Archive for September, 2008

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

September 29, 2008 at 5:24 pm · Filed under young adult novels ·Tagged ,

 

Twilight

Twilight

OK, it’s moments before Rosh Hashanah is set to begin and I just want to get one last post in before the New Year. I’ve thought about closing with one last Rosh Hashanah book but truthfully, at some point over the next few days (if you celebrate Rosh Hashanah), you are going to be looking for something really great to read. Run, don’t walk, and pick up Twilight. In fact, you might as well also pick up New Moon because you will finish Twilight much quicker than you thought (even though it is 500 pages). Trust me. I wound up having to take an emergency late night trip to Target while on a business trip. Not pretty.

 

I have found a new friend. Actually, a new set of friends — some human, most not — all imaginary. In the past week, I’ve read almost 1,500 pages of this series meant for teens while still going to work, playing with my kids and hanging out with my husband. I will admit that I am an avid YA reader but this is a whole different world for me. This book put me right back in the land of first love, in the world where “love” consumed your every thought, where the object of your affection was more intoxicating than anything else. I grant you, it might not be a place you want to return to. But if you don’t remember what it feels like, read this book. (Let me just be clear, I’m not talking about real love, I’m talking about young love.)

 

New Moon

New Moon

By the way, I’m rationalizing this posting because it is a book written for children (or teens). However, there is probably not a teenager out there who hasn’t read it or at least heard of it. This posting is for you — who needs a good book to sink into.

 

OK, I should mention it also has vampires in it but ignore that. It’s not really about that.

All the best to you all and I’ll be back on Thursday!

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Rosh Hashanah Books for Little Kids

September 26, 2008 at 3:57 pm · Filed under Books for little kids (0-3) ·Tagged , , ,

To my mind, Rosh Hashanah books for young children are at best OK and at worst, very annoying. For little kids, you don’t tend to get a great story, you get object identification and something to chew on. That said, there are some better than others and here are my favorites (in order of age appropriateness).

Happy Birthday, World

Happy Birthday, World

Happy Birthday World by Latifa Berry Kropf

Happy Birthday, World is a sweet board book that compares Rosh Hashanah, the birthday of the world, to a child’s birthday. “On your birthday, you eat a delicious birthday cake. / On this birthday, we eat crisp apples dipped in honey.” I’m not crazy about the illustrations, but that’s just a taste issue. Basically, it’s a good one for toddlers (though I feel like few of them have a real sense of what a birthday is…).

Apples and Honey

Apples and Honey

Apples and Honey by Joan Holub

If your child is ready for something a little bit more sophisticated than a board book, Apples and Honey is actually a nice choice. A lift-the-flap book, this one has a bit of a plot as a family prepares for Rosh Hashanah. The illustrations are lovely, but the book is stapled together, giving it that lovely supermarket feel. I’m a big fan, but I do wish they would have spent the extra pennies to get a real binding.

It's Shofar Time!

It's Shofar Time!

It’s Shofar Time! by Latifa Berry Kropf

It’s Shofar Time! is part of a well-known series of photo essay books for little kids around the Jewish holidays. They all take place at a lovely looking Jewish preschool in Charlottesville, VA, as a group of multi-ethnic, multi-cultural children celebrate the Jewish holidays. Surprisingly, it’s actually a lovely series and this book — centered around Rosh Hashanah is no exception. In my experience, children love looking at photos of other children and in addition to having age-appropriate text, it’s also a great advertisement for Jewish preschool.

