Exploring Top Books of Shelfari

"My brother stood up so quickly he almost knocked Mama over. 'Why aren't you doing something? Do you know what the British are calling us? Hitler's canary! I've heard it on the radio, on the BBC. They say he has us in a cage and we just sit and sing any tune he wants.'" Bamse's family are theater people. They don't get involved in politics. "it had nothing to do with us," Bamse tells us. Yet now he must decide:... (more)

Julia's Kitchen

by Brenda A. Ferber

Cara Segal is a born worrier. She figures her worrying works like a whisper in God’s ear – if Cara’s concerned about car crashes, kidnappings, or murders, she lets God know, and he always spares her. But Cara never thought to worry about a fire. And one night while she’s sleeping at a friend’s house, her house catches fire, and her mother and younger sister are both killed. Throughout shiva, the initial Jewish... (more)

Passover (Holidays and Festivals (Compass Point Books).)

Passover (Holidays and Festivals (Compass Point Books).)

by Alice K. Flanagan

Alice K. Flanagan is a Capstone Press author.

The Boy from Seville (Kar-Ben for Older Readers)

The Boy from Seville (Kar-Ben for Older Readers)

by Avi Katz, Dorit Orgad

Say It With Music: The Story of Irving Berlin (Modern Music Masters)

Say It With Music: The Story of Irving Berlin (Modern Music Masters)

by Nancy Furstinger

Grade 5-9-The immigrant experience and a history of the early popular-music business in the United States form the background for this biography of one of America's best-known songwriters. In well-researched detail, Furstinger describes how Berlin developed from a youngster who sang other people's songs to a sought-after songwriter for Broadway and Hollywood. The lasting importance of his contributions is made... (more)

Wise...and Not So Wise: Ten Tales from the Rabbis

Wise...and Not So Wise: Ten Tales from the Rabbis

by Phillis Gershator

Talmudic and midrashic folklore use the teachings of the ancient sages to answer questions and teach moral lessons, often with a dash of humor. In this delightful collection of stories, Phillis Gershator takes these spiritual and folkloric elements and weaves them together with her own unique humor and wisdom to create a very special version of the wondrous tales that have captivated readers for centuries. ... (more)

Marika

by Andrea Cheng

In this compelling first novel, a Hungarian girl comes to terms with being a Jew during World War II. Marika covers roughly ten years in the life of a Hungarian girl named Marika, the only daughter of a wealthy stockbroker and his wife. Marika is six years old when WWII erupts, and for her the war is far away. At first it intrudes on her life only on occasion, such as when her uncle advises her to give her rag... (more)

The Hungry Clothes and Other Jewish Folktales (Folktales of the World)

The Hungry Clothes and Other Jewish Folktales (Folktales of the World)

by Peninnah Schram

The stories we hear in childhood—usually from parents and grandparents, teachers and caregivers—teach us the values, faith, culture, and traditions of those we love most. They nourish our sense of wonder and curiosity about the world. That’s what this brand-new series aims to achieve, and it is our hope that children and their families will explore these wonderful tales together. Each book, filled with evocative... (more)

Power of Song: And Other Sephardic Tales

Power of Song: And Other Sephardic Tales

by Rita Roth

From Hanina, the daughter of a Jewish tailor who cures a sultan's only child by taming a lioness to get her milk, to Nahum Bilbas, the brave rabbi-in-training who dares to confront the great warrior El Cid in order to secure peace for the Jews of Valencia, the folktales in this delightful little collection contain lessons, truths, surprises, and happy endings. To add to the reader's enjoyment and... (more)

The Truth About My Bat Mitzvah

by Nora Raleigh Baskin

Caroline's mom is Jewish, her dad isn't, and Caroline has never really thought of herself as any religion. But when her nana dies and leaves Caroline a Star of David necklace, Caroline begins to wonder about her heritage. If she starts going to synagogue, won't that upset her dad? Should she have a Bat Mitzvah like her best friend, Rachel? Does Caroline want to be Jewish? The more she thinks about it, the more... (more)

My Chocolate Year: A Novel with 12 Recipes

My Chocolate Year: A Novel with 12 Recipes

by Charlotte Herman

Dorrie Meyers is starting fifth grade, the year of the Sweet Semester baking and essay contest at school. Dorrie is determined to win, but her cakes fall flat, her cookies look like pancakes, and she learns the hard way that chocolate-covered gum is NOT a good idea. Then Dorrie meets her cousin Victor for the first time. Victor is an immigrant from Europe, and he is about to teach Dorrie that a loving family and a... (more)

