(3) K-3 Illustrated by Melanie Hall. Using spare text, Rosenstock interprets a legend from the Midrash (Talmudic commentaries). God is trying to decide from which mountaintop he'll deliver the Ten Commandments. Though it's not the most beautiful or tallest peak, Mount Sinai is chosen due to its modesty. Fluid, impressionistic paintings illustrate the allegorical story. Bib.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Melanie Hall. In turn, these poems pay tribute to words, sight, sound, imagination, movement, love, and self. Each section includes the work of well-known children's poets and newcomers. Rendered in a variety of styles, the mixed-media illustrations are similarly random, but the result is a surprise on every page.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax

(3) K-3 On My Own Folklore series. Illustrated by Melanie Hall. In these stories, trickster Anansi wins a box of stories from the sky god; the Yellow Emperor fights the Black Dragon; a young man wins a princess's hand with his magic pomegranate; and a self-centered girl becomes the ghost La Llorona. Each tale is paired with an illustration style that nicely reflects the culture. Back matter provides further information. Review covers these On My Own Folklore titles: Anansi and the Box of Stories, The Tale of La Llorona, The Magic Pomegranate, and The Dragon Emperor.

Reviewer: Laura A. Woollett

(4) K-3 Without the cachet Shakespeare's authorship entails, there seems little reason this brief lyric from Love's Labor's Lost, describing the discomforts and delights of the winter season, would be selected for children. The text includes vivid images but also archaic language. Hall's impressionistic illustrations featuring a Renaissance family alternate between chilly outdoor scenes and warmly inviting interiors. Glos.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Melanie Hall. Fishman's lyrical text and Hall's colorful drawings display a family's celebration of the holidays following "the thoughtful stillness" of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Together they build a sukkah, in which they gather for meals and study. At the end of the week they go to synagogue to celebrate Simchat Torah, then the sukkah is taken down until next year. Glos.

Reviewer: Amy Kellman

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Melanie Hall. If you like your creation story overly flowery, this book is for you. God works to put together a world that is crowned with the creation of a boy and girl. At the end of the sixth day, a tired but satisfied God offers a Shabbat blessing. The pastel-colored illustrations charting God's progress are filled with movement reflecting a fresh, ideal world.

Reviewer: Amy Kellman

(2) K-3 I Can Read Book series. Illustrated by Melanie Hall. Two brief poetry collections bring seasonal spirit to the beginning-reader genre. With the poets including Lillian M. Fisher, Rebecca Kai Dotlich, and Hopkins himself, each volume collects twelve poems, all short and mostly rhyming but with a lyric quality often scanted in poems for the newest readers. Warm-toned full-page illustrations accent the verses without overwhelming them. Review covers these I Can Read Book titles: Christmas Presents and Hanukkah Lights.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2004

(2) K-3 I Can Read Book series. Illustrated by Melanie Hall. Two brief poetry collections bring seasonal spirit to the beginning-reader genre. With the poets including Lillian M. Fisher, Rebecca Kai Dotlich, and Hopkins himself, each volume collects twelve poems, all short and mostly rhyming but with a lyric quality often scanted in poems for the newest readers. Warm-toned full-page illustrations accent the verses without overwhelming them. Review covers these I Can Read Book titles: Christmas Presents and Hanukkah Lights.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2004

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Melanie Hall. Some of these thirty-two original rhymes ask jumpers to try tricks like "crossovers" and "hot peppers." Others end with reciting the alphabet so jumpers can discover the initials of their sweethearts. The rhymes are catchy, and the rhythms are strong. Hall's imaginative illustrations give a sophisticated feel to a very usable book.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by Melanie Hall. This uneven compilation of twenty of Eastwick's poems covers subjects from the fanciful (in "I Asked a Tiger to Tea" and "To Meet with a Unicorn") to the more realistic (in "Summer Rain" and "Falling Light"). The lighthearted verse has appeal, even though much of it isn't especially original. Dreamlike paintings brighten the volume.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Melanie W. Hall. The reader is presented with a warm, if idealized, picture of a religious family's weekly celebration of Shabbat, beginning Friday evening and ending Saturday at sundown. The colorful illustrations reinforce the feeling of joy that permeates the book. Aimed at older readers than Fishman's previous books on Jewish holidays, the text is more extensive.

Reviewer: Amy Kellman

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Melanie W. Hall. As a young girl and her family celebrate Purim by doing such things as putting on a play, reading the story of Esther and Mordecai, eating hamantashen, and attending synagogue, she thinks about how and why the holiday is celebrated and adds details to her Purim mask that represent different parts of the holiday. The colorful mixed-media illustrations capture the thoughtful tone of the text. Glos.

Reviewer: Amy Kellman

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Melanie W. Hall. In her third book about a Jewish holiday Fishman uses the eight days of Hanukkah to convey information about the observances, history, and spirit of the holiday. The poetic text is accompanied by soft color illustrations that mingle the symbols and story with the family celebrations.

Reviewer: Amy Kellman

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Melanie Hall. In a retelling of the story from Genesis, God creates humans "in Our likeness," and each animal shares a characteristic with the new humans, such as gracefulness from swans and curiosity from chimpanzees. Thus "nature [lives] in humankind." Hall's scratchboard and watercolor illustrations lend accessibility to Swartz's formal language, which echoes that of the Bible while bringing a modern sensibility to the story.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth