The Sydney Taylor Shmooze

Afikomen by Tziporah Cohen, illustrated by Yaara Eshet Groundwood Books, 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Dena Bach Buy at Bookshop.org As author Tziporah Cohen writes in the back matter of this wordless picture book, when each Jew celebrates the Passover seder, they should see themselves “as if we, not just our ancestors, were the ones to escape Egypt.” In this graphic novel for the youngest readers, Cohen and illustrator Yaarah Eshet guide the reader into the Passover story, along with the three young children and their dog, on a time traveling voyage to help bring baby Moses safely down the Nile to Pharoah’s daughter. The children begin their illustrated adventure at a multi-ethnic intergenerational seder as they follow their tradition of stealing the afikomen, the last bit of matzah eaten at the seder meal, from the leader of the seder. When the dog steals the afikomen from the children and dives underneath the expansive blue tablecloth, the children follow him. They soon fin...

Pirate Passover by Judy Press, illustrated by Amanda Gulliver Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner Publishing Group), 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Arlene Schenker Buy at Bookshop.org A pirate crew scrubbing and polishing their ship to get ready for Passover; the pirate captain preparing a seder plate; matzoh balls rolling off the plank into the ocean! What fun this clever Passover story is, presented in perfectly rhymed couplets. When a storm strikes in the midst of the onboard seder, you can practically feel the fear of the crew as the ship rocks in the waves. The ship washes ashore, and the crew boldly invite themselves to a nearby family’s seder. The unfazed family welcomes them to join their table, and the seder begins. All the high points are there, from the Kiddush, to the four questions--as recited by the captain’s parrot--to the finding of the afikomen and singing Dayenu. The illustrations do justice to the festivities with a diverse crew of expressive pirates a...

An Invitation to Passover by Rabbi Kerry Olitzky & Rabbi Deborah Bodin Cohen, illustrated by Mariia Kolker Kalaniot Books (imprint of Endless Mountains Publishing), 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Rachel J. Fremmer Buy at Bookshop.org In An Invitation to Passover , Hannah’s family invites a diverse array of friends - and the reader! - to their seder when their relatives cannot, for unspecified reasons, attend. As Hannah and her family teach their guests about Passover, the reader learns along with them. But the teaching and learning are not one-way. Each guest brings a contribution to the seder which responds to a prompt in Hannah’s invitation and which shows how their culture celebrates the different aspects of the seder, like springtime and freedom. Backmatter includes more details about Passover and a glossary, although it would have been helpful if the glossary had included a pronunciation guide. The illustrations convey how warm and welcoming Hannah’s family is. An Invi...

Matilda Makes Matzah Balls by Rhonda Cohen, illustrated by Francesca Galmozzi Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Freidele Galya Soban Biniashvili Buy at Bookshop.org Every year, Matilda enjoys watching her grandmother make matzah balls for the Passover seder. This year, however, Bubbe suggests starting a new family tradition by having Matilda help her make them. Matilda eagerly jumps at the chance but she has her own ideas that she’d like to incorporate into the recipe, like adding some lemon and extra dill. Bubbe wholeheartedly encourages Matilda’s suggestions. Matilda’s biggest idea, though, is to make one giant matzah ball. Bubbe has her doubts as to whether it will still float, but she allows Matilda to go ahead with it all the same. When it indeed sinks, Bubbe consoles Matilda: “It’s all right, bubbalah. The nice thing about experimenting is you can always try again.” And that is exactly what they do, with Matilda coming up ...

My Family Haggadah by Shoshana Silberman, illustrated by Hiroe Nakata Kar-Ben Publishing (imprint of Lerner Publishing Group), 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Karin Fisher-Golton Buy at Bookshop.org My Family Haggadah is a 14-page board book that uses simple language and engaging illustrations to introduce the youngest readers to the basic concepts of Passover. Starting most sentences with “We” and a verb, author Shoshana Silberman creates a lovely rhythm that is perfect for a holiday with steps in a traditional order. The text includes holiday vocabulary (“matzah,” “afikomen,”); the Hebrew thank you, “todah,” briefly defined by the toddler main character; the Hebrew “Dayenu,” in reference to the beloved holiday song; and the English-Yiddish hybrid word “shluffy” for sleepy (derived from the Yiddish שלאָפֿן/shlofn, to sleep), which is clear in context. Hiroe Nakata’s illustrations depict a main character toddler boy with warm light-brown skin and tightly curled hair. He shares ...

