forwordsbooks » Jewish History

The Secret Shofar of Barcelona

Kathy B. — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 00:37:59 +0000

Illustrated by Doug Chayka.

The author looks to a Sephardic legend for this well-written story about a Spanish converso (secret Jew) who cleverly enables his secret community of Jews to hear the sound of the shofar at Rosh Hashanah. Set in Barcelona, during the Spanish Inquisition, Ms. Greene creates a story that makes it possible for us to feel the tension, sadness and fear within the underground Jewish community. She allows us to celebrate with great relief when father and son triumph over the Duke and the judges of the Inquisition by “hiding the shofar in plain sight.”

The illustrations are excellent and convey the depth of emotions that run from page to page throughout this story. The pictures are very expressive and admirably portray the Spanish community of the times. This would be an excellent addition to the High Holiday section of the library especially in communities with a Sephardic Jewish population.

Grade Range: 1st – 4th Grades

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Dan and the Mudman

Kathy B. — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 21:11:18 +0000

by Jonny Zucker

Dan Bernstein’s family moves to a small town far outside of London, and he faces a number of lifestyle changes. None, however, challenges him as much as the blatant anti-Semitism of the class bully, Steve, or so he thinks. When his class project on long-distance running, turns into something quite different and totally out of his control, Dan begins the rare and strange adventure back through time and Jewish history that is at the core of this fascinating and engaging novel.

What Dan creates by hand and almost unconsciously is a golem. Actually, not any golem, but The Golem, the legendary 16^th century Golem created and brought to life by Rabbi Judah Loew in Prague, Czechoslovakia (although in the book, the Rabbi’s name is Rabbi Loeb.) The Golem takes Dan along – back in time – to witness and assist in a variety of situations where Jews are at risk. The result of these “trips” and Dan’s modern day confrontations with Steve, result in a class project that is as full of impact as it is memorable for all concerned. It should be noted that Dan’s friend Lucy manages to secretly “join” him on these trips.

The only shortcoming in this powerful little book is the small sermonizing at the end when Rabbi Loeb arrives to remind Dan and his friend, Lucy, that they must “follow the path of peace,” and that “In Bosnia, in Rwanda, in Darfur, the vulnerable have been attacked mercilessly.” The author had made the important points clearly in the way he wrote about Dan’s handling of his many experiences, the reactions of the class to Dan’s (and now Lucy’s as well) presentation and the response of the school to all they saw and heard. That was powerful enough, no further proselytizing was necessary.

Grade Level: 4th – 8^th

©2010 Kathleen M. Bloomfield and forwordsbooks.com all rights reserved.
The Book used in this review were provided by the publisher cited.
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Holocaust: the events and their impact on real people

Kathy B. — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 01:59:51 +0000

I read this book on a cross-country airplane trip. My first thought, of course, “Oy vey! Another Holocaust book, do we need another Holocaust book?” When I opened it up and began reading, I could not put it down. As trite as it may sound, this is a Holocaust collection like no other. Part history, part chronology, part memoir, this is an accurate, vivid, detailed record of what happened to Jews during World War II.

What makes this book so extremely well done is the inclusion of the voices of survivors transcribed in text and images within its pages providing proof of the Holocaust’s existence. What makes the book extraordinary is the accompanying DVD containing video interviews of these same Holocaust survivors from the USC Shoah Foundation Institute. There for readers to see and hear are the faces and voices of a generation soon to be gone from us. As a result, Dorling-Kindersley has provided us not with a Holocaust book, but with a real, living history museum in book form.

On the little note card I jotted on while reading this marvelous work, I wrote “extraordinary, outstanding, extremely well done, well told, nothing like it.” However, perhaps Steven Spielberg says it simply and best in his foreword, “The book you are holding in your hand is unique.” That is absolutely the truth.

Grade Level: 6^th – 12th

©2010 Kathleen M. Bloomfield and forwordsbooks.com all rights reserved.
The book used in this review was provided by the publisher cited.
I am an Amazon Affiliate. If you click on a book title referred to on my web site and purchase it from Amazon,

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The Legend of Freedom Hill

Kathy B. — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:55:31 +0000

Illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright & Ying-Hwa Hu

During the Gold Rush of the 1850’s, Rosabel and Sophie are best friends because they are both outsiders in a very small California town. Rosabel is African American and Sophie is Jewish.

Although Rosabel is free and has papers to prove it, Miz Violet, her mother, is still considered “a runaway slave” although she is living in California, a free state. When a slave catcher comes to town and finds Miz Violet, Rosabel runs to Sophie’s home for help. Without question, the family takes her in during their Shabbat meal. That night the girls make a plan for saving Miz Violet – they will dig for gold and pay for her freedom.

The girls’ ensuing adventure involving panning for gold on the riverbanks, some helpful advice from the local assayer, getting stuck in small places and running into unfriendly foxes, leads them to their dream come true – a gold nugget big enough to ransom Miz Violet. Not only that, the girls’ decide to give their “claim” over to the slave catcher in order to pay for the release of all the slaves he caught along with Miz Violet. Thus earning the name Freedom Hill for the site of their found gold.

This is a beautiful story about friendship, but more importantly a wonderful illustration of the value of Pidyon Shvuyim/Redeeming the Captive. The artwork in this book is extraordinary watercolor paintings that reveal the joy, fear, heartbreak and wonder that the characters endure during their adventure.

A PJ Library book.

Grade Level: K- 3rd

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Stealing Home.

Kathy B. — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:50:59 +0000

It is 1947, Joey Sexton’s white, Jewish mother has died and he finds out that his black father is also dead. The only family that will take him are his maternal grandfather and aunt who live together in Brooklyn.

As Joey struggles to make friends with the other children in the neighborhood, his cousin Roberta (known as Bobbie) befriends him and takes his side as often as she can. Joey’s Zayde (grandfather) is angry that Joey’s mother ran away from home and married someone who was not white and not Jewish. His grandfather is determined to bring Joey into line so as not to lose him as he lost Joey’s mother. The struggle between Joey and his grandfather is compelling and makes for a fine and intense read.

While Jackie Robinson, a Brooklyn Dodger rookie, is trying to break sport’s color-barrier, Joey, a half-white half-black child, also struggles to find his place in the world. He roots for the Yankees, defends his mother when neighborhood women talk about her badly and argues with his grandfather at every opportunity. At times, it feels he will never succeed in staying with this warm, loving family. However, through all the arguing, he and his grandfather find a way to make peace with each other.

The Jewish content of this book is excellent, from Shabbos dinner to saying kaddish, many Jewish traditions are described and we read about their celebration. The feelings and discussions that are in the story are written in a way to make the reader empathize with every character, whether it be Joey hearing bad things about his mom or his grandfather wondering how to raise him properly. Boys will love this book as it portrays baseball as America’s favorite past time and the play-by-play allows one to picture the games as they are played. Bobbie, a tomboy, is thoroughly accepted by her family and as a result thoroughly accepts Joey. Joey’s aunt loves Joey and does everything she can to make him feel welcome. What she cannot do is override her father. She believes it is up to Joey and his Zayde to work their issues out with one another.

Grade Level: 4th – 9th

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Across the Alley

Kathy B. — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 05:50:12 +0000

Illustrated by E. B. Lewis.

This story is set in old-time Brooklyn, New York. Abe is a young, white, Jewish boy. Willie is his young, black neighbor. Abe’s grandfather thinks he will be “the next Jascha Heifetz.” Willie’s father “was a starter in the Negro leagues” therefore Willie is “going to pitch in the majors.” Abe and Willie share their caretakers’ dreams every night as they toss a baseball through their open bedroom windows before Abe has to start his violin practice.

This is a story about how the dreams of others do not always turn out as planned. It is also about how friendship knows no color. For of course it turns out that Willie is an excellent violin player and Abe is a super baseball pitcher. When their talents are realized, Abe’s grandfather invites Willie to his synagogue to play, breaking the color barrier there and Willie’s father invites Abe to pitch, breaking the color barrier for Willie’s team.

With beautiful illustrations and a beautiful story of friendship and true talent realized, I recommend this book to all Jewish libraries as it shows the relationship between blacks and whites in the early days in Brooklyn.

Grade Level: 1-4

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As Good As Anybody: Martin Luther King, Jr. and Abraham Joshua Heschel’s Amazing March Toward Freedom

Kathy B. — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 05:32:40 +0000

Illustrated by Raul Colón.

Winner of the 2008 Sydney Taylor Book Award for Younger Readers. This is an outstanding book about how Martin Luther King, Jr. and Abraham Joshua Heschel grew up on different continents at different times yet with similar experiences, and how those experiences caused their lives to entwine during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s in America. The exceptional illustrations, with brown tones depicting Dr. King’s life and times and blue tones portraying Rabbi Heschel’s, strengthen the already powerful text. The combination creates a book about historical figures that is a must read in every Jewish classroom for its timeliness to today’s events.

Grades K-4th

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The Yankee at the Seder

Kathy B. — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 03:11:09 +0000

Illustrated by Adam Gustavson.

A 2009 Sydney Taylor Honor Book. This story gave me chills. It is revealing, powerful, tense and emotional. Set in Virginia right after the Civil War has been lost by the South, a family of Southern Jews is preparing for Passover, when a young Yankee officer shows up to share the Seder meal with them. The story is told through the eyes of the youngest male member of the family. The language of the story is excellent and simple, the message it delivers is as well – it is ultimately our behavior by which we are judged.

The extraordinary illustrations so beautifully complement the story that it would be hard to imagine one without the other. Each picture is an expression of the words on the page and in most cases, the characters come out of the frame as they bring the story to life. The artist is masterful in conveying the emotions of the characters as they confront their political differences while working their way through the Haggadah. Sorrow, shame, joy, anger, and surprise are just a few of the emotions so admirably illustrated in this extraordinary work.

Grade Range: K-5 grades

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