Reviews
A Wounded Name
“A vividly told, painfully sad tragedy that will make readers take a second look at the Bard.” —The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books View →
Mission 1: Game On
“Filled with straightforward sentences, each short, well-paced chapter ends with a cliff-hanger and the pages are adorned with Amerimanga-style illustrations….Fans of video games and nonstop action, as well as children looking for a fast read, will enjoy this attractively… View →
Bone by Bone: Comparing Animal Skeletons
“The bright, stylized, color illustrations match each question, portraying cartoon children with distorted anatomy, such as a girl with a neck like a giraffe’s, or a snake with a human head….This unusual book is interactive and thought-provoking.” —School… View →
I'm Sorry, Grover: A Rosh Hashanah Tale
“Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group headquartered in Minneapolis, continues to release a variety of delightful holiday books for young readers. Among the offerings this year are a well-intentioned puppy, an apologetic Sesame Street character and two… View →
Sammy Spider's First Book of Jewish Holidays
“Young children will love this introductory board book for the Jewish holidays filled with entertaining illustrations of Sammy the Spider, and one simple holiday fact per page. It is filled with just enough information to satisfy little ones’ curiosity, yet… View →
Sammy Spider's First Yom Kippur
“Filled with lively illustrations, children will be engrossed by this animated tale, while they learn the importance of reconciliation.” — Jewish Journal View →
My Happy Life
http://www.reading.org/reading-today/post/rty/2013/08/21/back-to-school-books#.UxSw4fldV20 Back to School Books BY THE CL/R SIG August 21, 2013 Lagercrantz, R. (2013). My happy life. Reprint Edition. New… View →
Map My Neighborhood
“The subject heading for these books is cartography, and these map-making directions are indeed simple enough for a new reader…. These work best read together to reinforce the concepts and give children ideas for things they can map themselves.” —Booklist View →
Can People Count on Me?: A Book about Responsibility
“The informative text and full-color photos of kids navigating difficult life situations are great for teaching social skills. Educators can point to the children’s expressions in the photos and ask their students to identify what each child might be feeling. What a wonderful resource… View →
David Karp: The Mastermind behind Tumblr
“Children should delight in Karp’s success at such a young age while easily identifying with his need to stretch the truth about his age and experience to prove his worth.” —School Library Journal View →
Jeremy's Dreidel
“Jeremy’s Dreidel is a simple yet compelling story, which, in its short narrative, conveys so much. It is Hanukkah time and the art project at the community center is dreidel-making. This is a fun project and everyone involved has great ideas about how to make a special dreidel… View →
No Baths at Camp
“It’s bath time at Max’s house, and he’s cranky about it. He grumbles that he’d rather be back at summer camp, because ‘there are no baths at camp!’ His mom is skeptical, so Max narrates a week of activities. From rock climbing to art class,… View →
Cheesecake for Shavuot
“Cheesecake for Shavuot is a magnificent picture book with a thoughtful ratio between the text and the photographs, with pages that vary in background color and with photographs that vary in size, giving the book an interesting and original look. The endearing story… View →
Oh! If Only...
http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/books/books.php?id=24965 Book Review By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat Oh! If Only . . . Michael Foreman Sometimes it is the little things that cascade out of control and cause big time chaos. A little View →
Rise & Shine: A Challah-Day Tale
“Rise and Shine: A Challah-Day Tale,” by Karen Ostrove and illustrated by Kimberly Scott, is an intergenerational tale of siblings Sammy and Sophie, who find a crumpled piece of paper in the pocket of an old apron. When they can’t read the letters written on… View →
My Happy Life
“For young middle grade readers, a new chapter book, ‘My Happy Life,’ takes up the subject of resilience in such a natural and powerful way, children won’t remotely feel like they’re reading a manual….If only all early chapter books were this… View →
My Happy Life
“For young middle grade readers, a new chapter book, ‘My Happy Life,’ takes up the subject of resilience in such a natural and powerful way, children won’t remotely feel like they’re reading a manual….If only all early chapter books were this… View →
The Purim Superhero
“PreS-Gr 2—Nate is having a hard time choosing a costume for his synagogue’s Purim celebration. All the boys in his Hebrew class plan to dress as superheroes, but he is much more interested in aliens. With help from his two fathers (Daddy and Abba) and inspired by the… View →
Two Shy Pandas
“Pandas make adorable stand-ins for little children, as Varley’s friendly watercolor illustrations attest. Sweet tonic for skittish young listeners.” —Kirkus Reviews View →
The Count's Hanukkah Countdown
“Sesame Street’s famous regulars and Hanukkah meet in a cute story that delivers the holiday combined with numbers up to eight. Grover hosts a latke party for Israeli muppet friends; the Count loves the idea; he includes himself because eight is the perfect Hanukkah number. The… View →
Hoop Genius: How a Desperate Teacher and a Rowdy Gym Class Invented Basketball
“The fun here is in the contrast between Coy’s straightforward narration and the stylized mayhem of Morse’s cast of maroon-shirted, all-American-looking college guys.” —Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books View →
Cookie, the Walker
“Monroe proves here again that she is a master of understated absurdity and quirky humor….The amusingly goofy text and absurd asides will appeal to a wide age range of kids. Monroe’s detailed illustrations, which frequently utilize comics-like panels and word balloons,… View →
Speak Up, Tommy!
“Tommy’s classmates tease him about his quiet voice and his Israeli accent. He doesn’t like reading to the class, and stays by himself at recess. One day, Officer Sweeney and his police dog, Samson, pay a visit to Tommy’s class. Tommy instantly feels comfortable with Samson, who… View →
The Pets You Get
“Taylor’s children have a sweet sibling relationship… while page turns nicely build suspense.” —Kirkus Reviews View →