations. But the authors don’t gloss over Rachel’s feelings — which can be common for anyone who doesn’t celebrate Christmas, a notion that steers the text toward a happy, multi-culti ending.

Oskar and the Eight Blessings
by Richard Simon and Tanya Simon; illus. by Mark Siegel
Primary, Intermediate     Roaring Brook     40 pp.
9/15     ISBN 978-1-59643-949-8    $17.99

In 1938, the last night of Hanukkah coincided with Christmas Eve, and for a young Jewish refugee, both holidays provided blessings. Following Kristallnacht, Oskar’s parents send him to New York with just his aunt’s name and address. The illustrations, an engaging blend of large and small panels, are paced to echo the starts and stops and blessings of Oskar’s (successful) journey.

The Parakeet Named Dreidel
by Isaac Bashevis Singer; illus. by Suzanne Raphael Berkson
Primary, Intermediate     Farrar     32 pp.
9/15     ISBN 978-0-374-30094-4    $17.99

New ed., 1980. In this short story (from The Power of Light: Eight Stories for Hanukkah, rev. 2/81) repackaged as a picture book, a mysterious Yiddish-speaking parakeet flies to a Jewish family’s window on Hanukkah and promptly earns the name Dreidel. This feels like a story a reminiscent zayde might share. Lots of golden light in the cheerful, loose-lined illustrations creates a sense of Hanukkah’s warmth.

For more recommended Hanukkah books, click on the tag hanukkah-books.

The post Happy (C)Han(n)uk(k)a(h)! appeared first on The Horn Book.

Oskar and the Eight Blessings
by Richard Simon and Tanya Simon; illus. by Mark Siegel
Primary, Intermediate   Roaring Brook   40 pp.
9/15   978-1-59643-949-8   $17.99

In 1938, the last night of Hanukkah coincided with Christmas Eve, and for a young Jewish refugee in Manhattan, both holidays provided blessings. Following Kristallnacht, Oskar’s parents had put him on a boat to New York with just the name and address of his aunt; his walk from the harbor takes him more than a hundred blocks up Broadway. Along the way he encounters friendly and helpful strangers, Macy’s Christmas windows, and Count Basie and Eleanor Roosevelt (whose historical presence in the city that night is confirmed in an author’s note). The changing light of the day and developing snow are beautifully conveyed in the illustrations, an engaging blend of large and small panels paced to echo the starts and stops and blessings of Oskar’s (successful) journey. An appended map of Manhattan details the route and visually reprises the gifts Oskar receives along the way.

From the November/December 2015 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.

The post Review of Oskar and the Eight Blessings appeared first on The Horn Book.

List updated 9/15. Or should I say 5776?

To celebrate Rosh Hashanah, here are some recent picture books. Lesléa Newman’s beautiful Here Is the World, illustrated by Susan Gall, is a lyrical, kid-friendly survey of Jewish holidays throughout the seasons.The sweet and rollicking Rabbi Benjamin’s Buttons by Alice B. McGinty, illustrated by Jennifer Black Reinhardt, begins (and ends, the following year) on Rosh Hashanah. You’ll never look at holiday sweaters the same way again.

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Monika Filipina. A little girl says Shehechiyanu (a Jewish “blessing for beginnings”) over the course of a year, including when she gets new shoes for Rosh Hashanah; lights the Hanukkah candles; asks the Four Questions at Passover; and welcomes a friend home from summer vacation. The gentle text and warm-toned illustrations convey the importance of appreciating life’s special moments and milestones.

More recommendations from past years, courtesy of The Horn Book Guide:

Cohen, Deborah Bodin Engineer Ari and the Rosh Hashanah Ride
32 pp. Kar-Ben 2008. ISBN 978-0-8225-8648-7

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Shahar Kober. In 1892, Ari is chosen to drive the first train from Jaffa to Jersusalem at Rosh Hashanah. In his excitement and pride, he ignores two friends, which he later regrets. Ari returns to Jaffa as soon as possible to do teshuvah, the annual New Year’s effort to do better. Cheerful illustrations accompany the pleasant but didactic text. With an author’s note. Glos.

