The Truth About My Bat Mitzvah by Nora Raleigh Baskin
Aladdin; Reprint edition - April 2009
Ages 9-12
Cautions: None

Kiwi Magazine Review:
As a parent of a family with a Jewish dad and a non-Jewish mom, this story really rang true for me. Although our daughter goes to a Jewish school, her identity may become a concern when she is older because both her parents are not the same faith. This author really captured the essence of the main character’s struggle with her identity, her beliefs and her feelings about choosing to be a bat mitzvah. In the end, she makes the decision that feels right but it isn’t without a struggle.

I’m Your Peanut Butter Big Brother by Selina Alko
Knopf - March 10, 2009
Ages 4-8
Cautions - none

Kiwi Magazine Review:
I fell in love with this book, its adorable characters and its quirky, happy illustrations. The first person book, written from the “peanut butter big-brother-to-be” perspective, tells how a young boy anticipates the birth of his sister.  The boy, who blends from ’semisweet dark Daddy chocolate bar’ and ‘Strawberry cream Mama’s milk,’ wonders if his new sibling will have skin the color of coffee, hair like broccoli florets and eyes like honey-roasted almonds. The illustrations are colorful and delicious!

Publisher’s Description:
In this delightfully engaging picture book, our narrator, big brother, uses his boundless imagination to wonder what his new sibling will look like.

Baby brother or sister, will you look like me? I blend from semisweet dark
Daddy chocolate bar and strawberry cream Mama’s milk.
My hair is soft crunchy billows of cotton candy.
I’m your peanut butter big-brother-to-be.

Selina Alko’s lyrical and jazz-like text, matched with the vibrant energy of her illustrations, perfectly captures the excitement of a new baby for an older sibling, while celebrating the genuine love of family.

Selina Alko is the illustrator of My Taxi Ride and My Subway Ride. She graduated from the School of Visual Arts and lives in Brooklyn with her husband, Sean Qualls, who is also an illustrator, and their two children.

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