The Book of Life

This year, two picture books have been published with a delicious babka-related theme: The Babka Sisters by Lesléa Newman, illustrated by Tika and Tata Bobokhidze (Kar-Ben Publishing, May 2, 2023) and Bring Back the Babka by Marilyn Wolpin, illustrated by Madison Safer (Barefoot Books, October 3, 2023), both aimed at readers ages 3-8. In honor of the "sweet new year" that's just begun, I'm glad to bring you this mouth-watering joint interview. Marilyn and Lesléa, coincidentally you've both written books about babka. What drew each of you to babka as a subject for a picture book? LESLÉA : I love the word, “babka.” It’s so much fun to say. I have even used it as an endearment for a beloved baby or pet: “Ooh, hello you adorable little babkaleh!” And it’s a very interesting food. Is it bread? Sort of but not really. Is it cake? Not really but sort of. Whatever it is, one thing’s for sure—it’s absolutely delicious!  MARILYN : Babka is one of my favorite foods ...

The American Library Association's Banned Book Week is taking place October 1-7, 2023, and it's more important than ever that we resist censorship. In 2003, ALA tracked 305 titles challenged. In 2022, the number of challenged titles was 2,571! This increase in censorship is unparalleled. The majority of challenged titles are about Black and LGBT+ lives, but Jewish books have been challenged too. A discussion within the Facebook group Jewish Kidlit Mavens produced a list of Jewish books for young people that have faced challenges [see below], whether for queer content, supposed sexual content (often a specious argument), the presence of immigrant characters, or the inclusion of Muslim characters. Some of the challenged titles have appeared on The Book of Life, including Never Say a Mean Word Again , I Dissent , A Place at the Table , Ana on the Edge and Ellen Outside the Lines , The City Beautiful , and When the Angels Left the Old Country . At this point, we haven't seen a...

  Shana tova! The Book of Life has so much to celebrate as the Jewish New Year begins! I've got lots of lovely news to share with you: We've got an amazing Rosh Hashanah episode for you about TWO NEW YEARS by Richard Ho and Lynn Scurfield! (They also share some love for THE JAKE SHOW , which we covered in August's episode.) Our July episode about the diverse indie publisher LEVINE QUERIDO inspired an auction that raised over $100k! Even though the auction is over, you can actually still donate and of course you can always buy LQ books . The website Storytime Solidarity continues to support Jewish voices. This month they invited me to guest post about AJL's Holiday Highlights , covered on the podcast in April 2022 . Upcoming at the end of this month, a delicious blog interview with two authors who've written picture books about BABKA. Watch this space! Wishing you all a very happy and meaningful new year!  Heidi

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     |    BUY THE BOOK     🕮    Happy New Year! Rosh Hashanah (which begins this year on September 15, 2023), is celebrated by Jewish folks each fall. The Lunar New Year (which will be celebrated next on February 10, 2024) is celebrated by Asian folks each spring. In the picture book Two New Years , Richard Ho explains and Lynn Scurfield beautifully illustrates the parallels between these two celebrations. The book is about a Chinese Jewish family and is a wonderful example of the increasingly diverse Jewish representation being published today.  LEARN MORE: Buy Two New Years Richard Ho's website Lynn Scurfield's website Jewish/Asian intersectional kidlit list  Other books mentioned: Friends Are Friends Forever by Dane Liu and illustrated by Lynn Scurfield, The Nian Monster by Andrea Wang and illustrated by Alina Chau, Spork by Kyo ...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     |    SUPPORT THE AUCTION     🕮    We're squeezing in an extra episode this month to let you know about a special project inspired by our July 2023 interview with Arthur Levine of Levine Querido! After hearing the July interview, listeners Liza Wiemer and Debbi Lakrtiz were inspired to address the challenge of reduced sales that LQ is facing due to its mission of championing diverse voices.  Levine Querido is a remarkable publisher with an important yet imperiled mission. In the few short years since they were founded, they've won over 150 awards for their devastatingly beautiful books, but the timing of the pandemic and the rise in book banning is a huge challenge for them. We need Levine Querido to succeed, not just because they are doing great work but because the publishing industry needs to see that diversity does sell. Liza and D...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     |    BUY THE BOOK     🕮    There's a common TV trope called the Two timer date, in which a character needs to be in two places with two different people at the same time, often in two different outfits. I first encountered this trope when I was a kid watching Brady Bunch reruns, the one where Peter has to run back and forth between two dates, called Two Petes in a Pod . Hilarity, of course, ensues. That trope is brilliantly enacted and expanded upon in Joshua S. Levy's middle grade novel, The Jake Show. TV-obsessed Jake sees life in terms of shows. His parents divorce is like his favorite show getting cancelled, and now he's stuck playing two roles, Yaakov for his religious mother and Jacob for his secular father. Jake has to concoct a web of lies to get to a summer camp where he can just be himself. Will that end well? Tune in to my conver...

  LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     |    BUY LQ BOOKS     🕮    Levine Querido is an independent publishing house founded by legendary editor Arthur Levine. He left his own imprint, Arthur A. Levine Books at Scholastic after 23 years, and he started Levine Querido in 2019 to showcase gorgeous diverse books by creators from underrepresented backgrounds - and he's been very successful, winning award after award. For a non-Jewish publisher, Levine Querido publishes a lot of Jewish books, so I've been wanting to chat with Arthur for a while. When he announced that Team LQ had set a goal to sell 100,000 books by September 1st of this year, I knew it was the right time to have him on the show. LEARN MORE: LQ's 100K Books Challenge Levine Querido website Arthur's Tikkun Olam suggestion: VOTE! BOOKS MENTIONED: When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb Big Dreams, Small Fish by...

To celebrate Pride Month this June, I posted a Jewish LGBTQ+ kidlit recommendation each day on Facebook . Here are all of the recommendations with links to podcasts or reviews, for your #PrideMonth reading pleasure. #JewishBooksAreDiverseBooks June 1, 2023 Ellen Outside the Lines by A.J. Sass, a 2022 Sydney Taylor Honor Book in the Middle Grade category, and a heartfelt novel about a Jewish neurodivergent thirteen-year-old navigating changing friendships, a school trip, and expanding horizons. A nonbinary friend and Ellen's questioning of her own gender and sexual identity are positive features of the story. June 2, 2023 Lion's Legacy by L.C. Rosen, book #1 in the Tennessee Russo YA series of Indiana Jones-inspired adventures. Gay Tennessee is on a quest to find the rings of the sacred band of Thebes, an army of gay couples in ancient Greece.  June 3, 2023 When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb, YA winner of the 2023 Sydney Taylor Book Award, the Stonewall Awa...

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     |    BUY ANA / ELLEN / CAMP     🕮    It's June and that means LGBTQ+ Pride Month , the perfect time to talk to author A.J. Sass. Andrew Sass is known for writing middle grade books featuring respectful portrayals of trans and nonbinary characters, with neurodivergent and casual Jewish representation included as well. I was excited to talk with them about a few books: debut novel Ana on the Edge from 2020, Ellen Outside the Lines , which was a 2023 Sydney Taylor Honor Book, and the new Camp QUILTBAG , co-written with Nicole Melleby . I thoroughly enjoyed all of these thoughtful, funny, and heartfelt books. Over half of the books currently being challenged by bigoted extremists are targeted for their LGBTQ+ content . In support of the queer Jewish community, for Pride Month I will post an LGBTQ+ Jewish kidlit title each day in June on The ...

By a surprising coincidence, two separate collective biographies of Jewish women are being published this year, both entitled She's A Mensch . Coming out on May 15 is She's a Mensch: 10 Amazing Jewish Women by Anne Dublin (Second Story Press) for ages 9-12, and coming out on September 1 is She's a Mensch: Jewish Women Who Rocked the World (Intergalactic Afikomen) by mother-daughter duo Rachelle Burk and Alana Barouch, for ages 5-10. In honor of Mother's Day, I bring you a joint interview with Anne, Rachelle, and Alana about their menschy books! Anne, Rachelle, and Alana, coincidentally your books are both called She's A Mensch . How did you choose that title? ANNE: My publisher (Second Story Press) and I tried several titles out, but She’s a Mensch! resonated with all of us. My late father used to say (in Yiddish) about a person he admired: “He’s a mensch” or “She’s a mensch.” That compliment is one of the highest one can bestow upon a person and therefore has a...

I was so pleased to be interviewed for this article in the May 2023 issue of School Library Journal! Thank you to Marlaina Cockcroft for including me and for tackling this subject. You can read the article below or on the SLJ website here .  

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     |    BUY THE BOOK     🕮    When I read Susan Lynn Meyer's middle grade novel, A Sky Full of Song , I was swept away by her descriptions of the North Dakota prairie and really touched by the characters' struggles with prejudice, assimilation, and identity. This story is one of those in which the specific is also the universal. It showcases a quintessential American experience and at he same time, a very Jewish experience. I thought it would be a perfect interview to bring to you this May for Jewish American Heritage Month.  LEARN MORE: Visit Susan Lynn Meyer's website Buy A Sky Full of Song Tikkun Olam suggestion: support American Prairie Visit Heidi's Jewish American Heritage Month resource Keep an eye out for a Mother's Day interview on May 15 about She's a Mensch at BookOfLifePodcast.com   CREDITS: Produced by Feldman Children's ...