The Fortuneteller in 5B

by Jane Zalben

One day a mysterious new neighbor moves into apartment 5B upstairs. Eleven-year-old Alexandria and her best friend Jenny suspect she might be a witch or a vampire. After all, she speaks with a Transylvania accent, brews up concoctions with strange herbs and has a heavy trunk covered with foreign labels. Alex learns that people who are strange or different aren’t always to be feared. In fact, sometimes they can... (more)

The Brothers Schlemiel

by Mark Binder

Imagine a village with a town drunk who doesn't drink and a carpenter who takes measurements only with his thumb. Welcome to the town of Chelm, Poland, a place filled with lovable fools sure to provide laughter for the entire family. The Brothers Schlemiel follows the lives of identical twins Adam and Abraham from birth to adulthood as they encounter thieves, Gypsies, kings, and love, celebrate good luck, and... (more)

Liberty on 23rd Street (Adventures in America) (Adventures in America)

Liberty on 23rd Street (Adventures in America) (Adventures in America)

by Jacqueline B. Glasthal

It is March of 1885, and New York City is preparing to accept a gift from the people of France to the people of America: the Statue of Liberty. There is a slight problem, though. The statue needs a base to stand on, and raising funds is proving difficult. Twelve-year-old Emma Kagan has a problem, too safely delivering a package from her Lower East Side neighborhood to a department store miles north. Little does... (more)

New Beginnings

by Chaya Baila Weinfeld

After the death of her mother, twelve-year-old Rina is rejected by her other relatives and goes to live with a wealthy couple in New York, where she finds a way of life very different from what she has ever known. Rina had to take a train, a plane and a cab all by herself to a new big city. There she would begin her life again. Would she like her new school? Would she find friends? Would her new adoptive parents... (more)

The night of the burning : Devorah's story

The night of the burning : Devorah's story

by Linda Press Wulf

Devorah’s world is shattered by the tragedies of post–Great War Europe: gas poisoning, famine, typhoid, and influenza. Then comes the Night of the Burning, when Cossacks provoke Christian Poles to attack their Jewish neighbors. In 1920, eleven-year-old Devorah and her little sister, Nechama, are the sole survivors of their community. Salvation arrives in the form of a South African philanthropist named Isaac... (more)

My Guardian Angel

by Sylvie Weil

Feisty and smart, Elvina is not your average 12-year-old. She adores reading ,writing, and studying like the boys. And she detests silly girls' chores, like keeping chicken eggs warm until they hatch. But she is also skilled in the art of healing, a skill that ultimately gets her into trouble. It's the 11th Century in France, and the Crusades are on a campaign to rid France of the Jews. The Jews live in terror... (more)

Something for Nothing (Aesop Accolades (Awards))

Something for Nothing (Aesop Accolades (Awards))

by Ann Redisch Stampler

Dog lived in the noisiest part of Bialystok. All day long he heard the hubbub of the nearby marketplace, and all night long he heard the banging and clanging of workmen unloading their goods. When he could take the racket no more, Dog set off for the country to find a quieter place to live. On his first night in his new home, a gang of howling and yowling, hissing and screeching cats terrorize him, destroying... (more)

Much, Much Better

by Chaim Kosofsky, Hachai Publishing

Shlomo and his wife, Miriam, live in a bright, tidy house in the ancient city of Baghdad. The couple s greatest joy is welcoming guests for Shabbat. But one week, there isn t a single poor or lonely person who can join them. When a mysterious traveler knocks on their door, Shlomo and Miriam treat him royally. Then, before he leaves, the grateful guest blesses the couple with the strangest bracha they ve ever... (more)

Righteous Smuggler (Holocaust Remembrance Book for Young Readers)

Righteous Smuggler (Holocaust Remembrance Book for Young Readers)

by Debbie Spring

This title is intended for ages 9-12. During WWII, when Hendrik, the young son of a fisherman in Amsterdam, notices his Jewish friends being barred from school and ostracised by their other classmates, he is determined to stand by them. His parents have always told him to fight injustice. So when Hendrik realises what Hitler's policies ultimately mean for his Jewish friends and their families, he hatches a daring... (more)

Shelfari Book Activity

Tags: juvenile.

by Sandi Toksvig