Sammy Spider’s First Rosh Hashanah by Sylvia Rouss

Sammy Spider's First Rosh Hashanah

Sammy Spider's First Rosh Hashanah

And finally, it would be difficult to have a list of holiday books for little children without a mention of Sammy Spider. Sammy, for those who haven’t had the “pleasure” of meeting him, is a curious little spider who lives with his mother in the Shapiro household. Sammy watches the Shapiros celebrate their holidays and constantly wants to join in. His mother like to remind him (over and over again): “Silly little Sammy. Spiders don’t … . Spider’s spin webs.” So, not great for teaching your child they can do anything they want, but the books are a good model of Jewish families living Jewishly (but not too Jewishly). In this “adventure,” Sammy learns all about Rosh Hashanah but not before he accidentally gets stuck in the sticky honey. Parents will likely find Sammy tiresome pretty quickly but unfortunately, kids really seem to like him. He’s kind of like the Jewish Curious George.

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The World’s Birthday by Barbara Diamond Goldin

September 25, 2008 at 3:25 pm · Filed under picture books (ages 4-6) ·Tagged , , ,

I’m trying hard to stick with books that are still in print, to make it easier on everyone. But every so often, I’m going to need to go back to some lovely books that you are going to need to hunt around a little bit for.

The World's Birthday

The World's Birthday

It would be hard to talk about Rosh Hashanah books without mentioning The World’s Birthday by Barbara Diamond Goldin. Goldin is one of the top Jewish children’s book authors with so many wonderful folktales and stories to her credit. They are all gems and you will hear about many of them on this site. The World’s Birthday is a great story for 4 and 5 year old children.  Daniel, the hero of this story (and of another Barbara Diamond Goldin book Night Lights) thinks that if Rosh Hashanah is the birthday of the world, why not throw a birthday party? And while his older sister Naomi (who also features prominently in Night Lights) thinks it’s a dumb idea, he perseveres and creates a lovey new Rosh Hashanah tradition.

It’s a nice, quiet story, perfect for children who love birthday parties. It may be hard to find, but it’s worth it once you do.

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When the Chickens Went on Strike by Erica Silverman

September 24, 2008 at 4:27 pm · Filed under picture books (ages 4-6) ·Tagged , , ,

When the Chickens Went on Strike by Erica Silverman is stunning — which really counts for a lot for me because I think that everyone judges a book by its cover. Even more so with children’s books: everyone judges a picture book by its illustrations.

When the Chickens Went on Strike

But I will offer, that it is on a bit of an odd topic. Adapted from a Sholom Aleichem story, Chickensis about a boy who has a really hard time being good. He wants to be good, he really does. But somehow between wanting and doing is a big leap — the same problem that many children I know have. So, what’s odd about that? Well, then comes the custom of kapores — the ritual that few non-Ultra Orthodox Jews do anymore — where a person swings a chicken over their head as a way of atoning for their sins. It’s an odd custom and the chickens don’t want to have any part of it (naturally). In the process of trying to convince them, this boy (and the reader) learn a good lesson about how to be a better person (I’ll give you a hint, it’s not related to whether or not you swing a chicken over your head).

It’s definitely a fun book, even if your family doesn’t practice the custom of Kapores. Everyone needs a little help being a better person…

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Engineer Ari and the Rosh Hashanah Ride by Deborah Bodin Cohen

September 23, 2008 at 5:38 am · Filed under picture books (ages 4-6) ·Tagged , , , ,

This year brings a new Rosh Hashanah story that will hit the mark with many young children, particularly those who have a fascination with train.

Engineer Ari
Engineer Ari

Engineer Ari and the Rosh Hashanah Ride by Deborah Bodin Cohen takes place against the backdrop of the first train ride across Israel — from Jaffa to Jerusalem — right before Rosh Hashanah. Ari is delighted to be chosen to be at the helm of this first trip across the country and doesn’t seem to notice/ care that his best friends, who were not chosen, are feeling upset. But as he travels across the country and picks up supplies for Rosh Hashanah (shofarot, round challahs, apples, honey), everything reminds him of his two friends and their sadness.

By the time Ari gets to Jerusalem, he can barely enjoy the festivities because he knows that he has to go back and say he’s sorry to his friends — for boasting and not being sensitive to their feelings. And yes, the play on words is made (a little too deliberately for my taste): Ari says he has to do teshuva (repentance), to turn himself around (the literal meeting of teshuva). While the book ends before he reaches his friends, it provides a great jumping off point to discuss how one says they are sorry. 