Greene, Jacqueline Dembar The Secret Shofar of Barcelona
32 pp. Kar-Ben 2009. ISBN 978-0-8225-9915-9
PE ISBN 978-0-8225-9944-9

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Doug Chayka. Rafael and his orchestra conductor father live as conversos (Jews who practice their faith in secret) in sixteenth-century Barcelona. The text describes how Rafael manages to blow the shofar for Rosh Hashanah right under the city leaders’ noses. The story is intriguing, but the telling is a little stiff. Well-composed gold-hued paintings illustrate the tale. An author’s note gives more information.

Heiligman, Deborah Celebrate Rosh Hashanah & Yom Kippur
32 pp. National 2007. ISBN 978-1-4263-0076-9
LE ISBN 978-1-4263-0077-6

Gr. K-3 Holidays around the World series. Heiligman’s writing evokes respect for religious traditions while making them accessible to children. Her use of the inclusive “we” will encourage readers to embrace their own traditions or imagine themselves in less familiar ones. Festive photographs from around the world reinforce the unifying effect of the holidays. Additional facts, a recipe, a map, and a one-page essay about the holidays are appended. Reading list, websites. Glos.

Jules, Jacqueline What a Way to Start a New Year!: A Rosh Hashanah Story
24 pp. Kar-Ben 2013. ISBN 978-0-7613-8116-7
PE ISBN 978-0-7613-8117-4

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Judy Stead. A series of accidents prevents Dina and her family, who’ve just moved, from celebrating Rosh Hashanah with their former neighbors. Luckily, a new family invites them to dinner after services, making them feel welcome. The be-nice-to-your-neighbor message, reinforced by friendly illustrations, isn’t subtle; kids may enjoy reciting the book’s exasperated refrain (also the title). An explanation of the holiday is included.

Kimmel, Eric A. Even Higher!: A Rosh Hashanah Story by I. L. Peretz
32 pp. Holiday 2009. ISBN 978-0-8234-2020-9

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Jill Weber. Where does the rabbi disappear to during the days before Rosh Hashanah? His congregants think he visits heaven to intercede for them with God. When a skeptic comes to town, he follows the rabbi and learns of his true (earthly) good deeds. Kimmel’s lively adaptation of the I. L. Peretz tale is well matched by Weber’s spirited, child-friendly mixed-media illustrations.

Kropf, Latifa Berry It’s Shofar Time!
24 pp. Kar-Ben 2006. LE ISBN 1-58013-158-1

PS Photographs by Tod Cohen. Clear color photos of preschoolers celebrating Rosh Hashanah are accompanied by simple, large-type descriptions of holiday essentials and related New Year fun. One caveat–any preschooler would find it almost impossible to blow the very long shofar pictured. This book is one of a series of photo-essays about Jewish holidays.

Marshall, Linda Elovtiz Talia and the Rude Vegetables
24 pp. Kar-Ben 2011. ISBN 978-0-7613-5217-4
PE ISBN 978-0-7613-5218-1

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Francesca Assirelli. Talia is confounded by her grandmother’s request for some “rude vegetables” (carrots, turnips, potatoes, etc.) for the Rosh Hashanah stew. While digging up an “ornery onion” and “garish garlic,” she thinks about her own behavior; all ends with holiday sweetness. The joke goes on a little long, but the end is rewarding. Autumnal colors and rounded shapes evoke comfortable family scenes.

Ofanansky, Allison What’s the Buzz?: Honey for a Sweet New Year
32 pp. Kar-Ben 2011. LE ISBN 978-0-7613-5640-0

Gr. K-3 Photographs by Eliyahu Alpern. A group of students visit an Israeli bee farm and learn about how honey is made, just in time for Rosh Hashanah. Sharp color photographs against autumn-hued backdrops show the children enjoying the day. The text, though bland, delivers copious facts about bees and honey, which may be interesting to Jewish children preparing for the holiday. “Fun Facts” are appended.

