The well-documented rise of antisemitism in the United States is disturbing and dangerous. Like other brands of hatred, it demands serious pushback for every threatening incident. Also essential as a more general and ongoing countermeasure is the idea of representation: the rejection of age-old and specious tropes and the necessity of accurate portrayals when it comes to Jews and diverse Jewish experiences.
That’s where San Francisco’s 43rd annual Jewish Film Festival comes in, offering an eclectic collection of 67 films from 18 countries. (The festival runs through Aug. 6; visitwww.sfjff.orgfor full schedule and film information.) Perusing the film write-ups on the festival website, I got to thinking about kids’ books: What do they show about Jewish life, past and present? How might they address antisemitism? How do they fully inform non-Jewish kids and bolster a sense of belonging for Jewish ones?
A sampling of recent books helps answer these questions.
Afikomen
Written by Tziporah Cohen; illustrated by Yaara Eshet
(Groundwood Books/House of Anansi Press; 32 pages; $19.99; ages 3-6)
三个孩子在th时间旅行回到古埃及is delightful wordless picture book. With theafikomen(a ceremonial matzah), they dive under the Passover table to partake in a Biblical tale — how the mother of baby Moses sets him afloat in a basket on the Nile, hoping to evade Pharaoh’s decree to kill newborn Jewish boys. (Pharaoh feared the slaves would become too populous and powerful.) Droll watercolors introduce one family’s multigenerational, multiracial seder before heading to the past — the majestic desert, river and Egyptian court where Moses grows up, only to lead his people out of slavery and connect future generations to the struggle for human freedom.
Rivka’s Presents
By Laurie Wallmark; illustrated by Adelina Lirius
(Random House Studio; 40 pages; $18.99; ages 3-7)
Nostalgia-tinged art harks back to 1918 and a tenement apartment on the Lower East Side of New York City. There Papa lies ill, a victim of the flu pandemic. Mama takes work at a shirtwaist factory, and Rivka forgoes school to watch her younger sister. That is the setup for a surprisingly upbeat story about the hardships faced by one Jewish immigrant family. The resilient Rivka barters her labor for lessons about letters, numbers and American history from kind neighborhood folk. She is then classroom-ready when Papa recovers. The book’s main point: For Rivka and other new arrivals from many lands, education was a reliable ticket out of poverty.
Hidden Hope: How a Toy and a Hero Saved Lives During the Holocaust
Written by Elisa Boxer; illustrated by Amy June Bates
(Abrams; 48 pages; $19.99; ages 7-11)
The City of Lights is dark and dangerous during the Nazi occupation. But that’s when teenager Jacqueline Gauthier pedals her bicycle through Paris delivering the false identity papers that grant gentile names and a chance at survival to Jews in hiding. With writing both spare and suspenseful, this true tale focuses on the small wooden duck that Gauthier carries with her. Surely patrolling Nazi soldiers would not suspect a toy or a Christian social worker charged with helping children. The truth: Both hold secrets. Moody watercolor and gouache paintings admirably capture heart-stopping action and poignant moments to recall how one courageous young woman makes a life-and-death difference.
The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz: A True Story Retold for Young Readers
By Jeremy Dronfield
(Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins; 374 pages; $17.99; ages 10 and up)
“The story you are about to read in this book is true … I often wish it wasn’t true because it contains so many horrible things that should never be allowed to happen,” writes author Jeremy Dronfield in this accessible adaptation of his eponymous adult bestseller. With mounting tension, this emblematic Holocaust story shows step-by-step what happens to an ordinary Jewish family from Vienna when the Nazis invade Austria and carry antisemitism to mass murder. Focus is on two brothers — the older Fritz is inexplicably allowed to accompany Papa in the camps, and the younger Kurt is miraculously allowed to join relatives in America. The writing is matter-of-fact, letting bravery, kindness, loyalty and love to somehow overshadow unimaginable atrocities.
The Babka Sisters
By Lesléa Newman; illustrated byTika and Tata Bobokhidze
(Kar-Ben/Lerner; 32 pages; $19.99; ages 3-8)
Whose babka is best? This deliciously silly nod to TV baking shows features sisters Hester and Esther, companionable but competitive babka bakers. The tester? Sylvester, a newcomer on their block, luckily arriving with Solomon-like judgment. Two illustrators from Georgia (the country, not the state) showcase the sisters’ cozy, side-by-side homes in a style both modern and folkloric. Many more rhyming names buoyantly move the story along. Then, too, the almost lost world of Yiddish is slightly referenced with too few vocabulary words —schvester(sister),kugel(a baked pudding) andbabka, that delicious sweet bread, honored in a famous “Seinfeld” episode and here too.
Planning Perfect
By Haley Neil
(Bloomsbury; 326 pages; $17.99; ages 12-17)
A rising senior loves rules, structure and to-do lists. Thus, the hyper-organized Felicity volunteers to plan her chaotic mother’s first-ever wedding. That is but one plot line in this of-the-moment YA novel. With humor and heart, Felicity talks through her anxiety over the college application process and her questions about sexuality. Might she be ace-spectrum or asexual? Might her friend from an LGBTQIA+ seminar be more than just a friend? Felicity’s Jewish heritage is no problem in a liberal Boston suburb. It simply lends texture to the mix that includes one stock character — a loving but guilt-trippy grandmother. Snappy dialogue mimics real-life conversations to easily advance this coming-of-age tale, replete with possibilities.
Susan Faust is a freelance writer.