Rivka's Presents by Laurie Wallmark
It is 1918 and Rivka cannot wait to go to school. But she is told the night before, she must stay home as her father has the flu and her mother needs help taking care of her younger sister, while she works. The Lower East Side of New York City comes alive with how one plucky young girl finds a way to get the education she needs. She trades chores for reading and math lessons. And when her father is finally well, all her hard […]
How to Welcome an Alien by Rebecca Klempner
This is a picture book that is about welcoming people in the tradition of Jewish hospitality. How to Welcome an Alien is on the surface, just about being kind to your neighbors and visitors; but the deeper meaning is accepting people who are different from you, and helping them in times of need. This can mean not just your new neighbors, but refugees, aliens or even something else. Rebecca Klempner set their book in a way all can relate. It is humorous, but serious as well. […]
Two New Years by Richard Ho
Two New Years might be my second favorite non-Christian holiday book for 2023. Or even my first as it does mention Lunar New Year. I will start with the afterwards because it talks about the pieces of a simple, but deceptively not simple story. This afterwards describes the two New Year celebrations parts and the culture. Richard Ho talks about why names are used, what the rams horn means, and the foods similarities. This is because Ho is talking about the two cultures that he […]
Hanukkah Upside Down by Elissa Brent Weissman
CBR15Passport author The cover of Hanukkah Upside Down was what first caught my eye. The character at the top is upside down. Or is the one on the bottom? After all, she (the top of page) is right side up on her side of things. But then again, the boy at the bottom thinks things are right on his side, too. This clever book about two cousins in different countries (one New York, USA and the other in New Zealand) shows how “the better cousin” […]
Challah Day by Charlotte Offsay
CBR15Passport New Author From kneading dough to gathering with family, we have a Challah Day. What is Challah? It is a bread for the Friday night Shabbat dinner. I did not know this, but learned about it, the culture of the family and the fun and love this family has in Charlotte Offsay’s story. Overall, this is a simple story of family and how they come together. It does not matter the holiday we celebrate; we all have these traditions and it Offsay shows us […]
Music was IT: Young Leonard Bernstein by Susan Goldman Rubin
It took me a few days to get through Music was IT: Young Leonard Bernstein not because it was a hard read but was a read that took time to get through as there was a lot going on and I needed to concentrate on it. Plus, having a cold that made me not want to read did not help. Susan Goldman Rubin created a good introduction about the man Leonard Bernstein, but it needed more as it ends on his debut in Carnegie Hall […]
