Review: The Magician's Visit
The Magician's Visit
by I.L. Peretz, adapted by Barbara Diamond Goldin, illustrated by Eva Sánchez Gómez
Green Bean Books
Category: Picture Books
Reviewer: Kathy Bloomfield
Buy at Bookshop.org
The classic I.L. Peretz story of a penniless street magician who assists a poor couple in celebrating a truly miraculous Passover has been revised by Barbara Diamond Goldin from her 1993 edition. The language of this version has been brought up to date, for example, the couple Hayim-Jonah and Rivkah-Bailah are now Jonah and Rebecca, and the story text has been tightened. Instead of the dark, oil-based illustrations by Robert Andrew Parker in the 1993 edition, we have lighter, brighter illustrations by Eva Sánchez Gómez, using colored pencils on a white background. This is an excellent update of her earlier work, with all the charm and miracles of the first version.
While this may be the classic version of this classic Passover story, and one that should find a place on the Sydney Taylor list, it will most definitely get a run for its money when compared to another 2021 picture book based on the same story, The Passover Guest by Susan Kusel, illustrated by Sean Rubin.
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The classic I.L. Peretz story of a penniless street magician who assists a poor couple in celebrating a truly miraculous Passover has been revised by Barbara Diamond Goldin from her 1993 edition. The language of this version has been brought up to date, for example, the couple Hayim-Jonah and Rivkah-Bailah are now Jonah and Rebecca, and the story text has been tightened. Instead of the dark, oil-based illustrations by Robert Andrew Parker in the 1993 edition, we have lighter, brighter illustrations by Eva Sánchez Gómez, using colored pencils on a white background. This is an excellent update of her earlier work, with all the charm and miracles of the first version.
While this may be the classic version of this classic Passover story, and one that should find a place on the Sydney Taylor list, it will most definitely get a run for its money when compared to another 2021 picture book based on the same story, The Passover Guest by Susan Kusel, illustrated by Sean Rubin.
Are you interested in reviewing books for The Sydney Taylor Shmooze? Click here!
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