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ENTRY TYPE:
WORK TITLE: Just Like Queen Esther
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WEBSITE: https://kerryolitzky.com
CITY: New York
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COUNTRY: United States
NATIONALITY: American
LAST VOLUME: SATA 401
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Born December 22, 1954, in Pittsburgh, PA; children: Jesse.
EDUCATION:University of South Florida, B.A., 1974, M.A., 1975; Hebrew Union College, M.H.L., 1980, D.H.L. 1985.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer, educator, and rabbi. Ordained rabbi, 1981; Congregation Beth Israel, West Hartford, CT; Hebrew Union College—Jewish Institute of Religion, director; Wexner Heritage Foundation, vice president; Mersky, Jaffe, & Associates, associate; Big Tent Judaism (formerly Jewish Outreach Institute), executive director. Abraham Geiger Kolleg/University of Potsdam, visiting professor; City University Graduate Center, fellow.
AWARDS:Sydney Taylor Book Award, Association of Jewish Libraries, 2025, for An Etrog from Across the Sea.
WRITINGS
Contributing editor to Shma: A Journal of Jewish Responsibility.
SIDELIGHTS
Kerry M. Olitzky is a rabbi and religious book writer. He served for many years as the executive director of Big Tent Judaism, which was formerly known as the Jewish Outreach Institute. He went on to become an associate with a financial resource development and executive search solutions firm. Olitzky has published numerous texts and picture books on Jewish and other religious topics in his lifelong effort to educate and promote Judaism.
Rabbis Olitzky and Daniel Judson attempt to help Christians get a better understanding of Judaism in Jewish Ritual: A Brief Introduction for Christians. By focusing on rituals, they aim to illustrate the extensive overlap and parallels between the two faiths. Biblical references are given to draw immediate links. A Publishers Weekly contributor observed that the “contributing authors mix straightforward explanations with personal narratives that reflect their own experiences.”
In Jewish Holidays: A Brief Introduction for Christians, Olitzky and Judson continue their efforts to educate Christians who are curious about Judaism. The book centers on Jewish holidays, covering each major holiday, as well as several that are lesser known but also significant. They also attempt to draw parallels between Jewish and Christian traditions as associated with specific holidays. A Publishers Weekly contributor concluded that “the book could be a little longer and more fully fleshed out. Still, it is a helpful guide.”
Where’s the Potty on This Ark? is a picture book for very young children. After the animals have boarded Noah’s Ark, a raccoon asks where the potty is after seeing all the other areas of the ark. The raccoon finally finds them on the bottom level of the ark and realizes that there are all different sizes and shapes of toilets for all the different animals. A contributor to Kirkus Reviews remarked that “the whole enterprise is a bit odd and unevenly paced,” adding that “this story’s religious overtones may perplex some readers.” The same reviewer reasoned that the picture book is appropriate “for religiously minded potty-trainers.”
With The Littlest Candle: A Hanukkah Story, nine anthropomorphic candles are debating as to who should fill which role on the menorah. Each candle showcases its own personality while trying to debate with the others and share what they know about the function of the menorah. Each type of candle has a name ascribed to its function.
In an interview on Book Q&As with Deborah Kalb, Olitzky talked about his collaboration with his son, Jesse, on the book. He recalled: “Jesse framed the story and then we built it together. The personalities of the characters emerged organically as the manuscript took shape.” Writing in School Library Journal, Annmarie Braithwaite called it “a purposeful story that … focuses first on the fruition of a humble wish to shine.”
In the picture book An Invitation to Passover, Hannah is trying to figure out how she wants her Passover invitation cards to look. She also struggles with finding the right words to say on the cards. Her parents teach her about four core concepts of the holiday, which gives her the idea to create cards that feature each one of those points. A contributor to Kirkus Reviews found it to be “a sweet and tender holiday tale celebrating friendship and diversity.” The same critic appended that “Kolker’s cheery artwork brims with joy.”
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In recent years, Olitzky has collaborated with author Deborah Bodin Cohen on several children’s books. An Etrog from the Sea, a picture book about two children waiting for their father to return with a promised etrog cup for the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award from the Association of Jewish Libraries.
Twist, Tumble, Triumph: The Story of Champion Gymnast Ágnes Keleti was another collaboration between Olitzky and Cohen. This is a book geared for emerging readers that tells the story of Ágnes Keleti, a famous Hungarian gymnast who had to go into hiding during World War II. Keleti was Jewish, and Nazi troops had entered the Hungarian city of Budapest. She was able to survive with the help of fake identity papers, and she later had great success at the 1952 Olympics. Martina Peluso’s illustrations help bring the story to life.
“A stirring expression of the triumph of the human spirit,” wrote a reviewer in Kirkus Reviews. They called it an “inspiring tale” and predicted that “young people will eagerly cheer [Keleti] on.” They also enjoyed the “energetic” and “stylized” illustrations. In Booklist, Miriam Aronin praised the book as “engaging” and an “inspiring and fascinating biography.” Aronin did note that the story’s complexity might make it better for elementary-age readers rather than toddlers even though it is a picture book.
Olitzky collaborated with Ari Moffic for the illustrated book Just Like Queen Esther. Moffic has also been ordained as a rabbi, and she is raising a transgender child, which she has written about in various Jewish publications. Just Like Queen Esther focuses on a transgender girl named Atara, who loves to wear a crown to give her confidence and also to show to the people around her that she is a girl, not a boy. When Atara reads about Queen Esther for the Jewish holiday of Purim, she realizes that she can express herself in a lot of ways.
In an interview in Keshet, Olitzky talked about why he and Moffic wrote the book and especially why they centered it around the holiday of Purim: “I think everybody needs to hear this story and celebrate the child . . . who might be their own child. It might be their neighbor. It might be their grandchild. And we want to help them to love that child. . . . I have always had a lot of distaste for the historical way that the Purim story has been handled. It’s been so gender-typed and superficial, especially with the focus on little girls as princesses in beauty contests. I wanted a story that I felt resonated with the idea and revelations of a Jewish trans child that would elevate the Purim story.” A contributor in Kirkus Reviews loved that choice, praising the book as a “delightfully inclusive Purim tale.” They expected that “many young people will identify with both Atara and Esther.”
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BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, October 15, 2023, Miriam Aronin, review of Miryam’s Dance, p. 49; January, 2025, Miriam Aronin, review of Twist, Tumble, Triumph: The Story of Champion Gymnast Agnes Keleti, p. 52.
Children’s Bookwatch, April, 2022, review of The Candy Man Mystery.
Cross Currents, June 22, 1999, Randi Rashkover, review of Jewish Spiritual Guidance: Finding Our Way to God, p. 277.
Kirkus Reviews July 15, 2018, review of Where’s the Potty on This Ark?; September 1, 2020, review of The Littlest Candle: A Hanukkah Story; December 1, 2022, review of An Invitation to Passover; June 15, 2024, review of An Etrog from Across the Sea; December 1, 2024, review of Twist, Tumble, Triumph; December 1, 2024, review of Just Like Queen Esther.
Library Journal, May 1, 2002, Idelle Rudman, review of Preparing Your Heart for Passover: A Guide for Spiritual Readiness, p. 106.
Publishers Weekly, October 13, 1997, review of Jewish Spiritual Guidance, p. 72; January 27, 2003, review of Making a Successful Jewish Interfaith Marriage: The Jewish Outreach Institute Guide to Opportunities, Challenges and Resources, p. 255; January 17, 2005, review of Jewish Ritual: A Brief Introduction for Christians, p. 51; May 31, 2004, review of Introducing My Faith and My Community: The Jewish Outreach Institute Guide for the Christian in a Jewish Interfaith Relationship, p. 72; October 30, 2006, review of Jewish Holidays: A Brief Introduction for Christians, p. 54.
RQ, March 22, 1997, Gregory A. Crawford, review of The American Synagogue: A Historical Dictionary and Sourcebook, p. 448.
School Library Journal, September 1, 2020, Annmarie Braithwaite, review of The Littlest Candle, p. 69.
ONLINE
Book Q&As with Deborah Kalb, http://deborahkalbbooks.blogspot.com/ (September 1, 2020), Deborah Kalb, author interview; August 12, 2024, Deborah Kalb, author interview.
Kerry Olitzky website, https://kerryolitzky.com (May 30, 2025).
Keshet, https://www.keshetonline.org/ (February 27, 2025), Rachie Lewis, author interview.
Mersky, Jaffe, & Associates website, https://merskyjaffe.com/ (March 10, 2021), author profile.*
My Medium
Most of my work is in mosaic and glass, often as an attempt to beautify ritual objects. But my art takes shape in different media, as well, such as in wood and stone. I have done oversized pieces such as mezuzot, daily household items like mosaic glass mirrors, and unique pieces such as yizkor stones.
My interview on Soul Searching with Rabbi Neil Amswych:
https://soundcloud.com/user-742772050-264517564/soul-searching-120121-episode-87-rabbi-kerry-olitzky-1
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My Inspiration
I have been writing books and articles for many years. And while I continue to write for adults, most of my efforts of late have been focused on children's and family books, most probably as a result of being blessed with seven grandchildren.
Interview on Seekers of Meaning Podcast: https://vimeo.com/567080580
"Rabbi Kerry Olitzky is the present-day master of the Jewish "self-help" book."
Dr. Jeffrey Gurock in Jewish Quarterly Review, University of Pennsylvania Press 92:1-2.
Rabbi Deborah Bodin Cohen is a frequent writing partner of mine. She can be reached at http://www.bodincohenbooks.com/
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My Background
Dr. Kerry M. Olitzky is the former long time executive director of Big Tent Judaism (previously the Jewish Outreach Institute), a national independent organization dedicated to bringing Judaism to interfaith families and the unaffiliated. He served as visiting professor at the Abraham Geiger Kolleg/University of Pottsdam in Germany and
has been a Fellow at the City University Graduate Center (NY) in its Jewish Studies Program. He has been named as one of the 50 Leading Rabbis in North America by Newsweek. Formerly, he served as vice president of the Wexner Heritage Foundation, the premier adult Jewish learning and Jewish leadership program in North America. Previously, he was national Dean of Adult Jewish Learning and Living of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion where he served on the faculty and administration for 15 years following his tenure as rabbi at Congregation Beth Israel in West Hartford, CT. A leader in the development of innovative Jewish education, particularly for adults, he has shaped training programs for clergy of all faiths, especially in the area of pastoral care and counseling in the Jewish community. He has done pioneering work in the area of Jewish Twelve Step spirituality, as well as Jewish Gerontology.
He is the author of nearly 100 books and hundreds of articles in a variety of fields. He is known for books that bring the insights of Jewish wisdom into everyday living. His opinion pieces are published in leading publications throughout North America and in Israel. Most of his recent publications are children's picture books, as well as the early reader The Adventures of Leila and Ilana (White Bird Publications).
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article contains promotional content. Please help improve it by removing promotional language and inappropriate external links, and by adding encyclopedic text written from a neutral point of view. (September 2019) (Learn how and when to remove this message)
Rabbi Kerry M. Olitzky is an Associate at Mersky, Jaffe & Associates, a firm that specializes in financial resource development and executive search solutions for the nonprofit community. He has previously been the Executive Director of Big Tent Judaism[1] (formerly known as the Jewish Outreach Institute), a United States independent organization dedicated to bringing Judaism to interfaith families and the unaffiliated.
Education
He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (1954). He earned his undergraduate Bachelors of Arts (1974) and M.A. (1975) from the University of South Florida. He received his M.H.L. from Hebrew Union College in 1980, where he was ordained in 1981 and earned a D.H.L. in 1985.[2]
Career
Formerly, he served as vice president of the Wexner Heritage Foundation, an adult Jewish education and leadership program in North America. Previously, he was national Dean of Adult Jewish Learning and Living of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion where he served on the faculty and administration for 15 years following his tenure at Congregation Beth Israel in West Hartford, Connecticut.
Rabbi Olitzky is a leader in the development of Jewish education, particularly for adults. He has shaped training programs for clergy of all faiths, especially in the area of pastoral care and counseling in the Jewish community. He has done pioneering work in the area of Jewish Twelve Step spirituality, as well as Jewish Gerontology.[3]
Commentaries
This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living people that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately.
Find sources: "Kerry Olitzky" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (December 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message)
Together with professor Leonard S. Kravitz, Olitzky has authored a series of Tanakh commentaries. Their commentaries draw on classical Jewish works such as the Mishnah, Talmud, Targums, the midrash literature, classical Jewish bible commentators such as Gersonides, Rashi and Abraham ibn Ezra, modern-day rabbis, and higher textual criticism, but are not academic books using source criticism to deconstruct the Tanakh. The authors claim that they do not follow either the path of classical Reform scholars or more secular projects such as the Anchor Bible series. These books are distributed by Behrman House. Commentaries in this series now include Ecclesiastes, Esther, Jonah, Lamentations, Proverbs, Ruth, and the Song of Songs. The Olitzky-Kravitz writing team has also done commentaries on Pirke Avot and Shemonah Perakim, along with a collection of source material on Teshuva called "Journey of the Soul."
Works
Olitzky is a former contributing editor for Shma: A Journal of Jewish Responsibility and is also the author of over 75 books and hundreds of articles in a variety of fields. Among his publications are:
The Littlest Candle: A Hanukkah Story, with Jesse Olitzky (Kalaniot Books)[4]
The Candy Man Mystery (Kalaniot Books)[5]
An Invitation to Passover, written with Rabbi Debra Biden Cohen. (Kalaniot Books)[1]
Where is the Potty on this Ark? (Kar Ben Publishing)
Welcome to the Seder, A Passover Haggadah (Behrman House)
The Book of Job: A Modern Translation and Commentary with Leonard S. Kravitz (Wipf and Stock)
The Rituals and Practices of a Jewish Life: A Handbook for Personal Spiritual Renewal, with Dan Judson (Jewish Lights);
Shorter articles include:
Public Space Judaism Contact: The Journal of the Jewish Life Network/Steinhardt Foundation. Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life. Fall 2009: 10–11.
Keep Our Shuls Safe But Still Friendly, with Edward M. Feinstein, Jewish Journal, September 17, 2008
Synagogue: A New Concept for a New Age, Journal of Jewish Communal Service, Vol. 62/No. 1, 1985.
and more.
Just Like Queen Esther: Interview with the Authors
Print
February 27, 2025
By Rachie Lewis
In Just Like Queen Esther by Kerry Olitzky and Ari Moffic, Atara (a trans girl) loves to wear her crown — to the library, to the dentist, even to her swim lessons. It gives her confidence, and shows the world that she is a girl, not a boy, like everyone first assumes. But when Atara reads the story of Queen Esther on the Jewish holiday of Purim, she realizes that you don’t need a costume to express who you really are.
Who is this book written for?
Ari: We hope that it’s a mirror so kids can see themselves and say “That’s me, that’s who I want to be,” and also a window so that all kids can meet a transgender kid and think about their own sense of self and their own gender expression. And come to form an understanding and a connection to a character. That empathy is really important. The book is for all kids, all caregivers, all synagogues, libraries, so they can feature a whole array of human expression for our kids. It’s a time in the world when we need huge signs and visibility and to be shouting from the hilltops, “Transgender children are real. We believe them. They exist and they are glorious and needed in the world.”
Kerry: There are a bunch of concentric circles of potential readers. Yes, the primary one is the transgender child or the one who sees themselves as a different gender, but there are those circles that go out further and further. I think everybody needs to hear this story and celebrate the child who is the primary character in the story who might be their own child. It might be their neighbor. It might be their grandchild. And we want to help them to love that child.