It’s a solid new book for Rosh Hashanah, filled with beautiful illustrations, an important message and, best of all, a train!

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Even Higher by Richard Ungar

September 22, 2008 at 3:24 pm · Filed under picture books for older kids (7-10) ·Tagged , , , , ,

This week is going to be all Rosh Hashanah all the time, for fairly obvious reasons.

One of my favorite Rosh Hashanah books is Even Higher by Richard Ungar. I have to admit, the illustrations do not thrill me. It’s a question of taste — it’s not that they are bad, I’m just not into the Chagall colors.

Even Higher

Even Higher

But the story is lovely. Based on a story by the great I.L. Peretz, It’s about a couple of boys who see the rabbi disappear the day before Rosh Hashanah every year. This year, they’ve decided that one of the boys should follow him to prove that he goes up to heaven to talk with God. When Reuven sees him disguise himself as a woodcutter and bring wood for a bedridden widow, he realizes that one’s actions can actually bring you “even higher” than heaven.

Even Higheris a wonderful story for Rosh Hashanah about the power of human actions and can be a fantastic conversation starter about the value of Tzedakah (charity). Rarely do we get such a wonderful portrait of charity being given without hope of recognition.

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Mendel’s Accordion by Heidi Smith Hyde

September 21, 2008 at 2:32 pm · Filed under picture books (ages 4-6) ·Tagged , , , ,

I feel badly that I didn’t get a book in before the weekend so I wanted to choose a really good book today to make up for it. After this past Shabbat, Mendel’s Accordion is my natural choice.

This book fits my requirements for a great book for a number of reasons:

First, it’s beautiful. The illustrations are light and delicate and there’s lots to see on every page.

Mendel's Accordion

Mendel's Accordion

Second, it’s a lovely story. The narrative centers around a man named Mendel who loves to play his accordion in a place called Melnitze (which is ironically less than 50 miles from the place where my grandparents all hailed from). When things start getting really tough in the village (and this is left deliberately vague — no pogroms or soldiers are mentioned or seen), he decides to come to America. He makes the long journey with others and comes to New York eventually. At every turn in the story, he finds people to play with accordion alongside. The book ends with his great-grandson finding his accordion and deciding to learn to play as well. I think it does a great job of capturing all these familiar tropes (the coming to America, the making it in America, the new generations) in an accessible way for young readers.

And third of all, there’s something that’s just plain fun about it. My 5 year old and I love talking about the different characters from the Old Country — Shmelke is our favorite and has become a frequent special imaginary guest at our Shabbat table (like this past Shabbat when Shmelke actually brought Mendel with him). We’ve been reading this book for probably 1.5 years and he still loves saying “Shmelke.” We’ve also spent a long time talking about the instruments that all the players play (if I were a better mom/educator, I would have also introduced him to the sounds of Klezmer music so he can have that association). 

Basically, it’s just a really nice read. And at each age, he’s finding more and more to like in the story. Maybe next year, we can use the book as a jumping off point to discuss how people came to America or to talk about his grandparents. And maybe I’ll pick up a Klezmer CD and he’ll be able to put together the scenes of the Klezmer band with the actual music. There’s lots of time for this book — I know we’ll keep reading it and re-reading it, which is one of the best things I can say about a book.

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The High-Rise Private Eyes by Cynthia Rylant

September 18, 2008 at 3:55 pm · Filed under early chapter books, picture books (ages 4-6) ·Tagged , , ,

I’m having an author crush on Cynthia Rylant. More so than any other author right now, she is making a difference in my life. (Sorry Anna Levine but I do still love you!)

