1 comments about Come, Let Us Welcome Shabbat (Shabbat & Prayer).

1. Come, Let Us Welcome Shabbat should be a mandatory primer for Jewish parents trying to teach their children the true meaning of their faith. This book lays out the Sabbath meal, traditions, prayers, and conduct in a simple and straight foward matter. The illustrations are pleasing to the eye and make the book more than a small bit beautiful. This would also make an excellent book for teachers trying to help their students understand the foundations of Judaic life.

3 comments about D Is for Dreidel.

1. This is a delightful book! A must-buy for the Hanukkah season. The rhyme is clever and the vocabulary simple enough for small children. The book introduces kids to this special holiday and to the alphabet at the same time. There is a real need for a book like this that conveys the warmth of Hanukkah to pre-school children.



2. This is a wonderful introduction to the holiday for all kinds of families that celebrate Hanukkah. Our family includes non-Jewish members and they really got the spirit of the holiday from this little gem. Sweet, cozy, and funny, the littlest of kids will love it.



3. What I love about this book is that it's not girls in the kitchen cooking and Daddy praying. Both men and women in the book (sometimes) wear kippot. Oddly the rabbi seems to be wearing his tallis to dinner, but I'll trade that for the usual gender-biased books.

2 comments about Matzo Ball Moon.

1. This book offers an upbeat story of one family's tradition of having Gramma prepare the matzo ball soup for Passover seder. Gramma shows up at the door with her special soup pot, and her favorite grand-daughter pitches in to help. Unfortunately, the story is cluttered with a lot of family members, dropping by to snatch a matzo ball out of the pot. And, the book fails to offer any religious meaning to the holiday -- the "Rugrats Passover" does a much better job at this. Comparing a lumpy matzo ball to the full moon at Passover seder is a bit of a stretch, and added little to the story. In short, my 3 yr old son found this book un-interesting. It lacks the warmth and enthusiasm of a similar book about a little girl spending the night at her grandfather's house: "Everything from A to Z....," which my son memorized from cover-to-cover within a week after the book arrived.



2. This is one of my three-year-old son's favorite books. He loves the interaction between the daughter and grandmother. The story isn't heavy on the relgious aspects of Pesach, but it does touch on them. Most of all, it is an endearing story of family tradition.

5 comments about Abuelita's Secret Matzahs.

1. This may be one of the most offensive pieces of anti-semtic trash I have ever read. This book teaches Jewish children that they should be ashamed of and hide their heritage, through the tale of a grandmother who denies her Judaism until her horrified grandson uncovers too much evidence to continue. I find it unlikely that the woman who wrote this book is really a rabbi, but if she is, she must have been ordained by an extremely reform, lax sect of judaism, or perhaps not Judaism at all. Keep your children away from this hateful offensive book.



2. Contrary to what another reviewer said, this book is about accepting and treasuring your family's heritage, not hating or hiding it. Crypto Jews represent a real chapter in Jewish history, and their story has not often been told.
   
   This book is also a great choice for mixed-religion families; it sensitively portrays the choice Jacobo will face as he gets older and has to choose his own religious path, and it does so without a bias toward either Judaism or Christianity.



3. Jacobo's grandmother has a secret: she does things differently than his friends, never making his favorite sopaipillas with honey during Holy Week and celebrating some holidays differently. "It's the way of our family," she will only say when Jacobo asks her about the tortillas made without year - until one day she shares a family secret about their real heritage. Good reading skills will lend appreciation to this sensitive story.



4. Even accepting that this book is targeted at very young readers, ABUELITA'S SECRET MATZAHS is sketchy in the way its story is told.
   
   In fact, it is so sketchy that it virtually is worthless in conveying the history of those Jews who had hidden from Spain's Inquisition by concealing their religion.
   
   There's a story here, an important story, but this author does not tell it.



5. Thank you Sandy Sasso for another wonderful story for our children, and especially for those of us with Sephardic roots who have been left out of the conversation for so long. This lovely story reflects the emerging population of Conversos living in the Southwest and brings to light the conflicting traditions that have been buried for many generations. It also serves well our multicultural population, the foundation of America.

5 comments about The Passover Seder.

1. Emily Sper has created another wonderful children's book! Just like her Hannukah counting book, The Passover Seder is an educational and engaging experience for children. The tactile sensations provide a new twist to the old story of the Jews' exodus from Egypt. Bright illustrations help make for a great Passover book overall.



2. I loved this book, both as a parent and religious school teacher. The pictures are creative, clear and engaging. The text is a delightful telling of the Passover story. A great gift for children old enough to read themselves as well as a wonderful book children will want you to read to them. I highly recommend this book!



