I Will NOT Eat Latkes!
Martha Seif Simpson
Lisa Hunt (Illustrator)
Apples & Honey Press
This adorable Hanukkah picture book combines holiday celebration, dealing with a picky eater, a recipe and a science lesson too! In Martha Seif Simpson's cute story Nosh the Koala makes latkes for the first night of Hanukkah. But Potchky the lemur does NOT want to try a new food. Parents could take a cue from Nosh as he wisely gets Potchky involved in cooking the latkes, all the while giving him choices of what he will or will not do. Nosh suggests that Judah the Maccabee would be brave and try one. I love the fact that Potchky reacts to the appearance of raw latke batter, which turns " brown and mucky, yucky, rusty." But fried latkes look good. The afterward includes an explanation of Hanukkah, and a latke recipe with instructions for kids and adults. But the author also includes an explanation of why the potato mush turns brown and an oxidation science experiment.
As an adult with an emergent reader, I loved all the emphasized words and phrases in bold font. Lisa Hunt's illustrations bring the animals to life with expressive faces. Adults will see themselves in Nosh and kids will identify with Potchky and laugh at his antics. They will even learn a little Yiddish when they make this potchky recipe to nosh on.
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HANUKKAH PICTURE BOOKS
Hanukkah Night at the Construction Site
Sherri Mandell
Viviana Garófoli (Illustrator)
Apples & Honey Press
I Will NOT Eat Latkes!
Martha Seif Simpson
Lisa Hunt (Illustrator)
Apples & Honey Press
GRAPHIC NOVEL
Science Comics: The Senses: Signals and Stimuli
Andy Hirsch
First Second
MIDDLE GRADE
Brittle Magic
Kate O'Shaughnessy
Knopf Books for Young Readers
How to Walk a Dog
Joanne Levy
Union Square Kids
NOVELS
Chain Reaction
Jack Reacher #31
Lee Child
Andrew Child
Bantam
Mystery-Thriller
The Holiday House Swap
Lauren Appelbaum
Forever
Holiday Romance
Now That We Don't Talk
Rachel Pologe
Berkley
Hanukkah Holiday Romance
Split Screen
Eve Ronin #7
Lee Goldberg
Thomas & Mercer
Mystery Thriller
Twisted Vows
The Souls of Blackwood Academy #0.5
I.V. Marie
Delacorte Press
Young Adult Dark Academia Romantasy
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Bewitching Series
Dishing About Divination
Whispering Witch Mysteries #4
Mildred Abbott
Mildred Abbott continues the Whispering Witch Mysteries with more mysteries to solve. Still reeling from recent revelations about her own past, she needs to balance a murder investigation with her feelings about her mother, her romantic attraction to a vampire, and the frustrations of having a German prince pursuing matrimony. Abbot weaves all the subplots together in a fast paced story steeped in New Orleans scenery. She even sets much of the action in a real cafe and adds a few friends to the story ( with a little bit of literary license.) As a special treat, although this paranormal mystery series is not usually a culinary cozy, Abbott dishes up the recipe for a Who Dat Cafe specialty in the afterward. Once again, the story wraps up the mystery, but leaves the reader with a cliffhanger teaser for the next novel. I can't wait until next spring to read Commenting about Curses.
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Ghost Story for Any Time of The Year
Gloom and Bloom
Nancy Loewen
Mike Moran (Illustrator)
Picture Window Books
This cute book combines the reality of trying to fit in with classmates which youngsters can relate to with the fantasy and fun of colorful ghosts. Glint may be at a school for ghosts, but having a class project that classmates find laughable is nothing to cry BOO-hoo about. As the teacher says, " Things don't always turn out how we expect." Glint may not have received a lot of sympathy from his teacher, but he receives friendship and support from a quiet friend and the book has a happy ending. the afterward includes several discussion questions. Parents or teachers can ask kids how kids think that Glint might have felt at different times in the story. There is also a page with a suggested activity to make your own spooky flower. As a chapter book, the story is aimed at school age kids, but the preschooler I shared this with loved the story and enjoyed the art project as well.
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Have You Ever Seen a Ghost?
Daniel Kwan & Julia Pott
Sean Lewis (Illustrator)
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Judging from the title, this book is not what I expected at all. But it was even better. "There is a ghost in this room" But this isn't a spooky ghost story. The reader meets a ghost who is getting ready to go to a party, but they are anxious and shy, and they want the reader's help. We can see the hat that they try on, the rouge on their cheeks, and the conversation notes in his pockets. The fact that we can empathize with a character that we can't even see is genius. My preschool grandchild loved all the details in the pictures. There is a dog and mouse in the room with the ghost and it is fun to see what they are up to in the different pictures. I liked the fat that the ghosts talking point notes of fun facts actually did have some fun facts on them. Shy kids will feel seen, even if they sometimes feel as invisible as the ghost. Other kids will love reading a silly ghost story that assumes you can see the ghost, even though you can't.
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Now that it is Halloween season, it is time to give this cute audiobook a listen.Halloween Celebration with a Chinese American Treat
The Great Pumpkin Pancake Party
Celeste Pewter
Rebecca Ho (Narrator)
Macmillan Young Listeners
The Great Pumpkin Pancake party is an adorable book about a new holiday tradition. Lao Ye, Lilly's grandfather recently loves his new country of America and all the American holidays. He decides to throw a Halloween party with his traditional Chinese recipe for pumpkin pancakes. Any child will enjoy this cultural blend holiday story. I listened to the audiobook and was bowled over by the narrator talented Rebecca Ho. The story is told by the character Lilly, and I actually thought that the narrator was a child until I heard her voice the grandfather. Her voice for Lilly has the childlike quality that is pitch perfect. Grandfather's lines spoken in a much lower pitch show the maturity of a grown up and although her voice does not actually sound like a man's, it is close enough that the listener knows the character is supposed to be male. The McMillan Audio production has the sound effects of children playing in the background of the story and eerie Halloween music during the narration of the recipe.
Celeste Pewter @beckyhohoho_
#picturebook #halloweenbooks #chineserepresentation
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