Review: The Curious Case of the Pot Roast

The Curious Case of the Pot Roast: A Passover Mystery

by Jamie Kiffel-Alcheh, illustrated by Menahem Halberstadt

Green Bean Books, 2025

Category: Picture Books

Reviewer: Eva Weiss

 

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The spirited young hero of this picture book brings to life the antic legend of a custom born of misinterpretation. On Passover Eve, an inquisitive boy (whose name we never learn) asks his mother why she cuts off the ends of her pot roast before cooking it. To decipher the family tradition, the child is directed first to his grandmother, and then to his great-grandmother, who reveals that the custom originated with a pot that was too small for the roast. The story is told in the first-person voice of the engaging and precocious hero, who also states its moral: "Even old recipes can have new questions." Along the way, the young hero asks many more questions about the ways of the world, as he skips up the stairs. He wants to know everything from who invented spoons to whether anyone lives at the top of the Eiffel tower. All the grown-ups respond with good cheer and provide the right answers (when they know them). The value of asking questions is linked to the central Passover Seder question asked by children: "Why is this night different from all others." The illustrations are inviting and cheerful and reinforce the family camaraderie and warmth that are at the heart of a riddle that is probably familiar to the adults who will read aloud this tale.

The Jewish ethos of asking questions is central to this book, but the actual Passover story is not its subject. Children will not be immersed in the rituals and Jewish heritage integral to the holiday, but it does provide models of respect, open dialogue, and gentle humor. The messages spoken by the hero and his family reinforce the value of intellectual curiosity and, as noted, touch upon the sense of connection that is central to the Passover Seder. The illustrations evoke tradition, from a grandfather donning a kippa to a Hebrew speech balloon of the "Ma Nishtana." This book sheds light on values of Jewish culture that are both particular and universal. It may appeal to varied denominations and is also accessible to non-Jews.

Editor's Note: This book was included on the Association of Jewish Libraries' Spring 2025 Holiday Highlights list.

 

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Reviewer Eva Weiss is a writer, editor, and translator. She was born in New York City and worked in the publishing industry there before making her home in Israel many years ago. She is the author of the children's book I am Israeli (Mitchell-Lane, 2016).