A positive, conscious approach to a stress-free morning routine before the day ahead.
The Jewish ritual of reciting the daily morning prayer called “Modeh Ani” is explored for all children as a mindful way to begin each day.
The Hebrew phrase modeh ani translates to “I am grateful.” Solomon takes this concept and applies it to how we can begin each day with gratitude for our health, our strength, and our bodies. “Thank you for this brand-new day. / My whole body is grateful.” Without reference to a deity, children are encouraged to pay attention to parts of their bodies with a simple thank you. “Thank you for my toes that tap. My feet that point.” Each body part is assigned a function or movement, building until kids are happily jumping and dancing across the pages. With a nod to mindfulness, Solomon reminds kids to thank their breath that “goes in and out” and their heart that “beats fast and slow,” making their “whole body…ready for this bright new day.” Collage art presents a delighted group across all races and includes a Muslim girl in a hijab sitting side by side with a Jewish boy in a kippah as well as a brown-skinned, black-haired child in a wheelchair. Several illustrations show the Hebrew lettering for the phrase modeh ani.
A positive, conscious approach to a stress-free morning routine before the day ahead. (author's note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-68115-569-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Apples & Honey Press
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
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
BOOK REVIEW
A warm, cozy and loving depiction of shared culinary traditions around an inviting table.
Neighbors join together to celebrate a holiday.
Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath, brings a wonderful aroma to an urban apartment house. All the neighbors stop their activities and happily sniff the air as one door opens and everyone enters to feast on cholent. And what makes this dish so delicious? An Italian neighbor says tomatoes. Barley, says the Korean neighbor. Potatoes, says the family from India. No, it is beans, says the Spanish family. Goldie, a contemporary hostess, explains that cholent is a dish that her grandmother served on Shabbat, and that is what makes it taste special. Then, one Saturday, there is no wafting aroma, because Goldie is sick. Things go awry until the neighbors troop up the stairs with Indian potato curry, Korean barley tea, Italian pizza, and Spanish beans and rice. Goldie is happy because she can share a Shabbat meal. A recipe for vegetarian cholent is appended, but it’s too bad there is no note about the origins of the dish, a slow-cooked stew prepared before Shabbat when lighting a fire is not permitted. Also, “chik chak,” Hebrew for “quickly,” can be inferred but is not translated. Brooker’s oil paint and collage art presents a richly textured assortment of folk and apartments.
A warm, cozy and loving depiction of shared culinary traditions around an inviting table. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-7636-5528-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2014
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