On the first night of Passover, days after the Civil War has ended, Jacob sits on his porch snacking on a piece of matzoh. When Yankee soldier Myer Levy wanders by and notices him, he wishes Jacob a good holiday and asks if he might share. Surprised and a bit fearful, Jacob runs inside to inform his mother “there’s a...a Yankee Jew outside!” Putting politics and war aside and following Jewish tradition, Jacob’s mother invites Levy to join the family’s seder. Weber’s story is based on true events and explores the paradox and controversy of owning slaves for wealthy Southern Jews. Using the framework of the traditional Four Questions, the narrative ignites a dialogue between Myer and his host, Mr. Josephson, drawing a connection between the holiday’s celebration of freedom from slavery and the underlying cause of the Civil War. The handsome design features decoratively framed text boxes opposite Gustavson’s expressive, realistic oil paintings. Should spark discussion around the seder table and in classrooms of history. (glossary, historical notes) (Picture book/religion. 7-10)
Pub Date: March 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-58246-256-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Tricycle
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2009
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Fact and fiction dovetail neatly in this tale of a wonderfully resolute child who finds a memorable way to convince her father that the newly-finished Brooklyn Bridge is safe to cross. Having watched the great bridge going up for most of her young life, Hannah is eager to walk it, but despite repeated, fact-laced appeals to reason (and Hannah is a positive fount of information about its materials and design), her father won’t be moved: “No little girl of mine will cross that metal monster!” Hannah finally hatches a far-fetched plan to convince him once and for all; can she persuade the renowned P.T. Barnum to march his corps of elephants across? She can, and does (actually, he was already planning to do it). Pham places Hannah, radiating sturdy confidence, within sepia-toned, exactly rendered period scenes that capture both the grandeur of the bridge in its various stages of construction, and the range of expressions on the faces of onlookers during its opening ceremonies and after. Readers will applaud Hannah’s polite persistence. (afterword, resources) (Picture book. 7-10)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-689-87011-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2004
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
In a snowbound Swiss village, Matti figures it’s a good day to make a gingerbread man. He and his mother mix a batch of gingerbread and tuck it in the oven, but Matti is too impatient to wait ten minutes without peeking. When he opens the door, out pops a gingerbread baby, taunting the familiar refrain, “Catch me if you can.” The brash imp races all over the village, teasing animals and tweaking the noses of the citizenry, until there is a fair crowd on his heels intent on giving him a drubbing. Always he remains just out of reach as he races over the winterscape, beautifully rendered with elegant countryside and architectural details by Brett. All the while, Matti is busy back home, building a gingerbread house to entice the nervy cookie to safe harbor. It works, too, and Matti is able to spirit the gingerbread baby away from the mob. The mischief-maker may be a brat, but the gingerbread cookie is also the agent of good cheer, and Brett allows that spirit to run free on these pages. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-399-23444-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1999
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