PASSOVER

Like his Chanukah, Greenfeld's telling of the Passover story emphasizes its universal significance (here the representation of slavery and freedom), aims for seemly human interest and a style of dignified informality (""The Pharaoh. . . made the life of the Israelites so difficult that Moses' own people begged him to stop trying to set them free""), and plays down the marvelous (""Then what seemed like a miracle occurred"" with the parting of the waters). Similarly his presentation of the celebration, described as a time for both rejoicing and serious reflection, points up the ""atmosphere of warm hospitality"" at this ""very special occasion."" In contrast, Grove's stylized scratchboard illustrations are heavyhanded, self-conscious, and cliched. In Chanukah the pretentious visuals almost disqualify the whole; this at least is less ostentatious, and in both books Greenfeld's text so well addresses a perennial demand that such reservations can't prevail.