Under-the-Sea Seder written & illustrated by Ann D. Koffsky Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Lisa Trank Buy at Bookshop.org In Under-the-Sea Seder , Miri is crunching the matzoh too loud, she’s slurping the grape juice, and doing just about anything she can do to fight off her Passover seder boredom. Her parents beg her to be quiet and sit still, but Miri simply can’t, so she escapes underneath the seder table and to an imaginary Under-the-Sea Seder, accompanied by Abby the cat, complete with submarines, underwater caves, and sea monsters. After a truly original and hilarious version of the four questions, Miri’s parents call her back in time for seder songs, which she can sing at the top of her lungs.  This is a book that every Jewish family will connect to and laugh out loud with. The illustrations are colorful, charming, and add to the overall fun and humor of the entire story, as well as make the reader want to turn...

The Royal Recipe by Elana Rubinstein, illustrated by Jennifer Naalchigar Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2023 Category: Middle Grade Reviewer: Merle Eisman Carrus Buy at Bookshop.org Saralee Siegel is back again in The Royal Recipe ! We last met Saralee with her super nose at Hanukkah, when she traveled back in time to meet her great grandmother, in A Donut in Time . Now we are back at the Siegel House Restaurant with Saralee and her family. Her grandfather, Zadie owns the restaurant and Saralee assists him in the kitchen. In this novel the family is getting ready to hold a Purim banquet at Siegel House. Zadie wants everything to be authentic to the historical time of Esther and Mordechai in Shushan, Persia. He asks Saralee to use her special nose to figure out the most genuine hamantaschen recipe she can create. As Saralee starts sniffing, she feels herself connecting with the Purim story. Then an unusual and very controlling party planner named "Herman"...

The Purim Panic (Ruby Celebrates! series) by Laura Gehl, illustrated by Olga and Aleksey Ivanov Albert Whitman, 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Rinat Siegel Buy at Bookshop.org The Purim Panic is a new addition to the Jewish holiday series; Ruby Celebrates! by Laura Gehl. It is a fun and easy-to-read Purim mystery tale suitable for pre-k through first-grade readers. Ruby and her family are happily busy, getting ready for Purim. Ruby is making hamantaschen. Her toddler brother, Benny, is making a grogger while their father and Bubbe (grandmother) are helping navigate these fun tasks.  The characters are smiling and depict a modern Ashkenazi family with bright and colorful illustrations. All the preparations run smoothly until Ruby realizes the special ring she received from her grandmother is missing. The whole family tries to help while Benny is making noise with his grogger, trying to grab Ruby’s attention. One by one, different family members arrive and try to help, but t...

Purr-im Time! by Jenna Waldman, illustrated by Erica J. Chen Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Arlene Schenker Buy at Bookshop.org This imaginative rhyming story of a Purim day in the life of three kittens has all the joyful elements of the holiday. From the moment the kitties wake up until they fall into bed, weary from a full day of baking hamantaschen, marching in the Purim parade, and going to the Purim carnival, they are celebrating the holiday. The megillah reading tells the story of Purim in a child-friendly way, so all can revel in the defeat of Haman and take pride in Esther’s heroism. And the dynamic movement of Erica Chen’s beautifully illustrated kitties shows them practically jumping off the page with their delight at the holiday. As a bonus, the back matter includes a mishloach manot craft idea with instructions. There is also a note to families stressing the kindness and charity that are important elements of the ...

Lily Blue Riding Hood: A Purim Story by Sandy Lanton, illustrated by Kim Barnes Intergalactic Afikomen, 2023 Category: Picture Books Reviewer: Arlene Schenker Buy at Bookshop.org Lily Blue Riding Hood is pure delight, giving the reader a smile or a laugh on every page. Author Sandy Lanton remakes the Little Red Riding Hood fairytale into a perfect Purim story with a spunky, skateboarding Jewish heroine and even a Jewish big, bad wolf. The reader will know he’s Jewish when he exclaims “oy vey.” Pickle-baller Grandma lives in a Florida condo, so for those who live there, or for readers with parents or grandparents there, this brings another knowing smile. As a bonus for parents, the book models proper safety measures for riding a skateboard.  There’s a Purim spiel played for a diverse crowd, with Thaddeus Wolf playing the most fitting character. It ends with Lily, Thaddeus, and Grandma all engaging in a mitzvah together. Back matter includes a hamantashen recipe and a short explana...