What about Purim lends itself to writing a story with a trans character?
Ari: It’s the perfect holiday. It’s the holiday with a hero queen who is able to unmask and reveal her true self. It is a queer holiday through and through from its origins. Gender is played with and we’re able to try out new identities and things aren’t as they seem. The rabbis really played with gender and reinterpreting and reading into the story, and so it’s a fantastic lens. We can talk about all of our creative expressions, how we want to be known in the world, and how we’re going to reveal ourselves.
Kerry: I have always had a lot of distaste for the historical way that the Purim story has been handled. It’s been so gender-typed and superficial, especially with the focus on little girls as princesses in beauty contests. I wanted a story that I felt resonated with the idea and revelations of a Jewish trans child that would elevate the Purim story. And that’s why I found, as Ari said, that Purim was a perfect match.
How does it feel to be releasing this book right now in our political climate?
Ari: I’m so happy that there’s a book — a positive, joyful, happy book featuring a happy kid who’s transgender with lots of friends and opportunities at school and a supportive family. It’s only about love and joy and gaining confidence as all of us want to do and want our kids to do.
Kerry: I think that this book was destined to come out at this time and, therefore, it gives us another tool to push back against the chaos in which we find ourselves — the anti-LGBTQ posture that not only the government is taking but is allowing and fostering on the level of the common folk. We wanted to put something out there that would allow people to see a very different narrative.
You can purchase Just Like Queen Esther at Bookshop or directly from the publisher.
Rabbi Ari Moffic is a Jewish educator and has written about inclusion focusing on neurodiversity and LGBTQ allyship.
Rabbi Kerry M. Olitzky, named by Newsweek as one of the leading rabbis of North America, is an award-winning author of 100 books. He is an educator and longtime former executive director of Big Tent Judaism, dedicated to engaging interfaith families and the unaffiliated.
Monday, August 12, 2024
Q&A with Deborah Bodin Cohen and Kerry Olitzky
Deborah Bodin Cohen
Deborah Bodin Cohen and Kerry Olitzky are the authors of the new children's picture book An Etrog from Across the Sea. They are both rabbis who have written many previous books. Cohen lives in Rockville, Maryland, and Olitzky lives in North Brunswick, New Jersey.
Q: What inspired you to write An Etrog from Across the Sea, which focuses on the citrus fruit connected to the Jewish holiday of Sukkot?
Cohen: I am intrigued by Judaica from different time periods. I came across the picture of the etrog cup while doing research on another project. It was so intricate and beautiful and obviously valuable even back in the day. I liked how it made for a different purpose (mustard cup) but utilized for the holiday.
I began to research the family [in the book] and also the etrog trade at that time period. When I read that one uncle in the family had been taken by pirates, I began to wonder about the children in the family watching their father go to sea.
Kerry Olitzky
At some point, Kerry and I started talking about the etrog holder and the family. He was a perfect person to collaborate on this story - we often write together and he has a deep knowledge of American Jewish history. The history really drove the story, although it is highly fictionalized.
Olitzky: I have always been intrigued by Jewish practices and ritual items in colonial America, ever since being exposed to it by my teacher Jacob Rader Marcus, who was the dean of American Jewish history. We were looking for approaches to holiday stories that were out of the ordinary.
Moreover, the etrog has always held a particular fascination for me. Over the years, I always have tried to extend its so-called half life by connecting the holiday of Sukkot to other holidays.
Q: What do you think Stacey Dressen McQueen's illustrations add to the story?
Cohen: Her illustrations reflect the time period. She did as much research into the art of the period as we did into the story. The illustrations are creative and unique and really could not be used for any other story.
Olitzky: As in most picture books, authors have to write with word paintings so that the illustrator can illustrate the story. In this case, not only did the illustrations tell the story that we wrote, they also added to the story in beautifully aesthetic ways.
Q: How did you research the book, and did you learn anything that especially surprised you?
