Awe-some Days: Poems about the Jewish Holidays

Description

Discover and celebrate all of the Jewish holidays with this warm and engaging poetry collection by the acclaimed author of Mirror Mirror. In this cheerful, enjoyable poetry collection, a family decides to celebrate every Jewish holiday for a full year, "the ones we know well, the ones we do not." Starting with new-year apples dipped in honey on Rosh Hashanah all the way to flowers and chocolates on Tu B'Av (often called "Jewish Valentine's Day"), readers can explore the joy and meaning of the various holidays along with this lively family of five. A brief explanation of the holiday accompanies each poem. By an award-winning and beloved children's poet, this is a wonderful introduction to Jewish celebrations, observances, and days of remembrance.

Marilyn Singer is the award-winning author of more than 100 children's books, including the much-honored Mirror Mirror and two other books of reverse poetry, as well as Follow the Recipe and Feel the Beat! Recipient of the 2015 NCTE Excellence in Poetry for Children Award, Marilyn, along with her husband, a standard poodle, cat, and two doves, divides her time between Brooklyn, New York, and Litchfield County, Connecticut.

"Presented from a child's point of view, Singer's short, evocative poems smoothly convey details of each holiday's activities and significance, along with personal reflections . . . A poetic invitation for all to learn more about Jewish holidays and observations." -Booklist "Following the Jewish calendar, the holidays begin in September with Rosh Hashanah and end with Tu B'Av in August. Shabbat is included near the end of the book . . . Each celebration has its own spread, with soft pencil drawings. The art, while following one family as they celebrate throughout the year, depicts characters of many races and skin tones. Another strength of this poetry collection is that it includes holidays not widely known or observed. These days get just as much space as the holidays that are more prevalent." -School Library Journal "As Wulfekotte's digitally colored pencil illustrations portray celebrations, starting with Rosh Hashanah and proceeding with well-known and less familiar holidays, the narrator reflects on the meaning of each occasion in a first-person poem, and accompanying commentary fills in details and context." -Publishers Weekly