forwordsbooks » Jewish American History

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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