Cohen: We mostly did research on the web, using both secular and Jewish historical sites. We researched a very wide range of topics from the family history to silverwork to even things like how stagecoaches operated from the New York City out to countryside.
I was really intrigued by the etrog trade at that time period. There were European etrogs that were considered far better quality than Caribbean ones and the rabbis of the time wrote responsa about which to choose.
Olitzky: The story could best be described as historical fiction. The characters were real. Where they lived and how they lived reflected what we learned about their lives.
We also looked more generally at the life of Jews during that period of time. Of particular interest was that the best etrogs of the period came from Corsica so that allowed us to write the story around them.
Q: How did the two of you collaborate on the book? What was your writing process like?
Cohen: We write often together and really complement each other's strengths. It involves a lot of passing the manuscript up and back and talking.
Olitzky: We have been writing together for several years. Sometimes we are in the same place but generally we write over zoom, over the phone, through Google docs and through email exchanges. We write and then edit one another's work. I always considered it the same as chevruta (collaborative) learning which brings out the best in both writing partners.
Q: What are you working on now?
Cohen: We wrote a book not so long ago about contemporary Jewish heroes. We are now working on some stand-alone picture books about some of those people.
We have a biography of gymnast Agnes Keleti coming out soon with Kar-Ben - she's is one of these personalities - and we have a picture book entitled "Rembrandt Chooses a Queen" coming out for next Purim with Apples and Honey Press.
Olitzky: We have several projects simultaneously underway, including a book about unusual Jewish facts--to be published by Behrman House/Apples and Honey Press and supported by an incentive grant from PJ Library--and a biography of Agnes Keleti (to be published by Kar Ben Books) and a biography of Yosef Yekuteli (to be published by Behrman House/Apples and Honey Press) and a Jewish Heroes alphabet book (to be published by Behrman House/Apples and Honey Press)
Q: Anything else we should know?
Cohen: A year ago, I began working as an editor at Behrman House/Apples and Honey Press.
The Candy Man Mystery
Rabbi Kerry Olitzky, author
Christina Mattison Ebert, illustrator
Kalaniot Books
http://kalaniotbooks.com
c/o Endless Mountain Publishing
www.endlessmountainspublishing.com
9781735087528, $19.99, HC, 32pp
https://www.amazon.com/Candy-Mystery-Rabbi-Kerry-Olitzky/dp/1735087521
Synopsis: In a synagogue, everyone plays an important role: the rabbi, the cantor, the teachers, and even the congregation. But some synagogues are lucky enough to have a candy man. Everyone loves the Candy Man at Temple Shalom, especially the kids. It's not just because of the delicious candy that he gives out after Shabbat services, either. Mr. Sharansky is always ready to help, whether it's reading a book during junior congregation, telling a silly joke, or just sharing a friendly smile. But when the Candy Man goes missing, Josh and Becky get to work to uncover the mystery. In the end, the kids find the Candy Man--and so much more!
Critique: A thoroughly charming and Jewish themed picture book by the collaborative team of author/storyteller Rabbi Kerry Olitzky and artist/illustrator Christina Mattison Ebert, "The Candy Man Mystery" is especially and unreservedly recommended for family, daycare center, preschool, elementary school, and community library collections for children ages 4-8.
Editorial Note: Rabbi Kerry Olitzky, named one of the 50 leading rabbis in North America by Newsweek, is well-known for his inspiring books that bring the Jewish wisdom and tradition into everyday life. He has written over 75 books and hundreds of articles in a variety of fields. The Littlest Candle, A Hanukkah Story, written with his son, Rabbi Jesse Olitzky, was published by Kalaniot Books in 2020.
Please Note: Illustration(s) are not available due to copyright restrictions.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2022 Midwest Book Review
http://www.midwestbookreview.com/cbw/index.htm
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Olitzky, Rabbi Kerry. "The Candy Man Mystery." Children's Bookwatch, Apr. 2022. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A707299165/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=440d73fe. Accessed 4 May 2025.