Schnur, Susan and Schnur-Fishman, Anna Tashlich at Turtle Rock
32 pp. Kar-Ben 2010. ISBN 978-0-7613-4509-1 PE ISBN 978-0-7613-4510-7

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Alex Steele-Morgan. Narrator Annie and her family observe Tashlich (performed during Rosh Hashanah) by spending time in nature. They throw bread into moving water to carry away the mistakes of the past year, exchanging stories of good and bad things and discussing their wishes for the new year. The idealized dialogue is unconvincing but heartfelt. Illustrations reflect the fall season.

Silverman, Erica When the Chickens Went on Strike: A Rosh Hashanah Tale
32 pp. Dutton 2003. ISBN 0-525-46862-5

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Matthew Trueman. Silverman adapts a tale by Sholom Aleichem, best known for his Tevye the Milkman stories. A young boy explains the custom of making Kapores — waving a chicken over one’s head to get rid of one’s sins — and recalls the year the chickens went on strike. Trueman’s comically angry chickens aptly reflect the humor of the tale. The rich, dark colors of his mixed-media paintings evoke the Old World setting.

Soffer, Allison Sarnoff Apple Days: A Rosh Hashanah Story
32 pp. Kar-Ben 2014. LE ISBN 978-1-4677-1203-3 PE ISBN 978-1-4677-1204-0 Ebook ISBN 978-1-4677-1205-7

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Bob McMahon. Katy can’t wait for her annual mother-daughter Rosh Hashanah ritual of apple-picking and applesauce-making, but the new year brings a new baby cousin, whose early arrival alters the plans. Katy satisfyingly gets her applesauce (and readers get the recipe), though this is more a new-baby story than a Rosh Hashanah story. The overly cartoonish characters can best be described as apple-cheeked.

Wayland, April Halprin New Year at the Pier: A Rosh Hashanah Story
32 pp. Dial 2009. ISBN 978-0-8037-3279-7

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Stéphane Jorisch. Izzy loves Tashlich, a Rosh Hashanah ceremony during which people apologize to those they’ve wronged then throw bread into the water to symbolize cleansing. Izzy has four apologies to make and is pleased when others apologize to him. The story’s educational aspects are handled with a light touch, a style reinforced by the loosely drawn pen-and-ink, watercolor, and gouache illustrations.

The post Blowing the shofar, again, for fine books for boys and girls appeared first on The Horn Book.

…to get in some leisure reading! Here’s what we’ll be reading during our lazy vacation days and holiday travel.

Katie: I have long flights to California and back. My preferred plane reading is adult mystery and horror, so I’m hoping to pick up Tana French’s Broken Harbor (the fourth book in her Dublin Murder Squad series) in the airport bookstore. And my dad — who, like me, is a Miyazaki fan — lent me Hayao Miyazaki: Master of Japanese Animation.

Shoshana: I will be rereading some of the All-of-a-Kind Family books by Sydney Taylor because life is terribly hard and I find myself forced, for work-related reasons, to revisit the first chapter books I ever loved.

Kitty: The book I’ve been carrying around in my backpack for months (and which I’ve started 3 or 4 times): The Secrets of Happy Families by Bruce Feiler (I should probably get cracking on that with school out until January 5). Behind the Scenes at the Museum by Kate Atkinson, which Elizabeth Law recommended on Facebook.

Siân: I will be rereading Saga by Fiona Staples and Brian K. Vaughan, Volumes 1 through 3, over the holiday in preparation for Volume 4’s release. So excited.

Elissa: I’m reading Alice Hoffman’s The Museum of Extraordinary Things. And finally going to get to my holiday treat, As You Wish by Cary Elwes.

Martha: My reading plan is to start the Dublin Murder Squad series. Also, if I’m really lucky, Jane Smiley’s Some Luck.

Lolly: Normally everyone in my family gives each other books for Christmas and our vacation time together is spent reading those books. But I’m trying to stop acquiring new books and use the library more, so I have requested instead descriptions of whatever books they were considering buying me. Since I will be far away from my library that week, I will probably end up reading books given to other people in my family.