The issue is carpool. I carpool 5 kids between the ages of 4 and 9. They are a mix of boys and girls with different interests and ideas of what is appropriate carpool talk and different feelings about carpool with no Disney radio. They are lovely children but they sit in my car for about 30+ minutes three times a week and sometimes I think seriously about dropping them off at the nearest school rather than the school they actually go to.

Enter Cynthia.

The High-Rise Private Eyes

The High-Rise Private Eyes

Last year I started going to the library and borrowing books on tape to listen in the car. They were successful, but I also had fewer kids and a narrower age range in the car. I’ve reintroduced the stories this year but I started them off with The High-Rise Private Eyes, a mystery series that Rylant (trying to be professional here) wrote for young readers. So far, I believe there are about 9 books in the series but our library only has 2 of them. The kids are addicted. There is no difference between the older ones and the younger ones, they are all really into the (inane) mysteries that detectives and best friends Bunny Brown and raccoon Jack Jones try to solve. (Bunny is the brains, Rylant says, Jack is the snoop…)

Yes, the mysteries are inane. The dialogue is often silly. But it’s cute and the kids love it and they listen to it over and over again and they are quiet for the 30 minutes it takes me to drive them to school. And my son and his best friend often play the High-Rise Private Eyes where they make up little mysteries and try to solve them. And because of all this, I love Cynthia Rylant.

Here are some of the books in the series. I actually really like the audio version, there’s a great narrator:

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Somewhere Today by Shelley Moore Thomas

September 17, 2008 at 4:45 pm · Filed under Books for little kids (0-3), picture books (ages 4-6) ·Tagged

I’m really into books about peace for young children. I think that no matter how much you believe in striving for peace or searching for peace or finding peace, it’s a concept that is really hard to explain to young children. The great thing about these children’s books is that not only are they good at explaining the concept, they are good about explaining it in terms of how we create peace and specifically, how children can create peace.

Somewhere Today

Somewhere Today

So, another book I’d like to add to my list is Somewhere Today: A Book About Peace by Shelley Moore Thomas. With the backdrop of vivid photo montages, Thomas is able to give concrete examples of what making peace looks like — much like Todd Parr’s The Peace Book. Each double page spread starts with the familiar “Somewhere today.” Her first example is one of my favorites:

Somewhere today… someone is being a friend instead of fighting.

And then after  a series of wonderful examples, Thomas ends with:

Somewhere today… someone is reading a book about peace and thinking about making the world a better place.

Perfect, isn’t it?

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A Sack Full of Feathers by Debby Waldman

September 16, 2008 at 3:58 pm · Filed under picture books (ages 4-6) ·Tagged , , , ,

There are some folktales that are centered around the need for a heroine to ignore ugly old people who want to stop them from marrying their dashing prince. They are tiresome and should be replaced at all costs by The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munch.

And then there are folktales that can actually offer good teachable moments. Sadly, they are often ugly, printed on cheap paper, with poor illustrations and lots of words on every page. The kind of book you only want to read if your child already has his/ her eyes closed.

A Sack Full of Feathers

A Sack Full of Feathers

And then there is A Sack Full of Feathers by Debby Waldman. While it takes place in an Eastern Europe shtetl, it has more colors than you can shake a stick at and is not parochially Jewish. What it is, is a great story that addresses children where they are at. Yankel is a storyteller — a child with a gift for telling stories and capturing his listeners attention. The problem is, his stories aren’t his own: they are stories he overhears and thinks he is repeating properly, with no concept of discretion or the subtleties around the truth. Basically, he is like many of my carpool kids, and my 5-year old, who repeat things not maliciously but because they don’t really know better. Enter the rabbi who wants to teach this boy a gentle lesson with a practical lesson on what happens to feathers (stories) when you let them loose.

It’s funny, it’s beautiful, it’s magical and it’s great for kids lacking discretion (and their parents too).

