(2) K-3 Illustrated by Kristina Swarner. This useful volume features brief, short-lined, free-verse poems and "reflections" for each night of the holiday, connecting the ritual of candle-lighting to broader themes. It also provides Hebrew blessings with English transliterations and translations, historical background, dreidel-playing instructions, recipes, crafts, and sheet music. Mottled illustrations in warm pinks and blues evoke the hushed atmosphere around a lit menorah, while the text provides room for contemplation along with practical information.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2018

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Kristina Swarner. Using wool from her family's sheep, Ruthie knits mittens to sell at the market. When her family helps a deaf woman and her baby, Ruthie knits a special set of mittens for them connected by a piece of yarn so the mother can feel the baby moving. The soft illustrations have an old-fashioned feel in keeping with the story's (unspecified) setting. Knitting and sign-language glossaries appended.

Reviewer: Patricia Riley

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Kristina Swarner. Rachel's grandfather, who has come to live with her family, is dying. She asks tough questions about death and gets honest, satisfying answers. With help from her rabbi and her grandfather, she learns that the important thing is to really live with him while she can. The illustrations' soft, rich colors suit the sad but loving tone of the story.

Reviewer: Amy Kellman

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Kristina Swarner. A Jewish grandfather shares with his grandchild a story about tikkun olam ("repair the world"). Ships carrying light sailed into the sky, broke up, and scattered sparks everywhere creating stars, but leaving many sparks to be gathered; humans were created to do good deeds that help reunite the sparks. The poetic text and light-filled illustrations dominated by blues reflect the story's calming atmosphere.

Reviewer: Amy Kellman

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Kristina Swarner. At bedtime, Rose rides a tawny, comfortable-looking lion into the sky, where they "Swoop through outer space" and play among the constellations. When a black hole threatens to swallow them up, Rose uses a comet tail to lasso Cetus, the whale constellation, and he tows them to safety. Attractive textured illustrations in deep, rich colors accompany this fantasy's singsongy rhymes.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(4) PS Illustrated by Kristina Swarner. Soft, placid watercolors featuring a girl with a curiously static expression illustrate a long day at the beach. The girl gathers stones, shells, and seaweed to decorate a sandcastle that is eventually washed out to sea. Despite the uneven rhymes, this counting book manages to capture the feeling of a lazy day in the sun.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Kristina Swarner. A Jewish midrash, or Rabbinic legend, is recast as a bedtime story offering an explanation of the indentation above a child's lip and an imaginative description of a guardian angel, who whispers the world's secrets to each new child. Mixed-media illustrations, with objects floating in a Chagallian landscape, serve as an intermediary between the sometime high-flown language and child readers.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt