These Christian-rooted life lessons are lighthearted, age-appropriate, and toddler-friendly.
Based on verses from the Gospel of Matthew (25:34-40), various animals model kindness and generosity.
“God shows us lots of ways to help. Look around and see.” So goes the repeated text. In the pastel cartoon art, a dove gives a thirsty lamb a drink, a dog gives the dove a blanket, a hedgehog shares its snack, and a goat brings the lonely hedgehog a bouquet. One of the last pages reviews the good deeds and offers a quick prayer of gratitude. The final double-page spread, headed “Helping Your Child Take First Steps in Faith,” provides developmentally appropriate guidance for parents on encouraging helpfulness and making faith connections, along with reinforcing activities. The companion title, Clap, Sing, Dance!, faithfully follows the series formula using the same quintet of critters. Inspired by Psalm 104:33 (“I will sing to the Lord as long as I live…”), this title promotes active expressions of joy. Encouraging toddlers to do the same, the sheep makes a joyful noise, the dog does “a happy dance,” the hedgehog claps its hands, the goat stomps its feet, and the dove, despite the fact that it doesn’t have any, waves its “arms.” The offering ends with similar parental backmatter.
These Christian-rooted life lessons are lighthearted, age-appropriate, and toddler-friendly. (Board book. 18 mos.-4)Pub Date: May 30, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5064-1784-4
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Sparkhouse
Review Posted Online: April 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A celebration of progressive Judaism and an inclusive primer on Jews making a difference in the world.
This wide-ranging collection of short biographies highlights 36 Jewish figures from around the globe and across centuries.
Explicitly pushing back against homogenous depictions of Jewish people, the authors demonstrate the ethnic, racial, and gender diversity of Jews. Each spread includes a brief biography paired with a stylized portrait reminiscent of those in Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo’s Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls (2016). A pull quote or sidebar accompanies each subject; sidebars include “Highlighting Jewish Paralympic Athletes,” “Jewish Stringed Music,” and “Ethiopian Jews in Israel.” Kleinrock and Pritchard’s roster of subjects makes a compelling case for the vastness and variety of Jewish experience—from a contemporary Ethiopian American teen to a 16th-century Portuguese philanthropist—while still allowing them to acknowledge better-known figures. The entry on Raquel Montoya-Lewis, an associate justice of the Washington Supreme Court and an enrolled member of the Pueblo Isleta Indian tribe, discusses her mission to reimagine criminal justice for Indigenous people; the sidebar name-checks Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Elena Kagan. The bios are organized around themes of Jewish principles such as Pikuach Nefesh (translated from the Hebrew as “to save a life”) and Adam Yachid (translated as the “unique value of every person”); each section includes an introduction to an organization that centers diverse Jewish experiences.
A celebration of progressive Judaism and an inclusive primer on Jews making a difference in the world. (resources) (Nonfiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 24, 2024
ISBN: 9780063285712
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The true meaning of the holiday season shines here.
Kids teach a valuable lesson about community spirit.
A city block is ablaze with red and green lights for Christmas; one house glows blue and white for Hanukkah. This is where Isaac, a Jewish boy, lives, across the street from best friend Teresa, excitedly preparing for Christmas. They love lighting up their homes in holiday colors. After an antisemitic bigot smashes a window in Isaac’s house, Isaac relights the menorah the next night, knowing if his family doesn’t, it means hiding their Jewishness, which doesn’t “feel right.” Artistic Teresa supports Isaac by drawing a menorah, inscribed to her friend, and placing the picture in her window. What occurs subsequently is a remarkable demonstration of community solidarity for Isaac and his family from everyone, including the media. Galvanized into defiant action against hate, thousands of townspeople display menorahs in windows in residences and public buildings. This quiet, uplifting tale is inspired by an incident that occurred in Billings, Montana, in 1993. Readers will feel heartened at children’s power to influence others to stand up for justice and defeat vile prejudice. The colorful illustrations, rendered digitally with brushes of the artist’s devising, resemble scratch art. Isaac and Teresa are White, and there is some racial diversity among the townspeople; one child is depicted in a wheelchair. An author’s note provides information about the actual event.
The true meaning of the holiday season shines here. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 19, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-64614-087-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Levine Querido
Review Posted Online: July 29, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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