A GREAT MIRACLE HAPPENED THERE

An unusually thoughtful account of the events celebrated during Chanukah, touching gently on the ethics of violence in the struggle against injustice, the nature of miracles, and why we celebrate holidays. Interfaith friendship and sharing are modeled in a framing story in which the young narrator and his mother tell the Chanukah story to the son's Gentile friend, their guest on the first night. ``Your Chanukah candles and our Christmas lights will shine across the street at each other,'' says the visitor. Kuskin's prose (as in Jerusalem, Shining Still, 1987) has a spare dignity well suited for telling of ancient and sacred things. Parker's command of his medium—delicately sketched lines and subtly glowing watercolors—is total; he suggests the tumult of battle, the warmth of a family dinner table, and the timeless radiance of the menorah with equal facility. (Picture book. 5-8)