Children's Books for Jewish American Heritage Month by bookoflifepodcast BRAND NEW! Don't miss the new "Celebrate Jewish American Heritage" poster from ALA Graphics! It's got original art from Sean C. Rubin, illustrator of the 2021 Sydney Taylor Book Award winning picture book The Passover Guest by Susan Kusel.  Order the Poster, 18x24", $18 Order the Set of 100 matching bookmarks, $9  

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     |    BUY KNAZAN / LUCIDO / PANITCH BOOKS     🕮    Jewish identity can be complicated, especially for people who come from a mixed background. We are starting to see this reality acknowledged in middle grade and young adult fiction, with characters who are working to figure out what being Jewish means to them, or who are trying to better integrate the different parts of their heritage; characters who don't feel like they are enough. For this episode, I've called together three authors whose novels explore this topic: Primrose Madayag Knazan, author of the YA novel Lesson in Fusion , and middle grade authors Aimee Lucido, who wrote Recipe for Disaster , and Amanda Panitch, who wrote The Two Wrong Halves of Ruby Taylor . Join us for a virtual panel discussion about identity, a walk on the Jewish side.  LEARN MORE: Visit Primose Madayag...

  LISTEN TO THE PODCAST     |    READ THE TRANSCRIPT     |    BUY THE BOOK     🕮    Sarah Sassoon's debut picture book Shoham's Bangle (Kar-Ben) was named a 2023 Sydney Taylor Notable Book by the Association of Jewish Libraries. Based on Sarah's family history, it's the story of a Jewish family's escape from Iraq to Israel, and a rare example of Mizrahi representation in kidlit. From Kar-Ben's description: Shoham wears a golden bangle on her wrist, just like her Nana Aziza. Their bangles jingle when they cook, and glitter in the sun. When Shoham and her family must leave Iraq, they are allowed to take only one suitcase each. They may take no jewelry. Shoham has the important job of carrying Nana's homemade pita bread, which Nana says they will eat when they get to Israel. But when they finally arrive and it is time to eat, Shoham bites into something hard inside the pita bread. LEARN MORE: Visit...

White supremacists are targeting the Jewish community with a "National Day of Hate” on February 25, 2023. Publicly, they are planning for vandalism and intimidation, but it will be unsurprising if violence occurs as well.  At this time, I call upon all Book of Life listeners, and everyone who cares about peace and justice, to let the world know that you stand with the Jews. Whether you are Jewish or Gentile, please join the Anti-Defamation League in taking action. This horrific day of hate is taking place two days after my birthday. I would consider it a great gift  if you were to join me in doing any of the simple advocacy actions below: Let your elected representatives know that hate is not OK, at  https://www.adl.org/take-action/advocate-with-adl .  Choose any action on The Book of Life's "Justice" page, and do it today. See  https://jewishbooks.blogspot.com/p/stand-up.html Use and share the Association of Jewish Libraries' "Love Your Neighbor" book...

The Jewish Book Carnival is a monthly roundup of Jewish literary links from across the blogosphere. Sponsored by the Association of Jewish Libraries, it is hosted by a different blog each month and shares book reviews, author interviews, essays, and other blog posts about Jewish books. Visit the Jewish Book Carnival HQ for the upcoming schedule, past Carnivals, and to learn how to participate! On STORYSTORM, Tara Lazar's month-long idea project at the blog Writing For Kids (While Raising Them), forthcoming Jewish board books were featured on Day 12.   Illustrator Ann D. Koffsky offers a new Tu Bishevat coloring page , with a picture of a reader relaxing under a tree. On her blog Book Q&As with Deborah Kalb, Deborah  interviewed Omer Bartov  about his new novel, The Butterfly and the Axe . Gila Green interviewed author Stephen J. Gordon about his new thriller The Student and the  challenges of writing Israel-based books. Batya at the blog A Jewish Grandmot...

4th National Joint Conference of Librarians of Color St. Pete Beach, Florida February 8-12, 2023 On February 9, 2023 I presented "A Place at the Table: The Jewish Community Within the Library Diversity World" at the Joint Conference of Librarians of Color, an event sponsored by JCLC, the Joint Council of Librarians of Color . This umbrella organization addresses the common needs of ALA affiliates for BIPOC librarians:  the American Indian Library Association (AILA), the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA), the Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA), the Chinese American Librarians Association (CALA), and REFORMA: The National Association to Promote Library & Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish-speaking. The main thrust of my presentation was a crash course in the marginalization of Jews and the interconnection between antisemitism and racism, with the goal of demonstrating why Jews should be included in equity, diversity, an...