Miryam's Dance. By Kerry Olitzky and Rachel Stock Spilker. Illus. by John Baptist Tumuhaise. Oct. 2023. 32p. Behrman/Apples 8c Honey, $18.95 (9781681156088). K-Gr. 3.
Miryam's Dance follows a Jewish girl in a Ugandan village as she dances through her family's preparations for Shabbat, the Sabbath. She collects plantains from the store and water from a pump. She interrupts her brothers' sweeping and gets distracted while helping her cousin pick mangoes and pawpaws. All the while, she hears the toomba toomba of distant drums. Finally, Miryam finds the source of the drumming: a group of dancers! She joins them as they celebrate Shabbat together in the village. In many ways, the setting is the star of this book. Authors Olitzsky and Spilker mention details about the area, ranging from the sound of the drum to particular foods. The brightly colored illustrations also give a strong feel for the village, showcasing everything from local clothing to mosquito nets to wildlife. In an appended letter, Gershom Sizomu, the chief rabbi of Uganda, explains a bit more about his community and their customs. A joyful peek into Jewish life in a place that is likely to be unfamiliar to many American readers. --Miriam Aronin
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
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Aronin, Miriam. "Miryam's Dance." Booklist, vol. 120, no. 4, 15 Oct. 2023, p. 49. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A770323937/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=92c72db6. Accessed 4 May 2025.
Cohen, Deborah Bodin AN ETROG FROM ACROSS THE SEA Kar-Ben (Children's None) $19.99 8, 6 ISBN: 9798765604496
A Jewish family in colonial New York hopes Papa will come back in time for Sukkot.
In July 1729, Leah, Aaron, and Mama wait for Papa, a merchant currently on the island of Corsica, to return to their woodland homestead. The Jewish holidays are approaching, and Papa has promised to bring home an etrog, a citrus fruit resembling a bumpy lemon. (This fruit is one of four plants used to decorate a sukkah, a small hut built by observant Jews to celebrate Sukkot.) The family travels to Grandpapa Luis' elegant New York City home to await Papa's ship; it doesn't come. Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur pass; still, Papa doesn't return. At last, Mama declares it's time they leave; she must run their business. Grandpapa Luis gives Leah a silver cup; she can put the etrog into it when Papa finally comes back. Back home, the family builds and decorates their sukkah and waits. The first night of Sukkot is especially joyous: Papa returns, bringing his promised bounty. This touching story, written by two rabbis, offers a glimpse into a lesser-known aspect of colonial America and celebrates the warmth of family togetherness. The authors' note explains that Grandpapa Luis is based on Luis Moises Gomez, a Sephardic Jewish colonial merchant and trader. The lovely, stylized illustrations expertly capture historical details and resemble delicate paintings on porcelain or needlework on embroidery samplers.
A homey, appealing holiday celebration. (Picture book. 5-8)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2024 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
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"Cohen, Deborah Bodin: AN ETROG FROM ACROSS THE SEA." Kirkus Reviews, 15 June 2024. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A797463211/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=027d04b4. Accessed 4 May 2025.
Olitzky, Kerry JUST LIKE QUEEN ESTHER Jessica Kingsley Publishers (Children's None) $18.95 1, 19 ISBN: 9781805013068
A trans girl finds a much-needed mirror in a biblical queen.
Atara wears a crown everywhere she goes--in fact, her name even meanscrown. One day, her mom reads her a book about Purim, and Atara sees herself in Queen Esther; while Esther hid her Jewish identity, for a long time Atara never told her parents she was really a girl. Just as Esther's crown made it clear that she was a queen, Atara's crown gives her a sense of assurance about her identity. In drama class, Atara is even cast as Queen Esther in the Purim play. The show is a hit. But when Atara forgets her crown at home the next day, she must summon her inner confidence. The book's full-color, pastel illustrations are reminiscent of newspaper comic strips, with rounded, squiggly lines. The dyslexia-friendly text appears separately from the images. Though the writing is purposeful and at times clunky, it's wonderful to see a Purim story that centers a trans protagonist; many young people will identify with both Atara and Esther. The book has no endnotes about the holiday, so adults may want to pair this offering with an informational text. Atara and her mom have tan complexions and curly brown hair. Queen Esther has brown skin; the Persian King Ahasuerus is light-skinned.