Roger: Ninjas, Eric Van Lustbader’s series from the 80s. And so my testosterone doesn’t go completely out of control, I’m listening to Anya Seton’s historical romance Katherine.

The post ‘Tis the season… appeared first on The Horn Book.

Five questions for Julie Berry
All the Truth That’s in Me by Julie Berry, Viking, 14 years and up.
The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place by Julie Berry, Roaring Brook, 11–14 years.

Eerie places
Nine Open Arms by Benny Lindelauf, trans. by John Nieuwenhuizen, Enchanted Lion, 9–12 years.
Greenglass House by Kate Milford, illus. by Jaime Zollars, Clarion, 9–12 years.
Marina by Carlos Ruiz Zafón, trans. by Lucia Graves, Little, Brown, 10–14 years.
The Cabinet of Curiosities: 36 Tales Brief and Sinister by Stefan Bachmann, Katherine Catmull, Clarie Legrand, and Emma Trevayne, illus. by Alexander Jansson, Greenwillow, 10–14 years.

Off-the-wall picture books
Dog and Bear: Tricks and Treats by Laura Vaccaro Seeger, illus. by the author, Roaring Brook/Porter, 3–6 years.
Ninja! by Aree Chung, illus. by the author, Holt, 3–6 years.
What There Is Before There Is Anything There by Liniers, illus. by the author, trans. by Elisa Amato, Groundwood, 3–6 years.
What If? by Anthony Browne, illus. by the author, Candlewick, 3–6 years.

YA supernatural baddies
Jackaby by William Ritter, Algonquin, 12–16 years.
The Cure for Dreaming by Cat Winters, Abrams/Amulet, 12–16 years.
Into the Grey by Celine Kiernan, Candlewick, 12–16 years.
Evil Librarian by Michelle Knudsen, Candlewick, 14 years and up.

Atmospheric audiobooks
Lockwood & Co.: The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud, read by Miranda Raison, Listening Library, 10–14 years.
Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgwick, read by Julian Rhind-Tutt, Listening Library, 12–16 years.
The Midnight Dress by Karen Foxlee, read by Olivia Mackenzie-Smith, Listening Library, 14 years and up.
We Were Liars by E. Lockhart, read by Ariadne Meyers, Listening Library, 14 years and up.

These titles were featured in the October 2014 issue of Notes from the Horn Book.

The post Books mentioned in the October 2014 issue of Notes from the Horn Book appeared first on The Horn Book.

I’ve been reading a lot of Jewish-themed books lately (thank you, Sydney Taylor Book Award committee ). I just finished Donna Jo Napoli’s very-alternate Noah’s Ark novel Storm about a teenage stowaway who’s saved by two bonobos. Strange and lovely.

To celebrate Rosh Hashanah, here are some recent picture books. Lesléa Newman’s beautiful Here Is the World, illustrated by Susan Gall, is a lyrical, kid-friendly survey of Jewish holidays throughout the seasons.The sweet and rollicking Rabbi Benjamin’s Buttons by Alice B. McGinty, illustrated by Jennifer Black Reinhardt, begins (and ends, the following year) on Rosh Hashanah. You’ll never look at holiday sweaters the same way again.

      

Cohen, Deborah Bodin Engineer Ari and the Rosh Hashanah Ride
32 pp. Kar-Ben 2008. ISBN 978-0-8225-8648-7

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Shahar Kober. In 1892, Ari is chosen to drive the first train from Jaffa to Jersusalem at Rosh Hashanah. In his excitement and pride, he ignores two friends, which he later regrets. Ari returns to Jaffa as soon as possible to do teshuvah, the annual New Year’s effort to do better. Cheerful illustrations accompany the pleasant but didactic text. With an author’s note. Glos.

Greene, Jacqueline Dembar The Secret Shofar of Barcelona
32 pp. Kar-Ben 2009. ISBN 978-0-8225-9915-9
PE ISBN 978-0-8225-9944-9

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Doug Chayka. Rafael and his orchestra conductor father live as conversos (Jews who practice their faith in secret) in sixteenth-century Barcelona. The text describes how Rafael manages to blow the shofar for Rosh Hashanah right under the city leaders’ noses. The story is intriguing, but the telling is a little stiff. Well-composed gold-hued paintings illustrate the tale. An author’s note gives more information.

