Reviews
Stones for Grandpa
“Grandpa Duke taught his young grandson many lessons, such as how to wish on a shooting star, tie Boy Scout knots, and be brave when catching a frog. However, the hardest lesson he passes on is how to accept a loved one’s death. When the little boy accompanies his parents to the… View →
No Baths at Camp
“Have a delicious romp through this amusing story filled with joy and Jewish content. Max does not wish to take his after-dinner bath. He counters his mother with information gleaned from his own experience that despite such grief at home, there are no baths at camp! He proceeds to View →
The Cats on Ben Yehuda Street
“Reader alert! This reviewer is very fond of cats; so, she was ready to like this book almost sight unseen. Luckily, this whimsical picture book is a delight. Ben Yehuda Street in Tel Aviv is full of cats of every shape, size, and color but Mr. Modiano, a grumpy fishmonger,… View →
Grover and Big Bird's Passover Celebration
“Why is this book different from all other Passover picture books? For starters, a giant yellow bird finds the afikomen. But what else would you expect from a seder on Rechov Sumsum, the Israeli equivalent to Sesame Street? Big Bird and his pals serve as delightful seder hosts as… View →
Cheesecake for Shavuot
“Cheesecake for Shavuot is the fourth in Allison Ofanansky’s nature/holiday series that includes Harvest of Light, What’s the Buzz, and Sukkot Treasure Hunt. The text is illustrated with beautiful color photographs. The class begins by planting… View →
Rise & Shine: A Challah-Day Tale
“While playing dress-up in the attic with her brother Sammy, Sophie discovers a crumpled piece of paper in an old apron pocket. Unable to read the strange words, Sophie and Sammy rush to Shalom House to ask Grandma Gert for a translation. The scribbles turn out to be an old family… 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 →
Jeremy's Dreidel
“When Jeremy joins in a dreidel-making workshop at the Jewish Community Center, he uses clay to make a Braille dreidel for his blind father. He tells the curious onlookers about visual impairment, and his friends prove that they’ve taken the lesson to heart when they plan an… View →
The Apple Tree's Discovery
“Storytellers Schram and Davis team up to tell a tale about how unfulfilled wishes can make one dissatisfied with one’s lot in life. Way down on the forest floor, a little apple tree looks up at the night sky and sees stars which, from its viewpoint, seem to be hanging… View →
Izzy the Whiz and Passover McClean
“Izzy is an inventor. To help his mother clean the house for Passover, Izzy invents a machine called Passover McClean which swallows rooms of soiled furniture and spits out the furniture completely clean for Passover. There is a glitch in the machine which Izzy repairs. Thanks to… View →
Dinosaur Goes to Israel
“Our AJL colleague, Diane Rauchwerger, has charmed children with stories featuring a dinosaur who celebrates Judaism. In this, her fourth book illustrated by Jason Wolff, Dino joins his human friend on a visit to Israel. The book does more than tell the… View →
Hannah's Way
“Hannah’s Way is an American Jewish story that has not been told in picture books before. The time is the 1920s and the place is Northeastern Minnesota, a rural iron mining area called the Iron Range. After her father loses his job in Minneapolis, Hannah’s family moves to… View →
Grandma Rose's Magic
“What goes around comes around arrives in a sweet way in the form of a sewing grandmother who always does something extra. Her mitzvot (good deeds) do not go unnoticed, supporting the surprise ending. Grandma Rose sews for young and old: clothes, blankets, table cloths, dolls. She… View →
Sadie and the Big Mountain
“Sadie’s synagogue preschool is spending the week preparing for Shavuot, the culmination of which will be a mountain hike, similar to Moshe ascending Mount Sinai. Sadie does not like hiking, and as the class makes walking sticks, learns the Ten Commandments, and makes blintzes,… View →
Nathan Blows Out the Hanukkah Candles
“Jacob’s older brother, Nathan, celebrates the lighting of the menorah in his own unique way, as he does everything else, by blowing out the candles as soon as they are lit. Nathan exhibits behavior that we associate with autism, but Jacob just finds it annoying. He is thrilled… View →
Lights Out Shabbat
“In her first children’s book, Shulimson tells a sweet story about keeping the Sabbath even when the unexpected occurs. When a snowstorm knocks out the power at his grandparents’ house in Georgia soon after the Shabbat candles are lit, a little boy finds that a Sabbath without… View →
Barnyard Purim
“Purim is a time for pretending—a time for little girls to dress up as courageous queens and for little boys to sprout fake beards and masquerade as Mordecai or Haman. Not wanting to miss out on the fun, Farmer Max’s livestock decide to stage their own Purim play. Chicken channels… View →
“a first choice for school and synagogue libraries.” —AJL Newsletter View →
Let's Visit Israel
“This simple, bright and cheerful book is essential for home and school libraries” —AJL Newsletter View →
“What a delight! This photo essay, created in a real Jewish preschool, is a perfect Shabbat book for the preschool crowd!” —AJL Newsletter View →
It's Seder Time!
“. . .joins its predecessors as an outstanding addition to the small but growing collection of good books for the young Jewish child.” —AJL Newsletter View →
Hanukkah Cat
“The story of the Maccabees, a family’s holiday celebrations, and Lenny’s adventures with the mischievous cat are deftly woven into an appealing story. . .” —AJL Newsletter View →
Sammy Spider's First Tu B'Shevat
“Kudos are due Kar-Ben. . . for publishing a book on the subject of Tu B’Shevat since that holiday has virtually no picture book literature available for young children. . . Sammy. . . remains a perennial favorite.” — View →