EIGHT NIGHTS OF LIGHTS

This interactive tale presents the candles on a menorah as small booklets to be pulled out and read, each describing one night of Hanukkah.

Opening up this picture book, readers are presented with nine glued-down sleeves that create a menorah. Each sleeve contains a small rectangular booklet whose cover is illustrated to look like a candle on the menorah; they are labeled “shammash” (the candle used to light the others), night 1, night 2, and so on. Pulling out a “candle,” readers open up the booklet to learn about the holiday through the eyes of Lena, a young girl who lives with her parents and her cat, Pickles. Stories include activities such as lighting the menorah, playing the dreidel game, making latkes, giving gifts, helping those in need, reenacting the triumph of the Maccabees, and visiting the synagogue on the eighth night. The whole presentation is effectively illustrated and well thought out, both as an informative introduction to Hanukkah and a lively, family- and community-oriented tale. Lena and her parents are brown-skinned; other characters are diverse in terms of skin tone and hair color. A child using a wheelchair is depicted, and Lena’s abuelita, who was raised in Cuba, offers a nod to Sephardic Jewish heritage. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

An imaginative and inclusive take on Hanukkah that ought to be lots of fun for readers.