Heiligman, Deborah Celebrate Rosh Hashanah & Yom Kippur
32 pp. National 2007. ISBN 978-1-4263-0076-9
LE ISBN 978-1-4263-0077-6

Gr. K-3 Holidays around the World series. Heiligman’s writing evokes respect for religious traditions while making them accessible to children. Her use of the inclusive “we” will encourage readers to embrace their own traditions or imagine themselves in less familiar ones. Festive photographs from around the world reinforce the unifying effect of the holidays. Additional facts, a recipe, a map, and a one-page essay about the holidays are appended. Reading list, websites. Glos.

Jules, Jacqueline What a Way to Start a New Year!: A Rosh Hashanah Story
24 pp. Kar-Ben 2013. ISBN 978-0-7613-8116-7
PE ISBN 978-0-7613-8117-4

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Judy Stead. A series of accidents prevents Dina and her family, who’ve just moved, from celebrating Rosh Hashanah with their former neighbors. Luckily, a new family invites them to dinner after services, making them feel welcome. The be-nice-to-your-neighbor message, reinforced by friendly illustrations, isn’t subtle; kids may enjoy reciting the book’s exasperated refrain (also the title). An explanation of the holiday is included.

Kimmel, Eric A. Even Higher!: A Rosh Hashanah Story by I. L. Peretz
32 pp. Holiday 2009. ISBN 978-0-8234-2020-9

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Jill Weber. Where does the rabbi disappear to during the days before Rosh Hashanah? His congregants think he visits heaven to intercede for them with God. When a skeptic comes to town, he follows the rabbi and learns of his true (earthly) good deeds. Kimmel’s lively adaptation of the I. L. Peretz tale is well matched by Weber’s spirited, child-friendly mixed-media illustrations.

Kropf, Latifa Berry It’s Shofar Time!
24 pp. Kar-Ben 2006. LE ISBN 1-58013-158-1

PS Photographs by Tod Cohen. Clear color photos of preschoolers celebrating Rosh Hashanah are accompanied by simple, large-type descriptions of holiday essentials and related New Year fun. One caveat–any preschooler would find it almost impossible to blow the very long shofar pictured. This book is one of a series of photo-essays about Jewish holidays.

Marshall, Linda Elovtiz Talia and the Rude Vegetables
24 pp. Kar-Ben 2011. ISBN 978-0-7613-5217-4
PE ISBN 978-0-7613-5218-1

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Francesca Assirelli. Talia is confounded by her grandmother’s request for some “rude vegetables” (carrots, turnips, potatoes, etc.) for the Rosh Hashanah stew. While digging up an “ornery onion” and “garish garlic,” she thinks about her own behavior; all ends with holiday sweetness. The joke goes on a little long, but the end is rewarding. Autumnal colors and rounded shapes evoke comfortable family scenes.

Ofanansky, Allison What’s the Buzz?: Honey for a Sweet New Year
32 pp. Kar-Ben 2011. LE ISBN 978-0-7613-5640-0

Gr. K-3 Photographs by Eliyahu Alpern. A group of students visit an Israeli bee farm and learn about how honey is made, just in time for Rosh Hashanah. Sharp color photographs against autumn-hued backdrops show the children enjoying the day. The text, though bland, delivers copious facts about bees and honey, which may be interesting to Jewish children preparing for the holiday. “Fun Facts” are appended.

Silverman, Erica When the Chickens Went on Strike: A Rosh Hashanah Tale
32 pp. Dutton 2003. ISBN 0-525-46862-5

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Matthew Trueman. Silverman adapts a tale by Sholom Aleichem, best known for his Tevye the Milkman stories. A young boy explains the custom of making Kapores — waving a chicken over one’s head to get rid of one’s sins — and recalls the year the chickens went on strike. Trueman’s comically angry chickens aptly reflect the humor of the tale. The rich, dark colors of his mixed-media paintings evoke the Old World setting.

