Review: Roadside Seder
Roadside Seder
by Anna Levine, illustrated by Naama Lahav
Apples & Honey Press (imprint of Behrman House), 2025
Category: Picture Books
Reviewer: Arlene Schenker
Roadside Seder is a lively, joyful story about improvising a seder and making it meaningful for all different kinds of Jewish celebrants. Benjy and his family are on the way to their seder in Jerusalem, but they soon realize the traffic jam they’re in is no ordinary one. A giant palm tree has fallen and blocked the road. Benjy’s family is not alone in having their seder plans upended. After all the stopped cars pour out their many kids and adults, the throng tries to move the immovable tree. Even Benjy’s dog, Matzah, pitches in--but to no avail. As the sun is setting, the families wonder how they can celebrate the holiday. Benjy, outfitted as Moses, raises his cane, and announces his grand idea: use the tree trunk as a table, and have everyone contribute whatever seder ritual objects and food they have packed in their cars.
Now the fun begins, as we see the great diversity of the crowd: soccer fans dressed in their teams’ gear, a woman with a guitar hung around her shoulders, a girl on her skateboard, young and old Ashkenazi and Mizrahi Jews, all eagerly sharing their food and their different Jewish traditions, and making new friends. Benjy’s grandpa shares his Moroccan tradition of passing the seder plate over guests’ heads as a blessing; an Ethiopian-Israeli woman shatters a piece of pottery as a way of letting go of the past; and the soccer fans recall their Persian grandfather’s ritual of waving green onions over each other’s heads to symbolize Pharoah’s whips, which can’t hurt them now.
Illustrator Naama Lahav conveys the hustle and bustle of the celebration with her colorful and animated illustrations, even asking the reader to search the pictures for the afikomen bag. A nice touch added by Lahav is the road sign above the crowd showing that Jerusalem is straight ahead. Jerusalem is written out in Hebrew, English, and Arabic.
Since the Jewish content is baked right into the story, there is no need for lengthy explanations. It all flows smoothly, and the readers, Jewish and non-Jewish, will delight in the beauty and the joy of the seder. But for those who want to know more, there is back matter with a bit more about the holiday, a glossary, and a recipe for charoset, a perennial Passover favorite.
Now the fun begins, as we see the great diversity of the crowd: soccer fans dressed in their teams’ gear, a woman with a guitar hung around her shoulders, a girl on her skateboard, young and old Ashkenazi and Mizrahi Jews, all eagerly sharing their food and their different Jewish traditions, and making new friends. Benjy’s grandpa shares his Moroccan tradition of passing the seder plate over guests’ heads as a blessing; an Ethiopian-Israeli woman shatters a piece of pottery as a way of letting go of the past; and the soccer fans recall their Persian grandfather’s ritual of waving green onions over each other’s heads to symbolize Pharoah’s whips, which can’t hurt them now.
Illustrator Naama Lahav conveys the hustle and bustle of the celebration with her colorful and animated illustrations, even asking the reader to search the pictures for the afikomen bag. A nice touch added by Lahav is the road sign above the crowd showing that Jerusalem is straight ahead. Jerusalem is written out in Hebrew, English, and Arabic.
Since the Jewish content is baked right into the story, there is no need for lengthy explanations. It all flows smoothly, and the readers, Jewish and non-Jewish, will delight in the beauty and the joy of the seder. But for those who want to know more, there is back matter with a bit more about the holiday, a glossary, and a recipe for charoset, a perennial Passover favorite.
Editor's Note: This book was included on the Association of Jewish Libraries' Spring 2025 Holiday Highlights list.
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Reviewer Arlene Schenker has a degree in Child Development from
Cornell University and a Juris Doctor from New York University Law
School. She has worked as a New York City primary grade teacher, a
lawyer, divorce mediator, and a community activist and volunteer. Her
debut picture book, CALL ME GEBYANESH, will be published by Apples &
Honey Press in Spring 2025.
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