A delightfully inclusive Purim tale. (reading recommendations, coloring activity)(Picture book. 3-7)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2024 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
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"Olitzky, Kerry: JUST LIKE QUEEN ESTHER." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Dec. 2024. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A817945885/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=34e7cdd3. Accessed 4 May 2025.
Olitzky, Kerry TWIST, TUMBLE, TRIUMPH Kar-Ben (Children's None) $18.99 2, 4 ISBN: 9798765619773
A champion athlete soared in more ways than one.
When Hungarian gymnast Ãgnes Keleti twirled through the air, she forgot about war and the oppression she and other Jewish people faced after the Nazis came to power. But she couldn't forget forever: Her coach explained that Jews were now barred from the gym. A fellow Jewish athlete told her about his secret training place--a local school gym--and invited Ãgnes to join him. Practicing clandestinely worked temporarily, until the Nazis overtook Budapest. A determined Ãgnes refused to wear the yellow star required of all Jewish people and urged her family to go into hiding. Her mother and sister left almost immediately; her father refused to abandon his factory. Ãgnes, too famous to remain in Budapest, departed for a small village with documents purchased from a Christian woman and became a maid for a pro-Nazi family. After the war, Ãgnes reunited with her mother and sister but learned her father had perished at Auschwitz. Focused on the future, Ãgnes ultimately won the Hungarian National Championship again and triumphed at the 1952 Olympics. Readers will appreciate this inspiring tale that addresses the anguish Ãgnes endured while emphasizing her indomitable spirit; young people will eagerly cheer her on. The energetic, stylized illustrations depicting Ãgnes' gymnastics routines serve as an effective metaphor for her endurance in the face of oppression. Period details are depicted well.
A stirring expression of the triumph of the human spirit. (author's note with a photo of Ãgnes at age 95)(Picture-book biography. 5-8)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2024 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 9th Edition APA 7th Edition Chicago 17th Edition Harvard
"Olitzky, Kerry: TWIST, TUMBLE, TRIUMPH." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Dec. 2024. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A817945771/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=2fc4c8f7. Accessed 4 May 2025.
* Twist, Tumble, Triumph: The Story of Champion Gymnast Agnes Keleti.
By Deborah Bodin Cohen and Kerry Olitzky.
Illus. by Martina Peluso.
Feb. 2025. 32p. Lerner/Kar-Ben, $18.99 (9798765619773).
K-Gr. 3. 796.44092.
Cohen and Olitzky have produced an engaging biography of Agnes Keleti, a Hungarian Jewish gymnast with a compelling life story, who is little known today. Wisely, the authors let their subject and the events of her life speak for themselves without too much commentary. Young readers (and perhaps their parents too) will be intrigued and inspired by this brave gymnast who was banned from training by the Nazis and survived WWII by hiding behind a false identity. Despite her struggles, Keleti never gave up her sport-- and continued to Olympic victory years later. Peluso's illustrations beautifully capture Keleti's contrasting moods and surroundings, from her joyful athleticism when practicing and competing in gymnastics to the darkness of the Nazi threat to herself and her family. Although this is a picture book, the overall level of complexity of the story and prominence of events from the Holocaust make it better suited to elementary-age readers than to very young children. An inspiring and fascinating biography for readers interested in sports, history, or simply a good story of resilience. A concluding author's note is paired with photos of Keleti practicing the uneven bars as a young woman and doing a split as a 95-year-old gymnastics coach.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2025 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 9th Edition APA 7th Edition Chicago 17th Edition Harvard
Aronin, Miriam. "Twist, Tumble, Triumph: The Story of Champion Gymnast Agnes Keleti." Booklist, vol. 121, no. 9-10, Jan. 2025, p. 52. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A829739443/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=fd40bda7. Accessed 4 May 2025.