Wayland, April Halprin New Year at the Pier: A Rosh Hashanah Story
32 pp. Dial 2009. ISBN 978-0-8037-3279-7

Gr. K-3 Illustrated by Stéphane Jorisch. Izzy loves Tashlich, a Rosh Hashanah ceremony during which people apologize to those they’ve wronged then throw bread into the water to symbolize cleansing. Izzy has four apologies to make and is pleased when others apologize to him. The story’s educational aspects are handled with a light touch, a style reinforced by the loosely drawn pen-and-ink, watercolor, and gouache illustrations.

The post Blowing the shofar for fine books for boys and girls appeared first on The Horn Book.

Pour the wine (or grape juice) and chop the nuts and apples. Here are some new books for Passover. (And here are two more.)

Preschool

Two Shalom Sesame series entries, written by Tilda Balsley and Ellen Fischer and illustrated by Tom Leigh, follow Sesame Street characters in Israel as they learn about doing good deeds. In It’s a Mitzvah, Grover!, Grover and friends clean up a playground after a storm, though Moishe the grouch hesitates to participate. In Grover and Big Bird’s Passover Celebration, Big Bird joins Grover and learns about Passover as they do mitzvot en route to a seder. The tone is un-preachy and preschoolers will recognize the friendly cast of characters. (both Kar-Ben, 2013)

The rabbit family that celebrated Hanukkah in author Linda Glaser and illustrator Daniel Howarth’s Hoppy Hanukkah! now joyously observes Passover. In Hoppy Passover!, siblings Violet and Simon participate in traditions such as reciting the Four Questions and preparing the Seder plate. The rabbit-children’s infectious excitement comes across in both text and illustrations (though the cheerful, pastel-colored palette and bouncing bunnies may bring to mind another springtime holiday).
(Whitman, 2011)

Primary

David A. Adler follows up 2011′s The Story of Hanukkah with the The Story of Passover . The straightforward text touches on Jacob and the Children of Israel; slavery and Pharaoh’s cruelty; Moses’s encounter with the burning bush; the ten plagues; and the Red Sea escape. Jill Weber’s expressive, rich-hued acrylics play up the drama (ew, lice) but also offer reassurance and even some humor through small, eye-pleasing details. (Holiday, 2014)

Stone Soup with Maztoh Balls: A Passover Tale in Chelm begins with a stranger arriving in Chelm on Passover. Let “all who are hungry come and eat,” sure, but the villagers don’t have much to share. The stranger produces a stone, promising to make matzoh ball soup…and you know the rest. Linda Glaser’s well-cadenced text and Maryam Tabatabaei’s digital-looking art are as light as the Chelmites’ matzo balls (“…so light they can almost fly”). (Whitman, 2014)

Who will help make the Passover matzah? When Sheep, Horse, and Dog prove unreliable, stereotypical Jewish mother Little Red Hen (somewhat grudgingly) takes up the reins.  The good-natured cadence of Leslie Kimmelman’s text for The Little Red Hen and the Passover Matzah extends the mother-hen comparison, while Paul Meisel’s affectionate ink, watercolor, and  pastel illustrations keep things from going too far over the top. An author’s note about Passover and a matzah recipe are appended. (Holiday, 2010)

Miriam, protagonist of Linda Elovitz Marshall’s The Passover Lamb, is looking forward to singing the Four Questions at her grandparents’ Passover seder. But when a newborn lamb on the family’s farm is abandoned by its mother, Miriam worries she’ll have to miss the seder to care for the unwanted baby. Her solution is unsurprising but charming; soft illustrations by Tatjana Mai-Wyss reinforce Miriam’s affection for the (particularly cute) baby sheep. (Random House, 2013)