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Amazing Machines by Tony Mitton and Ant Parker

September 15, 2008 at 12:44 pm · Filed under Books for little kids (0-3) ·Tagged , , , , ,

So, I’m a mom of two boys. And as much as they’ll read good quality picture books with interesting stories, at the end of the day, they adore books about trains, fire trucks, boats, planes, rockets and the like. I know more about the different parts of a train or the different planets in the solar system than I’ve ever known. And, I’ll even admit it, I’m kind of into it. (Much better than having to read another Star Wars or Superman book.)

Flashing Fire Engines

Flashing Fire Engines

One of my favorites for this genre are the books in the Amazing Machines series by Tony Mitton and Ant Parker. The rhymes are good, there aren’t too many words on the page, and the illustrations are vivid and engaging. Best of all, I can read them over and over again without wanting to pull out my hair, which is important for books like these. I also really like how they introduce hard words: at the end of Flashing Fire Engines (read last night, twice), they write:

At last the fire’s extinguished.

The flames are all put out.

Lower the ladder. Roll the hose.

“Hurray!” the fire crew shouts.

Terrific Trains

Terrific Trains

See, it’s cute and has explained the term “extinguished” before I even had a chance to worry about what I would use instead. All in all, they aren’t high literature but are a lot of fun to read, if you are into reading about machines that is.

 

Here are some of the individual books in the series:

You can also get a full miniature set.

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Freefall by Anna Levine

September 14, 2008 at 8:03 am · Filed under young adult novels ·Tagged , , ,

I’m so excited about Freefall by Anna Levine for a number of reasons:

  1. It’s written by an author I love
  2. It’s a great YA read
  3. It takes place in modern day Israel
Freefall

Freefall

Freefall tells the story of Aggie, an 18 year old girl getting ready to start her compulsary military service. But while she’s at it, she’s also falling in love, discovering her personal strength and learning who she is.

Anna Levine does a great job of making this first and foremost a story about an 18 year old girl, with Israel, the 2nd Lebanon War and the issues it bring up in the background. When I was 18, I don’t think I could have made the choice Aggie is faced with. As much as I would have wanted to jump on a train to the North to help out while rockets were flying, I’m just not sure that I would have done it. And I certainly wouldn’t have been able to make the choice to become a soldier instead of doing national service, as girls like Aggie choose between. But that’s the difference between living in North America and living in Israel and that’s what makes this book such a good read: it’s easy to close your eyes and picture yourself right beside Aggie, making the same choices, falling in love.

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The Friday Nights of Nana by Amy Hest

September 12, 2008 at 8:48 pm · Filed under Books for little kids (0-3), picture books (ages 4-6) ·Tagged , , ,

The Friday Nights of Nana

The Friday Nights of Nana

It’s almost Shabbat and I’m thinking of the millions of things I won’t have time to do. Unlike the characters in Amy Hest’s The Friday Nights of Nana, I don’t spend the day getting ready: tidying things up, taking a nice walk to get flowers, baking an apple pie and putting on special clothes. But I really, really wish I did.

There is something so soothing about this classic story of a girl and her grandmother. I love reading it at bedtime and taking the time to really sink into Hest’s lyrical descriptions and illustrator Claire Nivola’s exquisite illustrations. I love the description of the moment when Jennie and Nana finally light the candles:

“Is it time?” I ask.

“Now,” Nana says, and finally it’s the best time. Nana is lighting candles and our dresses are touching and she is whispering Sabbath prayers and no one makes a peep. Not even Lewis.

And I love the ending, when the family is all together (with the mom discreetly breastfeeding at the table!):

Outside, the wind howls. Snow whips up in great white swirls.

But here inside, the candles flicker. A Sabbath song is in the air. It’s time for pie and we’re all here together on the Friday nights of Nana.