3. The touch and feel aspect makes this seem like a book for a very young child. But the dull text is not engaging for any age. (e.g. "In ancient Israel we would have brought a lamb to the Temple in Jerusalem..."). Even the transliterations are inept (the long "a" sound, as in "say," is spelled as "ey" and "e").



4. We love all of Emily Sper's books and hope that she'll be coming out with some new products soon. It's hard to find quality books that engage our children Jewishly in a modern world. Emily Sper remains true to the Jewish tradition and her books are appealing and engaging to both child and parent. Our preschool owns several copies of her books. Her books encourage children to engage and interact with her books in a multi-sensory approach. Her Passover book has beautiful graphics and the children are active learners in the process. The book mimicks what the best of Passover seders try to do-- engage their participants in learning about their history and heritage. It's a wonderful gift and learning tool and it will help your preschool age child become an active and excited participant in your Passover Seder.



5. Our oldest grandson, who is now 6 and a reader, was so excited about this Passover book. He is a big fan of Emily Sper and was happy to have this book before his other Hebrew School friends had seen it. His Hebrew school in Washington DC carries all of her books and they are always a great auction item when the school does their annual fund raising event. As a grandparent we are pleased to be able to give him a gift that gives us all such pleasure.
   
   Jackie Fleischman

4 comments about Moishe's Miracle: A Hanukkah Story.

1. This book is great! The illustrations are amazing. I like the part where he gets the pan from the cows. The story is good. This is a good book for all ages.



2. From the moment you pick this book up, you are drawn to the light! The light from the fires, the light from the candles, and the light that shines from Moishe's heart. Slonim's wonderful illustrations have taken this plain text and made it magical! Although this is a Hanukkah story it's message of generosity can be embraced by everyone. My only criticism, is how the white boxes that the text appear in, place too much control on the illustrations. This story is sure to become a holiday classic, right up there with The Polar Express



3. In the poor village of Wishniak lived a milkman named Moishe and his wife Baila. He owned only two cows, and earned a meager living but was nevertheless always willing to help others. His wife, on the other hand, had the sharpest tongue in Wishniak.

   In early winter one year, when "the wind prowled the icy lanes of the village like a starving jackal," many villagers hungered--including the widow Malka and her ailing son Shmuel, Heshy Fenster and his 13 children and the housebound Bubby (grandmother) Rifka and her cat. The kind and ever-generous Moishe left "an extra quart of milk here, a pint of thick cream there."

   The night before Hanukkah, Baila found her money box empty, and blamed her inability to buy eggs, flour and oil to make latkes on Moishe's "foolish generosity." That night, to escape her harangue, he slept in the barn.

   Imagine his surprise when his two cows awoke him and told of a stranger who arrived and departed while Moishe slept, leaving behind him tales of magic and adventure and a special gift buried in the hay--a black frying pan.

   When he got home, he told Baila about the night and the gift, which was endowed with a magical property. Of course, she did not believe him, but when Moishe placed the frying pan on the fire, something wonderful happened. (It�s a secret.)

   The next day, unhappy with the turn of events, Baila hid the Hanukkah candles under her bed, sent Moishe to borrow some more and tried to reproduce the magic feat that Moishe had managed. Of course, since Baila�s nature was altogether unkind, the magic she brought on herself was unwelcome indeed. (But that�s secret, too.)

   Nowadays, visitors to Wishniak come to see the frying pan, which the Rabbi displays under glass. They hope to see some of its magic once again, but precisely what that was and whether it ever again occurred is hidden between the covers of this magnificent book.

   The last two pages of the volume share the story of Hanukkah and provide a glossary of eight Yiddish and Hebrew words included in the tale. Alyssa A. Lappen




4. I LOVE this story! I think it's for everyone, Jewish or not, because it is such fun, and be forewarned, it will make you crave potato pancakes. On a more analytical note, it is a great morality tale with an emphasis on the value of generosity. Elementary teachers will love that you can use this story to demonstrate 6 Traits of Writing: the word choice is divine. The artwork is beautiful and shows little details not specifically mentioned, but implied, about Moishe's generosity, like how he is always giving extra milk to the cat and letting a mouse run away with vegetables. Art teachers will be able to point out the use of shadowing and the rule of thirds. Teachers who need a good Character Counts book can use this for kindness, caring, etc. The last two pages give a brief history of Hanukah that is very well explained, and a glossary of the Hebrew and Yiddish words used in the story, so those of us not in the know can tell the story knowledgeably. Yes, it does all that and it's STILL FUN!!! Must read.

1 comments about Four Special Questions: A Passover Story (Festival Time).

1. This series (Festival Time!) is very good. I enjoyed this book as much as others in the series. It allows me to teach about holidays in a simple manner to young students or emergent readers. Many books are too difficult or confusing. Four Special Questions is a good Passover book.

5 comments about Elijah's Angel: A Story for Chanukah and Christmas.

