Tag Archives: Kar Ben

Happy Book Birthday: THE MOUSE WHO LOVED LATKES Plus Giveaway

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Hello dear friends! It’s time to sing another Happy Birthday to a book by a long-time kid lit friend, Joy Wieder.

What an adorable cover!!! And what a beautiful book. Here’s a little bit about the story:
When the Katz family moves in, C.J. the mouse is scared. Nibbling jelly doughnut crumbs in the kitchen, he hears a soft voice say, “Hello.” The Katz family is spinning a dreidel and eating chocolate coins. It looks like fun, but a mouse can’t play with cats! “Hello again,” says the soft voice. “Please don’t go. I could use a friend.” Can C.J. overcome his fear and make some new friends just in time for Hanukkah?

Joy is both the author and illustrator…her characters encourage kids to connect to the story…and I know this book will soon become a Hanukkah favorite!

ME: And we are so lucky because Joy stopped by to share a couple of special things with us. Welcome, Joy!

JOY: Hello everyone! It’s lovely to be here. Thank you, Vivian, for sharing this good new I’m having a giveaway for signed copies of the book for 2 lucky winners until Oct. 26. Here’s a link: https://gleam.io/MbBk5/the-mouse-who-loved-latkes-giveaways about my book.

I know that writers enjoy hearing the story behind the story…so here’s a little bit about how THE MOUSE WHO LOVED LATKES:
This book began many years ago as an image in my mind of a mouse up on a rafter, looking down at a Jewish family chanting a Hebrew blessing. The mouse is afraid and worries that this strange, new family is trying to put a spell on him. That image evolved into a Hanukkah book about an unlikely friendship between the mouse and a family of cats named Katz! I love latkes, so I realized a mouse might love them, too, and that food often acts as a bridge between cultures.

I also wanted to share a link for the awesome trailer that will give you a tiny peek inside the book:

Oh, I’m such a fan of book trailers…I’ve never done one, but seeing this one, I’m going to have to give the idea more thought…this is adorable!!!

Here’s a little bit about Joy:
Since childhood, Joy dreamed of joining her two passions – art and books – by writing and illustrating books for children. Her dreams were fulfilled with the publication of her first book in 1999. She has now authored nearly 30 books for young readers. Click on books to read reviews or make a purchase.

Joy has written both beginning chapter books and picture books for young readers. Her whimsical illustrations are created in a variety of drawing and water based mediums as well as digital media. See Joy’s portfolio to view her artwork.
To learn more about Joy and her books:
Joy Nelkin Wieder

jnwieder.com
Twitter: @JoyWieder
Instagram: @jnwieder
Facebook: joynelkinwieder

Lea Ferrante Photography 61 Stacey Circle Concord, MA 01742 lea@ferrante-photo.com

And dear blog followers, what can we do to help this beautiful book become a success? We can:
Buy the book
Review the book
Tell friends about the book
Ask your local library to purchase copies of the book

I hope you all have a wonderful week! Thank you for spending your precious time with us.

Perfect Picture Book Friday: HANUKKAH HIPPITY-HOP Plus Giveaway

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Happy Perfect Picture Book Friday, dear friends! We are slipping in a board book this week, but I know you won’t mind because HANUKKAH HIPPITY-HOP is so adorable – and perfect with Hanukkah right around the corner. And we missed celebrating author Barbara Kimmel’s book birthday because I had to step away from blogging for a while. But Barbara kindly stopped by to chat about the book…and she offering a GIVEAWAY…a copy of the book to one lucky winner (U.S. addresses only).

HANUKKAH HIPPITY-HOP

Written by Barbara Kimmel

Illustrated by Ana Zurita

Published by Kar Ben (October 1, 2024)

Ages: 1-4

Themes: Hanukkah,

Synopsis: From Amazon:
Get ready to celebrate―and get your wiggles out―by doing the Hanukkah Hippity-Hop! March like a Maccabee and stomp your feet, then shake like the jelly in a doughnut treat!

