Jewish Children's Books
BRAWARSKI, SANDEE
JEWISH CHILDREN'S BOOKS The good news about Jewish children's publishing is that there are more beautiful books on Jewish subjects published now than ever before. The not-so-good news is that...
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...Her store features a kids' corner, and she notes that the kids enjoy selecting titles themselves...
...Ellen Bob, a partner in Bob & Bob Fine Jewish Books, Gifts, and Crafts in Palo Alto, California, adds that there aren't enough challenging but appropriate books for kids who are advanced readers, especially in her world where most customers begin their queries: "My son/ daughter is in second grade but reads at the sixth-grade level...
...Barry Holtz, co-directors of the Melton Research Center for Jewish Education at the Jewish Theological Seminary, feel there is a need for new books that tap into classical Jewish traditions in a way that excites children's imaginations...
...Also, people who are not Orthodox might appreciate the wide range of subject matter available from the Orthodox publishers—including more books about Jewish girls than other houses offer—and might find some of those titles appropriate...
...For older children, Rita Berman Frischer's chapter on "The Bar/Bat Mitzvah Book" in The Schocken Guide to Children's Books (Schocken), edited by Barry Holtz, is a good place to begin...
...Beyond stories of bubbles and menorahs though, there are books about the alef-bet, Shabbat and other holidays, Bible stories, folktales and more— but not enough about Israel and contemporary Jewish life in America, according to booksellers, librarians, educators and editors interviewed...
...DECEMBER 1992 • MOMENT 59 Aside from firsthand advice, additional resources for parents include two catalogs, The Selected Children's Judaica Collection, a joint publication of the Jewish Book Council (212-532-4949) and Once Upon a Time (914-632-2665), available from either, and Jewish Children's Boohs: How to Choose Them, How to Use Them, by Marcia Posner, available from Hadassah (212-355-7900, ext...
...When Ellen Bob senses that parents have little knowledge about a Jewish subject they're buying a children's book about, she'll sell them an adult book on the subject as well...
...Religious books intended for a universal audience, like Bible stories, can be wonderful 'Jewish books" as long as parents feel comfortable with the1 particular translation...
...More good news is that the books look better than ever, with many printed in full color, with attractive jackets and\quality paper and bindings...
...Mommy is a Rabbi, Kar-Ben...
...Editors, particularly at trade houses, take pains to make children's books look great...
...The not-so-good news is that most revolve around well-worn themes...
...and Erika Weihs, Calces and Miracles (page 60...
...T he criteria for evaluating children's books on Jewish themes are the same as for any good literature, explains Marcia Posner, children's literature specialist for the Jewish Book Council and past-president of the Association of Jewish Libraries, who lists lively characterization, authentic setting and a non-didactic approach as essential qualities...
...Many books from a variety of secular and religious publishers feature useful introductory information at the back, including glossaries and explanations of holidays and customs...
...SANDEE BRAWARSKI The most talked-about figures in Jewish life this year may be a kibbutznik named Chicken Man, an Algerian boy who rides a lion, the beloved wise simpletons of Chelm and a cat named Tush...
...T ¦ o help Jews in areas of the country that lack well-stocked Jewish bookstores, Once Upon a Time works with synagogues and other organizations to arrange book fairs...
...Times, Feldheim) to a story about a woman rabbi (Ima on the Bima: My Counterclockwise from top left: Illustrations by Stephen Fieser, The Sabbath Lion (see page 56...
...Children's books can have much crossover appeal...
...Some Jewish books deliver their message with subtlety and sensitivity...
...Among the Jewish presses, there are publishers representing the entire denominational spectrum...
...Although it's debatable whether Good Night Moon (Adama) in Hebrew is a 'Jewish book," many families will enjoy reading and rereading this classic...
...and books that explore what it means to live Jewishly...
...The news that could be better is that although many of the books are splendid, most revolve around well-worn themes...
...Betsy Bober Polivy, co-owner of Once Upon A Time in New Rochelle, New York, a general-interest children's bookstore with a large Judaica section, explains th&t she tries to get a sense of customers'Jewish backgrounds and what they are looking for, and then guides them to appropriate books...
...A bookseller jokes that if new immigrants' first exposure to Jewish life in America came tnrough reading all of the Jewish children's books published in the last two years, they'd have a vision of the old country, the Holocaust and Chanukah...
...She praises thrise books that demonstrate a Jewish value through the actions or thoughts of a character—"when Jewish content is integrated into the story...
...Those who want to match the right book for a particular child can get excellent advice from the experts: booksellers and librarians...
...The good news about Jewish children's publishing is that there are more books on Jewish subjects published now than ever before, with major publishers like Scholastic, Viking and HarperCollins joining the Jewish presses in bringing out new books each year...
...Eduardo Rauch and Dr...
...titles range from a teenage series about the girls in a Beis Ya'acov yeshivah (The B.Y...
...Interestingly, Arthur Levine, senior editor at G. P. Putnam's Sons and a children's book author (All the Lights in the Night, Tambourine and Pearl Moscowitz's Last Stand, due out in 1993), points out that it is not always easy to find artists who can illustrate books with Jewish content "from the inside out...
...others seem to use the book to pound the kid over the head...
...works of historical fiction, social history and spirituality...
...Louise August, In the Month of Kislev (page 60...
...He explains that the multicultural movement has resulted in a marvelous explosion of artistic talent from many cultural backgrounds, but he hasn't seen a similar coming forth of young Jewish illustrators...
...Another new development is the increasing availability of general-interest titles in Hebrew translation...
...This year, they will ship a wide variety of titles to more than 50 fairs around the United States...
...However, in order to select books wisely, parents and grandparents should pay attention to the book itself, not the publisher's imprint...
Vol. 17 • December 1992 • No. 6