In A Tale of Two Seders by Mindy Avra, a young girl has gone to six different Passover seders in the three years since her parents’ divorce. At the sixth seder, attended by both her mom and dad, the girl’s mother likens families to different varieties of charoset, a traditional dish: “Some have more ingredients…But each one is tasty in its own way.” The realistic story is accompanied by Valeria Cis’s pattern-filled illustrations. Charoset recipes are included. (Kar-Ben, 2010)

A young Jewish slave describes the ten plagues and the Israelites’ hurried flight from Egypt in The Longest Night: A Passover Story. Illustrator Catia Chien’s dark, expansive acrylic paintings are well matched with Laurel Snyder’s impeccable rhyming couplets (although some illustrations, such as a full-page, open-jawed wolf, may be too intense for very young readers). The concluding spreads, featuring the parting of the Red Sea and a gorgeous sunrise, are a treat. (Random House/Schwartz & Wade, 2013)

In a small village long ago, the once-close Lippa and Galinsky families feuded. With the rabbi, their children (who loved one another) enacted a plan to bring their families together for Seder so that Passover could truly be celebrated. How the whole village participates makes Linda Leopold Strauss’s The Elijah Door: A Passover Tale  a warmhearted story of reconciliation and togetherness. Strikingly painted woodcuts by Alexi Natchev illustrate the Passover tale. (Holiday, 2012)

In 1865, a Jewish family in Virginia hosts an unanticipated Passover guest: a Yankee soldier. The “festival of freedom,” here celebrated by people with conflicting beliefs but a common cultural history, has great meaning. Elka Weber’s The Yankee at the Seder, a well-told tale based on actual events, is accompanied by Adam Gustavson’s richly textured oil paintings. Endnotes provide more information about the real-life figures and the Passover holiday. (Tricycle, 2009)

Harriet Ziefert’s appealing Passover: Celebrating Now, Remembering Then presents contemporary Passover rituals alongside a retelling of the festival story. Left-hand pages include “Now” information while right-hand gatefold pages open to reveal the “Then” side: additional details about the Passover tale. Karla Gudeon’s unfussy illustrations against natural-paper-textured backgrounds help illuminate events. The decorated endpapers are adorned with holiday symbols. (Blue Apple, 2010)

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All you need is love—but it’s also nice to have a good book to share with your loved one! Snuggle up with your little Valentine(s) and these lovable picture books recommended by The Horn Book Magazine.

In Sunday Love, written and illustrated by Alison Paul, sound effects and red, black, and white illustrations chronicle Bruno the Burglar’s Valentine’s Day escape from the Big House. Much of the appeal lies in the cinematic, Charlie Chaplinesque action, complete with slapstick escapades, buffoonish gendarmes, and a reunion with a true love—a sundae love, that is. 5–8 years. (Houghton)

Other forest animals spurn the friendly overtures of porcupine Mr. Prickles, protagonist of Kara LaReau’s Mr. Prickles:  A Quill-Fated Love Story. Mr. Prickles knows he’s “cute…[and] cuddly…on the inside,” but grows bitter in rejection—and then  Miss Pointypants, a female porcupine, moves in next door.  Pun-filled text shines a sympathetic light on lonely Mr. Prickles, and Scott Magoon’s playful (and cute and cuddly) illustrations bring out the best in the spiky hero. 4–8 years. (Porter/Roaring Brook)

Nancy Tafuri’s All Kinds of Kisses opens with a panoramic, early-morning view of a farm, where Rooster stands ready to rouse the creatures. In bucolic illustrations, the animals and their young wake and go about their daily routines. Accompanying text describes the type of kisses each baby animal loves—“Little Calf loves Mooo kisses…Little Kid loves Maaa kisses.” Finally, inside the farmhouse, a (human) mother gives her little one a kiss goodnight. 3–6 years. (Little, Brown)

Unlike that self-satisfied Guess How Much I Love You bunny, the narrator of Emily Jenkins’s Love You When You Whine is a parent whose claim of unconditional love has some grit. Rendered in Sergio Ruzzier’s comical, understated watercolors, a resigned mother cat lists numerous scenarios in which her impish daughter is less than well-behaved but, of course, still loved. 5–8 years. (Farrar/Foster)