This spirited collection will make the Jewish people’s beginnings tangible to today’s readers.
Stories from the Torah, the Old Testament’s first five books, are enlivened.
A Reform rabbi and a Jewish educator use the original text, midrashim (stories that “search or explore” the original Bible), and their own creativity to reinterpret the well-known tales about Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Moses, Aaron, Miriam, and others. Sometimes they invent characters, and in the last story, they leap into the future, juxtaposing Moses writing the Torah with God telling him about the questions future people will have, even mentioning the smartphone, to show the continuing importance of Jewish learning. Though the events are familiar—the Great Flood, the departure from Egypt and the long desert sojourn—the storytelling is engaging. The biblical figures have strong personalities, and the authors make playful asides, such as a remark from God to Moses when the great leader is worried about his brother’s feelings: “When was the last time you saw Aaron happy?” Although traditionalists may not be comfortable with these adaptations, the stories make real the joy and suffering of the Jewish people during their early days. With particularly rich backmatter (including excellent discussion questions), the book will be useful for some Jewish education programs, but individual readers will also enjoy this less formal approach to the stories that have been taught in religious schools and homes and mentioned in secular literature for centuries. Simple black-and-white vignettes accompany chapter headings and are interspersed throughout.
This spirited collection will make the Jewish people’s beginnings tangible to today’s readers. (descriptions of Jewish values and the stories that relate to each value, index of values and sources) (Religious anthology. 10-13)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-68115-586-9
Page Count: 216
Publisher: Apples & Honey Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Simplistic in spots but engagingly tongue-in-cheek.
A lightweight survey of what Jesus—or at least his local contemporaries—ate, drank, wore, cultivated, celebrated, and venerated.
Aiming to remind young readers that “Jesus was a real person who lived in a real place during a specific time in history,” this overview offers general pictures of first-century life and society in what Olson calls Palestine, with particular attention paid to the era’s Jewish practices and Scriptures (properly noting that the latter, at that time, were not yet “firmed up”). Though the author uses depersonalized terms like “peasants and slaves” in assigning people to social classes, he also casts sidelights on plenty of crowd-pleasing topics such as the “amazing and scary” Roman army, how grape juice was fermented to make it “safe-ish” for drinking, and execution methods from (natch) crucifixion to stoning: “the go-to punishment for sins against God.” Along with simplified maps and diagrams, Maybank adds stylized cartoon images of characteristic flora, fauna, common goods, artifacts, and people (with slight but perceptibly varied tones of brown or olive skin) in diverse styles of period dress. A closing gallery of everyday items mentioned in the Gospels, with chapters and verses, serves as at least a partial source list.
Simplistic in spots but engagingly tongue-in-cheek. (Informational picture book. 10-13)Pub Date: Oct. 3, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5064-2500-9
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Sparkhouse
Review Posted Online: Sept. 30, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
