Reviews
Emanuel and the Hanukkah Rescue
“Local children will love this story, set in New Bedford, Mass., once known as the whaling capital of the world. Nine-year old Emanuel Aguilar knows a lot about whaling because his father, Aaron, owns a store where many of the town’s whalers purchase supplies. Emanuel talks with… View →
Maccabee Meals: Food and Fun for Hanukkah
“Maccabee Meals: Food and Fun for Hanukkah (Kar-Ben) by Judye Groner and Madeline Wikler and illustrated by Ursula Roma has also been reissued, and it is full of fun facts and simple recipes children will enjoy. Here’s one for starters: ‘The first day of Hanukkah and… View →
Infinity and Me
“Swiatkowska’s imaginative artwork combines the free-wheeling, slightly eerie absurdity of Monty Python animations, the formality of nineteenth-century decorative patterning, and the playful nerdiness of Leonardo da Vinci-styled inventions. For math and language arts teachers View →
Jeremy's Dreidel
“Jeremy longingly eyed the poster on the wall of the Jewish community center. There was going to be a dreidel workshop on Monday and the only thing that kids were asked to do was to ‘bring your own ideas!’ Just maybe he had an idea to bring. Abby and David, who were… View →
“Sukkot is a time of joyous celebration, and a time to be grateful for the abundant crops that nourish us. Just as we must feed our bodies, these delightful new childrens’ stories will nurture our children’s minds and imaginations as they learn the wonders of this important Jewish… View →
H.O.R.S.E.
“The freewheeling format and broadly popular topic makes this eminently saleable as either a readalone or readaloud.” —The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books View →
Emanuel and the Hanukkah Rescue
“Emanuel, inspired by the whalers who frequent his father’s shop in New Bedford Massachusetts, dreams of a life at sea. According to his father, ‘the life of a whaler is lonely and dangerous’ and he encourages Emanuel to become a merchant when he grows up. Emanuel views View →
Sammy Spider's New Friend
“By now, young fans of the Sammy Spider series are well acquainted with the formula that makes these warm, sweetly spun tales so endearing. Whether discovering the true meaning of the Jewish holidays or, as in his latest adventure, observing the Shapiro family bake a cake to… View →
A Dollar, a Penny, How Much and How Many?
“Mathematical concepts can be daunting for children of all ability levels, but using such concrete examples in a storybook format makes this a spot-on introduction to some very abstract concepts. To be used either as a primary mathematics classroom resource or as a unique storytime View →
El ciclo del agua (Earth's Water Cycle)
“Young children will be attracted to the colorful photographs that enhance the large text.” —Library Media Connection View →
The Girl Who Owned a City: The Graphic Novel
“The strong-willed, resourceful main character sets an excellent example for girls of all ages and the ingenuity of the children shows the virtues of perseverance and resiliency in the face of disaster. Overall, this is an entertaining read with great artwork that is sure to… View →
Brandon's Birthday Surprise
“Children from different cultural groups describe their families’ celebrations. Information about the occasions is included in the simplistic stories, but text boxes provide more details than the young narrators do. Bright, cheerful illustrations will draw readers to these… View →
Chelsea's Chinese New Year
“Children from different cultural groups describe their families’ celebrations. Information about the occasions is included in the simplistic stories, but text boxes provide more details than the young narrators do. Bright, cheerful illustrations will draw readers to these… View →
Carter's Christmas
“Fictional children describe family celebrations in these volumes that are suitable for either individual or group reading…. All the cartoon illustrations are nicely done, with bright colors and animated characters… Appealing selections.” —School Library View →
Jeremy's Dreidel
“Jeremy and his friends are enjoying the dreidel-making workshop at their local Jewish Community Center, especially since the children are being encouraged to be creative and put their own, er, spins on their designs. Jeremy decides to make a Braille dreidel for his blind father,… View →
“For his first children’s book, ’Waga’s Big Scare,’ Minneapolis writer/artist Samuel Hiti has delivered something monstrous just in time for Halloween. Known for populating his graphic novels, including ‘Death-Day’ and ‘Tiempos… View →
Sparrow, Eagle, Penguin, and Seagull: What Is a Bird?
“Funny, factual, and at times even a little edgy, this offers the unconventional for younger children trying to understand the animal world.”—Booklist View →
Chelsea's Chinese New Year
“In this well-presented series, young children are introduced to important holidays that their friends celebrate. Each book tells a story about a child celebrating the holiday with explanations within the story or in text boxes. Different facets of the holidays are shown:… View →
“Bringing to mind the oeuvre of Kevin O’Malley, Hiti, a comics artist making his children’s book debut, goes for broad humor—visual slapstick (Waga sliding through a house’s plumbing system), comedic sturm und drang (Waga’s curly ears vibrate in fright at… View →
Zombie Makers: True Stories of Nature's Undead
“Scientific in its approach, this slender book gives children a look at scientific research in real time, and also shows how little we truly know in a less-than-lovely field.” —starred, School Library Journal View →
Maccabee Meals: Food and Fun for Hanukkah
“With the whimsically illustrated cookbook, ‘Maccabee Meals: Food and Fun for Hanukkah’ (Kar-Ben Publishing), children can take part in holiday preparations. Recipes, rated for difficulty, range from simple (egg cream, menorah sandwich) to sufganiyot (‘An adult… View →
The Count's Hanukkah Countdown
“Some of Sesame Street’s favorite characters and their Israeli friends join together for a Hanukkah party in this delightful number story, the first of four books in the Shalom Sesame series. As Grover prepares for and participates in a holiday party, the Count joins in the… View →