A welcome and cozy take on the Hanukkah story.
A mother’s advice saves the day.
The five Maccabee brothers and their parents (all brown-skinned) live in Modi’in. Several times a year the men travel to Jerusalem’s Holy Temple. Before departing, the brothers ask Mom for help finding items like a cloak or a scroll. Mom always knows where the article is but prefaces her reveal with a maxim: “Cloaks” (or scrolls) “don’t grow legs and walk away. Where you leave them is where they stay.” When the Maccabee men aren’t in the Temple, they’re studying and teaching Torah, expressly forbidden after Greek King Antiochus conquers Israel. The Jews fight their oppressors and, miraculously, defeat them. After the final battle, the Maccabees enter the ruined Temple, seeking a jug of oil to light the great menorah. Unsurprisingly, they can’t find it—but, recalling their mother’s pithy advice, they finally locate it. There’s enough oil for one day, but the flames burn for eight. Thereafter, whenever Mrs. Maccabee recounts the events, she mentions the Maccabees found the oil—without her help. This is a humorous, very simple approach to the traditional Hanukkah story. Not only is the Maccabees’ bravery on display, but the book also offers a homey reminder that the holiday is about family, too. The colorful illustrations are warm and bright, and readers will easily spot the items Mrs. Maccabee uncovers for her sons. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A welcome and cozy take on the Hanukkah story. (more information on the story of Hanukkah) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Oct. 3, 2023
ISBN: 9781728477916
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Kar-Ben
Review Posted Online: Aug. 12, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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