I know this is a week late for Chanukah, but when I was teaching I was lucky enough to find a series of children’s books by jane Breskin Zalben that were storybooks with animals of the Jewish Holidays.
When I was growing up as a child, there was nothing like this for me and my fellow Jewish children. Christmas had mice and rabbits and deer and all kinds of anthropomorphic animals celebrating Christmas. The Jewish holiday books that were available to me were serious. Chanukah was about the Macabees and not having enough oil, and it was a nice holiday and important, but where were the singing mice lighting the candles?
Jane Breskin Zalben changed all that for me, and after I had my own kids, I finally had a child-like book to show my kids the animal kids that celebrated the same holidays we did in much the same ways. It made my life more mainstream and not at the foggy window looking in.
Beni’s First Chanukah (my introduction to the author)
Papa’s Latkes (Chanukah)
Pearl’s Eight Days of Chanukah
Beni’s Family Cookbook for the Jewish Holidays
Pearl Plants a Tree (Tu B’Sh’Vat)
Pearl’s Marigolds for Grandpa (sitting shiva)
Griffins and Ginger Snaps 