The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

Violin of Hope by Ella Schwartz, illustrated by Juliana Oakley Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner Publishing Group), 2024 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Doreen Robinson Buy at Bookshop.org Violin of Hope tells the story of a Jewish family - Mama, Papa, and young children Itzik and Feiga. At night, Papa takes the violin, which hangs on a special hook, and plays beautiful music. Sometimes the music makes the children laugh and dance, sometimes the music makes them melancholy. When Itzik tries to play it, the sound is shrill, but Papa encourages him to practice. One night, before Shabbos, Papa plays and Mama sings along in Yiddish, but a pounding on the door interrupts the family’s joy. As the children hide behind Papa and Mama, a Nazi soldier snatches the violin. It’s tossed into a truck filled with pillaged items from Jewish homes. The violin is dumped into a damp cellar where it waits, in silence. Years pass, until one day, light pours into the cellar and a luthier retrieves the

Abzuglutely! Battling, Bellowing Bella Abzug by Sarah Aronson, illustrated by Andrea D'Aquino Calkins Creek (imprint of Astra Books for Young Readers), 2024 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Rochelle Newman-Carrasco Buy at Bookshop.org Trying to describe feminist Congresswoman Bella Abzug isn’t easy to do in a few conventional words. It requires an expansive, energetic, bold, statement-driven narrative, which is what you get in Aronson’s fun and fact-filled book. Designed for young readers, it can "abzuglutely" be enjoyed by readers of all ages. To start, D'Aquino's visual style for the book communicates a lot. The vibrant color palette establishes little Bella in pinks and reds, already wearing a hat, which would become Abzug’s trademark, and already looking like she’s up to good trouble. The combined use of colored pencil, ink and crayon saturate the expressionistic illustrations with the kind of vigorous attitude Bella Abzug possessed. In addition to the engagi

Hanukkah Hippity-Hop by Barbara Kimmel, illustrated by Ana Zurita Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner Publishing Group), 2024 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Arlene Schenker Buy at Bookshop.org Hanukkah Hippity-Hop is a perfect board book for the little ones just learning about every Jewish child’s favorite holiday. Barbara Kimmel’s short, memorable rhyming lines will get the kids chiming in after a couple of readings. Each page celebrates a different aspect of the holiday: jelly doughnuts, latkes, the Maccabees and more. In the kinetic illustrations by Ana Zurita, a diverse group of kids practically jump off the page. They will have the readers hippity-hopping along with the story. The bright, saturated colors will be appealing to this youngest set of readers, and the smiles on the children’s faces are contagious. The expressive kitty adds to the fun. Of course, the Jewish content is on every page, and can be enjoyed by Jews of every stripe. Learning about Hanukkah, singing and

We Celebrate the Light by Jane Yolen and Heidi E.Y. Stemple, illustrated by Jieting Chen RISE x Penguin Workshop (imprint of Penguin Random House), 2024 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Rinat Hadad Siegel Buy at Bookshop.org The concept of light, with its many facets, has long fascinated humanity. It's a theme that resonates across cultures and is at the heart of numerous traditions and celebrations worldwide. In this universal and uplifting book, We Celebrate The Light , we glimpse some of these light celebrations worldwide. The story moves from one light celebration to another, starting with Diwali and continuing with the Winter Solstice, Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, and Bodhi Day, and ending with the Lunar New Year. Each holiday is defined very briefly on the story pages, plus there is a more detailed glossary for each holiday at the end of the book. The words describing each celebration form a lyrical poem of hope, unity, and togetherness. Jane Yolen and Heidi E. Y. Stemple h

Little Dreidel Learns to Spin by Rebecca Gardyn Levington, illustrated by Taryn Johnson Cartwheel Books (imprint of Scholastic), 2024 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Julie Ditton Buy at Bookshop.org Every Jewish child knows how frustrating it can be to learn how to spin a dreidel. Older kids make it look so simple, but it takes persistence to get the knack to make that dreidel twirl. But, how does the dreidel feel? Rebecca Gardyn Levington has spun a sweet story about persistence that is absolutely adorable and very funny. Little Dreidel wants to spin like her older cousins. She feels like giving up. But with love and encouragement from her Bubbie, she persists and eventually feels pride in her accomplishment. The author tells the story in clever, smooth flowing rhyme. She adds lots of humor with quotes from Hanukkah sources and one very cute pun. In the very first page, we meet "Little Dreidel, made of clay, at last is dry and ready!" I loved the cute illustrations by Tary

Two Pieces of Chocolate by Kathy Kacer, illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard Second Story Press, 2024 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Karen Shakman Buy at Bookshop.org Two Pieces of Chocolate tells the story of an act of kindness between a woman and a child in Bergen Belsen Concentration Camp at the end of the Holocaust. The story is ultimately one of survival and hope, despite the desperate circumstances of the characters. The author does not shy away from describing the conditions of the camp, including powerful sensory details, such as the smell of “rotting eggs and bad feet and human sweat”, and the sight of humans “stumbling past like sleepwalkers.” Thus, the author paints a picture of a dark time in history without sugar coating the circumstances. However, the story conveys how people, in the face of such inhumanity, may act with selflessness, as does the child when she encounters a fellow prisoner, late in pregnancy and terribly weak. This act of kindness is at the center of the