This festive and fun rhyming board book invites toddlers to stomp, shake, and spin as they learn about Hanukkah. This joyful book is a wonderful gift that’s sure to become a cherished holiday favorite for children—and their grown-ups!

Why I Love This Book:
1. Joyful rhyming text!
2. Joyful colorful illustrations!
4. Joyful interactive read-aloud!

Here’s some praise from Hornbook:
‘MARCH like a Maccabee—stomping your feet! / SHAKE like the jelly in a doughnut treat.’ This board book dances through the details of Hanukkah, urging young listeners to spin like a dreidel and jump like a latke in a pan. Bold illustrations feature a diverse group of kids (and one mischievous cat) hippity-hopping their holiday hearts out amid Hanukkah treats, decorations, and spinning dreidels. A jaunty introduction to Hanukkah activities for the toddler set.”— The Horn Book Magazine, HOLIDAY HIGH NOTES 2024

We’ll get to the craft activity in a minute, but first I want to welcome Barbara. She’s a member of the #JewishBoardBooks group and is always busy helping spread the word about the importance of board books!
ME: Welcome, Barbara!

BARBARA:
As a new writer, I participated in as many contests as possible to sharpen my skills and connect with the wonderful KidLit community. One of my favorites was your annual “50 Precious Words” challenge. To my surprise, my story placed 5th out of 770 entries the first year I entered, and the following year, I was stunned to place 4th. To stay under 50 words, I wrote short, interactive rhymes—something I had never tried before. Placing in these contests inspired me to keep writing in that format, and the recognition from you and your judges gave me the confidence to stick with my dream of writing for children. Thank you!

ME: WOW! Thank you, Barbara! #50PreciousWords has inspired many writers, I think. And I’m already making plans for the 2025 contest…gathering prizes and I’ll soon be contacting my fabulous judges! By the way, for those of you who want to get a head start…the heads-up post will be up on the blog early in February…and the contest will take place from 12:01am March 2 to 11:59pm March 3.

But back to Hanukkah Hippity-Hop…it’s the perfect gift for little ones who will hold this sturdy book in their hands and will be developing early literacy skills as they turn the pages and focus on the vibrant illustrations!
Please help beautiful books like this succeed…we can:
Buy the book
Review the book
Tell friends about the book (Please share this post on your social media)
Ask your local library to purchase copies for their collection
And for more about the book and what Barbara is up to, please check out her website:https://barbarakimmelwrites.com/books/hanukkah-hippity-hop/

And here are a few fun crafts to keep the kiddos busy and engaged:

Photo: https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/kids-crafts-to-celebrate-hanukkah-4117938

Just hippity-hop over to https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/kids-crafts-to-celebrate-hanukkah-4117938 for dozens of cool Hanukkah crafts for children of all ages!

Thank you for spending your precious time with us…blogging is still a bit frustrating because I’ve been away a while and WordPress seems to have updated things…I wish they would just leave everything the way it was. It seems as if once I learn how to navigate it, they change something and there is a whole new learning curve. Does that happen to you?

Don’t forget to leave a comment for a chance to win a copy of this wonderful board book…and please share on your social media. I’m on Blue Sky now…are you?

Perfect Picture Book Friday: A FEATHER, A PEBBLE, A SHELL Plus Giveaway

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Happy Perfect Picture Book Friday, dear friends. Get ready for a FABULOUS post, thanks to the talented author/illustrator Miri Leshem-Pelly who stopped by to share some of the behind-the-pages process of her newest book, A FEATHER, A PEBBLE, A SHELL.

ME: Welcome, Miri! Thanks for visiting. And we are listening!

When reality mimics imagination

Look at this photo vs drawing, both of a girl on a tree. I bet you’re thinking I used this photo as a reference while drawing this sketch, right? Wrong!

What if I tell you that I drew this tree out of my imagination? And that I took this picture AFTER I drew this sketch? 

Well – let me tell you the story behind the picture.

It all happened after I’ve finished working on the pencil sketches for my book. The sketches were approved by the publisher, and I was about to start the final color illustrations.