1. I am such a huge Aminah Robinson (the illustrator) fan! Be sure to check out all of the books she has illustrated. And don't even think about buying any of them in paperback. The heart and soul that she obviously puts in to her drawings will move you to tears. This is one of my favorites. The Amazon review does a good job explaining the story to you. It really resonates with all ages. One bit of trivia I can give you is that Aminah herself was a personal friend of Elijah Pierce.



2. This is a wonderful story that I read aloud to my children every year on Chanukkah. They love it and so do I.



3. I ordered this book for my 6 year old grand daughter. Though it is a wonderful story, I personally felt that the discussion of hanging the blacks was too dark for the child's book and I returned it. I read the book and felt unfortable giving it, so I had my husband read it, he agreed. Though the truth of the history of the blacks cannot be hid, it really was not needed in this story of friendship.



4. I have taught this book for more than ten years. My students are always moved and inspired by it. This book won the "Living the Dream Award," for the book that embodies the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King. It was a starred Horn Book Magazine and an American Booksellers "Pick of the Lists." It was one of Essence Magazine's favorite books that celebrate African-American life, a CBC-NCSS "Notable 1992 Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies," a Hungry Mind Review Children's Book of Distinction: "...this book creates a line of footprints between the two holidays as it does between two households." It's a Parents Magazine Best Books of 1992 and the winner of the National Jewish Book Award. All those awards mean one thing, but the story is approachable, tender, full of feeling, and broadly appealing to readers of all ages.



5. Well, the book was a bit boring in my opinion. Also, the line about the hanging Black men is much too disturbing and controversial for children.

5 comments about The Only One Club.

1. Engagingly written by Jane Nailboff and nicely illustrated by Jeff Hopkins, The Only One Club is the story of a young girl named Jennifer, who is the only Jewish student in her first-grade class. When the other first graders are making Christmas decorations, the teacher tells jennifer that she can make Hanukah decorations instead, and be the first to hang them on the classroom windows. Happy to be singled out, Jennifer creates "The Only One Club". When her classmates want to join her exclusive club, she resists at first - then realizes each of her friends is also "the only one" at something, and makes badges for everyone, celebrating each person's unique qualities. The friendly illustrations emphasize an upbeat and positive message about the value of differences and the importance of tolerance and acceptance.



2. Differences in race, religion, politics, ideas and lifestyles have given birth to such an enormous amount of negative media these days. In the newspapers we read and the news programs we watch, we are suffocated by it all. What an absolute pleasure to read such a positive expression of being different. Jane Naliboff creates a beautiful story wonderfully written which should be required reading for all!



3. The Only One Club explores our innate desires to be part of a group, all while we wish to celebrate our individuality.
   
   Jennifer is in first grade and all the children are making Christmas decorations. When Jennifer wants to make Hanukah decorations her teacher encourages her in her project and allows her to proudly display her art. When she goes home that night she decides to start the "Only One Club" of which she is the only member.
   
   "I want to be in it, too," Steven whined. "I must be the only one of something."
   
   Soon all the children want to be in the club and start wearing badges to proclaim their individuality.
   
   The Only One Club is a lovely book to teach children about diversity in a school setting. The art creates a multicultural setting and the true-to-life dialogue is creative and comforting.
   
   ~The Rebecca Review



4. THE ONLY ONE CLUB by, Jane Naliboff
   Reviewed by, Joshua
   
   
   The Only One Club by, Jane Naliboff is an exciting children's book. I liked this book because its about a little girl name Jennifer who is Jewish and everybody isn't. So she goes home and makes The Only One Club because she feels left out. In addition she made the club badge and I liked that.
   
   
   The plot is interesting. Then Jennifer was happy now that she made a club but nobody was in it. So, everyone asked to be in it and she said, "no." I really didn't like that part.
   
   
   The setting is at her house and classroom. That's not really exciting but the classroom is a little.
   This book doesn't have any slang so that's why it's a good children's book.
   
   
   The best part was at the end when Jennifer gave everyone a club badge. She then at the very end gave her teacher a badge too. So now, nobody was left out. Now everybody was happy even though they were different.
   
   
   This was a great book overall but I didn't like the theme of the book. But I liked the very end when the teacher got the badge. This book is fun for kids 5-8. This story is good for kids who are left out in school. This story teaches kids a lesson not to leave other kids out.
   
   
   



5. I am a pediatrician and have copies of this book in my exam rooms. It is the book most commonly commented on by parents as being a wonderful children's book.

1 comments about The Matzah Man: A Passover Story.

1. This book about the "matzah man" who jumps out of Mr. Cohen, the baker's, oven has plenty of fun repetition that toddlers find so enjoyable. The pictures are great as the story builds to the surprise climax. With a few different refrains that my 2 1/2 year old daughter loves repeating, the book is very participatory. We highly recommend it.