The Patchwork Torah

  • Interest Level: Preschool - Grade 5
  • Reading Level: Grade 3

As a child, David watches his grandfather, a Torah scribe or sofer, finish a Torah scroll for the synagogue. “A Torah is not something to be thrown away,” his Grandfather explains. David’s grandfather carefully stores the old Torah his new one has replaced in his cabinet, hoping to one day repair the letters so the Torah can be used again.

David grows up and becomes a sofer just like his grandfather. Through the years, people bring him damaged Torahs they have saved from danger and disaster – one damaged by Nazi soldiers during World War II, one damaged in a fire in a synagogue, and one in flooding during Hurricane Katrina. David stores each of these precious Torahs in his cabinet, until his granddaughter Leah gives him the idea to make a recycled Torah from the salvaged Torah scrolls.

Format Your Price Add
978-1-5124-9602-4
$22.99
978-1-4677-8486-3
$29.99
978-1-5124-4468-1
$6.99
Available at all major wholesalers and distributors. Save 25% off list price on hardcovers and ebooks when you buy direct! Digital purchases will be accessed on Lerner Digital Bookshelf. An account will be created for you after purchase.
Interest Level Preschool - Grade 5
Reading Level Grade 3
Genre Picture Books, Social Studies
Copyright 2014
Publisher Lerner Publishing Group
Imprint Kar-Ben Publishing ®
Language English
Number of Pages 32
Publication Date 2014-01-01
Text Type Fiction
BISACS JUV033020, JUV013030, JUV063000
Dewey [E]
Graphics Full-color illustrations
Dimensions 10.625 x 8.875
Features Awards, Reviewed, and Starred Reviews

Author: Allison Ofanansky

Allison Ofanansky, born in the U.S., moved to Israel and became an Israeli citizen in 1996. She lives in the village of Kaditah near the mystical city of Safed, with her husband Shmuel and daughter Aravah. They enjoy hiking the hills of the Galilee, gathering and eating the fruits that grow there. They are involved in environmental and eco-peace projects.

Illustrator: Elsa Oriol

Meet the Imprints: Kar-Ben Publishing

We continue our stroll through Lerner Publishing Group’s many imprints with a look at Kar-Ben Publishing, the largest publisher of Jewish children’s books in the world. Read on to learn more about the broad publishing program Kar-Ben enjoys and some of our most familiar and popular books View →

Awards

  • National Jewish Book Award, Winner, 2015

Reviews

Jewish Book World

“Through its serene, oil-painted illustrations and warm language, The Patchwork Torah demonstrates the importance of cycles in Judaism – the cycle of the reading of the Torah ending and beginning on the holiday of Simchat Torah, the cycle of the genera­tions and re-cycling.” — Jewish Book World

AJL Newsletter

“Soft color paintings with beautifully rendered facial expressions enhance the artistry of the whole; idea, text, and illustrations perfectly merge into a special reading experience.” — AJL Reviews

Publishers Weekly

“Surprisingly inventive and genuinely uplifting, this story beautifully and subtly ties together two key Jewish precepts: l’dor v’dor (generation to generation) and tikkum olam (repair the world).” — Publisher’s Weekly

Kirkus Reviews

“This book will be read more than once, and that seems only appropriate, as Jews are never finished reading the Torah . . . Readers may close the cover thinking that a picture book—like a Torah scroll—can be essential.” — Kirkus Reviews