One of the scenes in the book happens in a place called Sataf, in the Jerusalem mountains. When I drew the pencil sketch of the girl sitting on an olive tree in Sataf, I looked at many olive tree photos but couldn’t find exactly the tree I needed, so I made one up from my imagination.

Around that time, we were invited to my nephew’s Bar Mitzvah. This boy loves hiking and decided to celebrate his Bar Mitzvah with a family hike to Sataf! I thought this would be an excellent opportunity to take pictures of some ancient olive trees that grow there. But I didn’t expect to find the tree from my sketch! When I saw this tree, I asked my niece to sit and hug it just like the girl from my sketch. My sweet niece is about the same age of the girl character in my book and she even had a similar hat!

And that’s how this funny story happened. I imagined an olive tree in Sataf, drew it, and then discovered that this tree actually exists right there, in Sataf. Sometimes reality mimics imagination, and I have the picture to prove it.

WOW! That’s amazing! Thank you so much, Miri. And friends, take a look at the awesome cover of our Perfect Picture Book Friday feature:

A FEATHER, A PEBBLE, A SHELL

Written and illustrated by Miri Leshem-Pelly

Published by Kar Ben (May 7, 2024)

Ages: 3-8

Themes: Nature/STEM, Girl explorer, Israel

Synopsis:
A FEATHER, A PEBBLE, A SHELL follows a girl’s hikes through the diverse nature sites of Israel. Whenever she runs in a field, climbs up a hill or swims in the sea, she looks for something small to hold in her hand. It’s a picture book about curiosity and connection to nature, and about little wonders of nature that children love to discover!

Why I Love This Book:
I love picture book stories that take me on a journey. Child readers will be swept away to a calm and peaceful place in their hearts as the main character visits river, beach, and field. The writing is captivating – the language is lyrical and visual – and the illustrations are stunning. The additional STEM sidebars add value for teachers who can use this book in the classroom. Highly recommend!!

RELATED ACTIVITIES:

Photo courtesy: https://temeculablogs.com/nature-crafts/

Check out a bunch of lovely Nature crafts for kids here: https://temeculablogs.com/nature-crafts/

And there’s more! Miri has activities on her website:
Get here free downloads for this book: https://mirileshembooks.com/free-downloads/

To find out more about Miri and her books:
Miri Leshem-Pelly is an author-illustrator of 17 picture books, many of them about nature and animals. Miri does more than 100 school visits per year. She is an SCBWI RAE (Regional Advisor Emerita) after serving more than ten years as a regional advisor of SCBWI in Israel.
Miri is represented by literary agent Anna Olswanger.
Connect with Miri:
Website: http://mirileshembooks.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/miri_leshem_pelly/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mirileshem


Dear friends…great books need our help. Books like A FEATHER, A PEBBLE, A SHELL need to be in library and school and home bookshelves all around the world. So, how can we help? We can:
Buy the book:
Lerner website: https://lernerbooks.com/shop/show/23133
Amazon
Review the book:
Amazon
Add it to your Goodreads Want to Read Shelf
Tell friends about the book (Please share this post on your social media – that really helps)
Ask your local library to purchase copies for their collection

A Feather, A Pebble, A Shell 979-8-7656-0774-9 (LB) 979-8-7656-1339-9 (EB epub) Whenever the author-illustrator runs in a field, climbs a hill, or swims in the sea in Israel, she looks for something small to hold in her hand. She finds a basalt pebble from the ice-cold Dan River, formed from lava over 100,000 years ago. Israel’s national bird, the hoopoe, leaves a feather in the grass at HaYarkon Park. Dead hood coral grows in the Red Sea, where fish play hide-and-seek. She holds small things in her hand and then leaves them in their habitats. . . for the reader to find.

Please leave a comment for a chance to win a copy of this glorious book and tell us how you will help spread the word. Maybe you can also tell us what object YOU would have kept if you had been on those hikes.

And please come back here on Sunday for our special Mother’s Day post containing the #50PreciousWordsforKids stories!