The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

D.J. Rosenblum Becomes the G.O.A.T. by Abby White Levine Querido, 2025 Category: Young Adult Reviewer: Jacqueline Jules   Buy at Bookshop.org D.J. Rosenblum idolizes her cousin Rachel. At her Bat Mitzvah, nine-year-old D.J. gives Rachel a necklace with a goat charm because in D.J.’s estimation, Rachel is the Greatest cousin Of All Time. Four years later, when Rachel dies by an apparent suicide, D.J. is devastated. She can’t accept that her beloved cousin would have taken her own life. D.J. is convinced, instead, that Rachel was murdered. It is a theory D.J. has the opportunity to pursue when her mom decides to relocate to Rachel's town in an effort to support her sister through the grieving process. Thus, the beginning of the novel feels like a murder mystery. D.J. and her mom move to Briar, Ohio, where Rachel’s parents and her little brother Davey still live. D.J. enrolls in middle school and begins her quest to prove that Rachel would not have harmed herself. Along the way, D.J....

Many Things at Once by Veera Hiranandani, illustrated by Nadia Alam Random House Studio (imprint of Penguin Random House), 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Linda Elovitz Marshall   Buy at Bookshop.org In poignant language, Many Things At Once is the story of a young girl whose mother is Jewish, father is Hindu, and ancestors are from India, Poland, and Russia. The main character sometimes feels that she is part of every place. She sometimes feels that she is not part of any place. But, how can that be? She watches a butterfly, recalling that her teacher taught that each butterfly is different. Like the butterfly, she, too, is different. She watches the butterfly sip nectar. The butterfly is part of the big, beautiful world. She, too, is part of the big, beautiful world. Different from everyone, yet part of the whole. Sometimes large, sometimes small, sometimes like nothing...at all. She is many things at once, as we all are. Exquisite illustrations by Nadia Alam beautifully ...

Mystery at Landscape Farm by Freidele Galya Soban Biniashvili, illustrated by Deena Weinberg Menucha Publishers, 2025 Category: Early Chapter Book Reviewer: Dena Bach   Buy at Menucha When Tova and Ari’s grandparents take the city kids out for a nice spring outing to Landscape Farm during Chol HaMoed Pesach, the intermediate days of Passover, they decide to begin their tour of the farm at the goat feeding. For Tova, Ari, Bubby, and Zeidy this turns out to be an exciting day at the farm when they learn that the farm’s prize baby goat, Gertrude, has disappeared. But after Zeidy slips and falls, he and Bubby need to sit down for a while, so the curious kids head off on their own in search of the missing goat. Ari and Tova follow clues, question the farm’s staff and visitors, and in the end, solve the mystery and find the goat. This book is the third in a series of books aimed at an Orthodox audience, that involves 9-year-old twins Tova and Ari, who solve mysteries while learning abou...

The House on the Canal: The Story of the House That Hid Anne Frank by Thomas Harding, illustrated by Britta Teckentrup Candlewick Press, 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Jeff Gottesfeld   Buy at Bookshop.org I write this review having visited the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam not even a month ago, for the first time since I was in my 20s. And also, as the author of a sometimes-loved, sometimes-criticized (not to worry, some of the criticizers are still good friends!) story of Anne Frank from the perspective of the horse chestnut tree in the courtyard behind the secret annex. In this beautiful volume, Thomas Harding and illustrator Britta Teckentrup show off a dazzling amount of research, deft and purposefully detached writing, and glorious artwork as they trace the course of 263 Prinsengracht (in whose Annex hid Anne Frank and others from Nazi persecutions, with a terrible outcome) from before it was built right through to today, where people "learn about the girl with the ...

Avi the Ambulance Goes to the Beach by Deborah Bodin Cohen, illustrated by C.B. Decker Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2025 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Ronda Einbinder   Buy at Bookshop.org Avi the Ambulance is the youngest and smallest ambulance in Jerusalem. His four shiny wheels take him everywhere. He is a cute white ambulance that giggles when Zach the med tech puts air in his tires. What Avi doesn’t expect is that Zach is taking him to the beach in Tiberias to meet his friend Esti and her new ambulance partner. Avi pictures himself wearing sunglasses and sipping a pink drink out of a straw on the beach. Avi loves the beach! Cohen delights readers with onomatopoeias of Zoom! Whoosh! and Zip! Esti greets Zach and Avi, but the ambulance partner is nowhere to be found. When questioned, Esti points to a yellow waterboat docked on the pier. Decker draws curious eyes and a tilted mouth on Avi, showing a bit of confusion. Avi doesn’t understand how Noah, t...

The Center of the Earth by Darlene P. Campos Blue Handle Publishing, 2025 Category: Young Adult Reviewer: Merle Eisman Carrus   Buy at Bookshop.org The plot for The Center of the Earth is based on real life accounts by Holocaust survivors. Their experiences are embedded in the characters in this novel. Meet Dahlia Aviles, twelve years old, a courageous and compassionate young lady, who has moved to Berlin with her parents. Originally from Ecuador, Herr Aviles is a diplomat who is working on assignment in Germany. The year is 1938. Living next door is Rabbi and Frau Rubenstein and their nephew Werner, and the families become friends. As the pressure on Jews increases, Werner’s father and Herr Aviles discuss the future. When the Aviles are recalled to Ecuador, they have a plan in place to bring Werner with them. They draw up false papers and bring him home with them. They concoct a plausible story about Werner being an orphan and Frau Aviles being his nanny, bringing him home with...