A special shield provides courage on the battlefield and in the doctor’s office.
Hanukkah heroism helps a little boy face his fears about getting an inoculation.
Judah faces many challenges in his desire “to be the BEST big brother ever.” He tries to play with his baby sister, Hannah, and to help her eat her breakfast, but she isn’t satisfied. (She is a baby, after all.) Then as Hanukkah approaches, his bubbe tells him the story of Judah Maccabee, who had four brothers and who “protected them and kept the Jewish people safe, too.” The numerous, white members of Judah’s family gather to celebrate the holiday as the first of eight candles burns brightly in the window, and Judah receives a present: a shield decorated with the Maccabee name. On the last day of the holiday, it’s time for the titular visit to the doctor, a black woman. Hannah and Judah get a thorough checkup, and both are pronounced healthy. Then Judah learns that he will need a shot to help protect both him and his little sister from illness. With his shield in hand and a few tears, Judah gets his inoculation. Koffsky tackles two seemingly disparate subjects for a very young audience and their caregivers, combining Hanukkah themes of bravery with the importance of inoculations that can also protect those too young to receive shots. Colorful art with expressive faces fills the pages.
A special shield provides courage on the battlefield and in the doctor’s office. (author’s note) (Picture book/religion. 3-6)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-68115-522-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Apples & Honey Press
Review Posted Online: Aug. 20, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
In the end too much is left unanswered, making this book pleasant but only passable
A mouse searches for and finally finds her missing Seder plate.
Pippa is an industrious house-cleaning mouse. And no wonder—Passover is starting this very evening. Dusting and sweeping finished, she turns her attention to setting the table as a pot of chicken stew bubbles away on the stovetop. But there is one very important object that is missing: the “special Seder plate.” Frantically, the mouse searches through boxes and cupboards and finally ventures into the yard. First she encounters a very large cat and asks if it has seen the plate. “No,” answers the cat and points her to a snake, who sends her to an owl, who directs her to Golda Fish, prettily swimming in the water. Success! Kirkfield’s little tale is written in rhyming couplets with much repetition of “QUIVER! QUAVER! SHIVER! SHAKE!” for emphasis with each interaction with a predator, so readers will be mightily puzzled when the formerly frightful critters join Pippa at the holiday table. Weber’s gouache, crayon, and collage illustrations are sweetly pretty. The final illustration features a Seder plate with transliterated Hebrew and an English translation of the components. Readers familiar with the holiday may find this mildly enjoyable, but others will likely want and need more information.
In the end too much is left unanswered, making this book pleasant but only passable . (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Feb. 12, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-8234-4162-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Nov. 11, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Better stories about Hanukkah abound.
A family of latkes prepares for Hanukkah.
The members of the Latke family are all potato pancakes, even their dog, Applesauce. As Hanukkah approaches, daughter Lucy greets readers while her parents fry jelly doughnuts, her older brother holes up in his room being a teenager, and Grandpa disrupts the holiday by offering up an alternate spelling: “CHHA-nukah!” Applesauce explains that both can be correct. The usual celebrations continue, with all participating except for the teenager. And then Grandpa commences to tell the story of the holiday with his own twist. It was not the Maccabees who fought for freedom, it was bees: “MEGA-BEES!” Applesauce tries to correct this version, but Grandpa continues. The enemy was not Antiochus: It was “ALIEN POTATOES FROM PLANET CHHHHH!” And while the Maccabees were low on oil, the Mega-Bees are low on honey. Also in this revised account is a giant dreidel that calls to mind the Trojan horse and from which the Mega-Bees emerge to “[mash] those tater tyrants into tatters.” Add the usual ingredients and you have, of course, “POTATO LATKES!” Silverberg’s narration brings to mind a Borscht Belt routine that may be appreciated by some adult readers but is just as likely to cause confusion among its audience. His digital illustrations depict latkes that resemble brown blobs and only add to the general muddlement.
Better stories about Hanukkah abound. (author’s note, glossary) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 16, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-451-47912-9
Page Count: 36
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Aug. 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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