When Fanny Goldstein was six years hold her family immigrated to America from Russia seeking a safe place to practice their Jewish religion. Fanny started attending the North End Settlement House to learn about American customs. What Fanny loved best their was the library. Eventually Fanny started working as a librarian’s assistant and eventually became the first Jewish director of a Boston branch library. Noticing that Jewish families rarely checked out books about their heritage and stories, she decided to host a celebration of Jewish books and culture. This celebration has been going on for over 100 years.

An introductory biography with more information about Fanny and Jewish Book Week at the end. The author also includes a biography that he used for his research to write this book. The illustrations are welcoming for children without being cartoonish. An excellent choice for the biography section.

This is book 3 in a series about a friendship between young girl named Coco and a Bear. The first book is Share Some Kindness, Bring the Light and the second is Find Your Brave.

Bear and Coco are walking in the snowy wood when Bear suggests building a castle. Coco says building a fort is a great idea. Coco gets carried away with her ideas and isn’t listening to Bear until Bear yells at her. An excellent story about communication and really listening to someone.

The watercolor and digital ink illustrations are beautiful and create a softness about the story even when Bear and Coco are having their first argument.

Penny’s family is always on the go. They are always in and out the door and no one stops to do puzzles, play the banjo, or scratch Bo-Belly’s ears. One day something green sprouts in the floor. Unsure what it is, but feeling that it is something special, Penny starts to nurture it. Soon a tree is growing in their house and the family starts to slow down, feel a sense of calm and spend more time at home.

The watercolor illustrations help evoke the sense of calm and wonder surrounding the mysterious tree that sprouts in the house. A wonderful reminder for overscheduled families to slow down and spend time together.

Proper Badger is off to school. He would never trash a classroom, but of course that is what inadvertently happens. Proper Badger thinks he is doing things right, but of course he is just creating chaos. Did he burrow under the desks? Did he eat the class pet for lunch? Of course not! Proper Badger would never! The illustrations add to the tale showing all of the mischief Proper Badger gets into.

Good night, Himalayas! The sun begins to set over the mountain crest.

Explore the Himalayan mountains with this bedtime story. Travel by bike or by boat. Swim in a lake or have a picnic. Each page explores a different feature of the Himalayan mountains with a text box that includes a pronunciation guide and facts about the area that will introduce readers to an area they may not be familiar with. The illustrations are vibrant, inviting, and fill the 2 page spread.

Isha’s birthday is coming and her grandmother is coming from India to visit. Isha can’t wait for her Nani to come. She tells her neighbor Mrs. Garcia all about Nani and she invites Mrs. Garcia and others to the party. As she gets things ready for her Nani, her Nani says she is sick and can’t come. Isha is so sad, but soon realizes that her friends are like her family and Nani will visit when she is feeling better.

A heartfelt story of dealing with disappointment and discovering the value of friendship.

Evie and her pet cat, Sasha, are on the way to the pet parade. While at the parade, Evie decides that her pet is boring. She sets off to persuade her parents to let her get a more exciting pet. When she finds a snake in her backyard, her parents let her keep it. But a snake for a pet was not what Evie was expecting. And as she learns about her snake, she learns that maybe not all animals are meant to be pets.

Inspired by the author’s childhood of catching a wild garter snake and keeping it as a pet. He notes that there are now laws in some states to protect wild snakes and it is better to get a snake from a reputable source.