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Picture Books About Peace

September 11, 2008 at 8:21 pm · Filed under Books for little kids (0-3), picture books (ages 4-6) ·Tagged ,

In honor of September 11th, I wanted to offer a few suggestions on great picture books that teach about the amorphous subject of peace. Here are some of my favorites:

 

The Peace Book

The Peace Book

The Peace Book by Todd Parr

Child-friendly, appealing to all ages, like the rest of Todd Parr’s books, The Peace Book is an excellent conversation starter. From lofty goals (“Peace is everyone having a home”) to realizable goals (“Peace is offering a hug to a friend”), this book offers big steps and small steps to help everyone make this a better world.
 

 

26 Big Things Small Hands Do

26 Big Things Small Hands Do

26 Big Things Small Hands Do by Coleen Paratore

26 Big Things Small Hands Do links every letter of the alphabet with a good thing that can be done. As the book’s first page states: “Your hands are small, but they do BIG things that make this a wonderful world.” Some letters are better (F: “Small hands feed.” and H: “Small hands help.” are favorites of mine) but either way, every letter is a good way to start a conversation about all the wonderful things even small hands do!

 

 
When I Grow Up, I Will Win the Nobel Peace Prize

When I Grow Up, I Will Win the Nobel Peace Prize

When I Grow Up, I Will Win the Nobel Peace Prize by Isabel Pin  

This is a book all about intentions, which is fantastic for all those kids (and grownups) who have lofty goals but sometimes don’t quite get there. Luckily, everything is couched in “When I grow up…” like “When I grow up, I will love my neighbor” right beside a beautiful illustration of a boy not loving his neighbor. Intentions are important, and this is a fun book that can help in a discussion of changing behaviors, if that is possible.
 

I Will Make Miracles by Susie Morgenstern

I Will Make Miracles

I Will Make Miracles

This is another book about a small child with lofty ambitions. Against illustrations similar to those of Maurice Sendak, the child in this oversized book has a lot of answers to the question: “When you get older, what will you be?” In addition to thoughts of being “a plumber, or pilot. Or dance the ballet!” he says: “I’d make the world stop fighting! / I’d get it in writing! I’d shout it far and near. / And everyone would hear.” and “I’d lock the bad guys up in cages / And turn them into wise old sages.”

 

Fundamentally though, the only way that these books will be successful is when they are springboards to discussions. That’s the hard part.

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The Baby Goes Beep

September 10, 2008 at 4:24 pm · Filed under Books for little kids (0-3) ·Tagged , ,

Choosing a first book to recommend is at once overwhelmingly hard, and also a no brainer.
The Baby Goes Beep

The Baby Goes Beep

Every night, before my 3-year old goes to sleep (and every nap before he goes to sleep but I’m rarely there for that), I recite The Baby Goes Beep by Rebecca O’Connell and then Goodnight Moon. Goodnight Moon you’ve all probably heard of but The Baby Goes Beep is an unknown gem. 

The book is simple in content, and has a lyrical sing-songy quality to the text: 
The baby goes Beep. The baby goes Beep Beep. The baby goes Beep Beep Beep Beep.
The baby goes Boom. The baby goes Boom Boom. The baby goes Boom Boom Boom Boom.
The pictures are big and vivid and the story just meanders as the baby gets home, plays for a bit, eats dinner, takes a bath, gives good-night kisses and goes to sleep (actually, my kids like to point out that the mom and dad go to sleep but on the end page, the baby is standing up in the crib!).

Simply put, it’s a perfect bedtime book. Everyone in my family knows it by heart by now, even our occasional babysitters do. Sadly, it’s out of print, so snap up any copies you find!

 You can find it at Amazon.

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Great, another blog

September 10, 2008 at 3:58 pm · Filed under Uncategorized

So, I’ve never been into blogging. My husband blogs, my coworkers blog but I was just never that into it. But lately, I’ve been getting a lot of requests for book recommendations — both for Jewish kids books and secular ones. So, I thought a blog about children’s books (with a focus toward Jewish books) could be interesting for me. We’ll see where it leads, but for now, I’m working on one book recommendation a day! Wish me luck…

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