The Rosh Hashanah Recipe (Ruby Celebrates!)

by Laura Gehl (Author) Aleksey Ivanov (Illustrator)

The Rosh Hashanah Recipe (Ruby Celebrates!)
Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade
Ruby creates apple recipes for the Jewish New Year.Ruby and her family go apple picking before Rosh Hashanah but they end up with more apples than they need for the holiday. So Ruby and her cousins come up with new apple recipes for the Jewish New Year. Will the apple dishes they make become family favorites?
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School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2--Ruby and her cousins go apple picking just before the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah. While they will need apples to dip in honey to symbolize a sweet New Year and to make the traditional apple cake, they realize that they have picked far too many. So the cousins decide to host a cooking show to try new recipes such as apple lasagna, apple pizza, and apple pancakes. When they still have apples left over, they make up a basket to give to their neighbor. Cheerful cartoon illustrations depict a three-generation contemporary Jewish family who also observes the holiday by attending synagogue. "A Note About Rosh Hashanah" is appended, but oddly begins by explaining the custom of eating a sheep's head or fish head, which is not common in the United States. Ruby's Savory Apple Pizza Recipe and Sweet Apple Pizza Recipe are also included. VERDICT Jewish and non-Jewish readers will relate to Ruby's family outing to the apple orchard. However, with no real conflict or suspense, there's not much of a story here. An optional purchase.--Rachel Kamin

Copyright 2022 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Publishers Weekly

Buoyed by gentle humor, this first slice-of-life installment of the Ruby Celebrates! series opens with the eponymous protagonist and her cousins picking far too many apples to solely dip in honey or to bake a single apple cake. In the Ivanovs' straightforward, animation-style art, the kids, portrayed with varied skin tones, present a solution: they enlist two adults as sous chefs, create their own recipes, present themselves as "Chef Appleman," "Chef Applestein," and "Chef Appleberg"--hosts of "Cooking with the Cousins"--and whip up apple pancakes, pizza, and lasagna. After Rosh Hashanah services ("They pray, sing, and listen to the shofar," Gehl writes) and a festive meal, the prospect of more apple-eating is too much: they gift a pretty basketful to a grateful neighbor and let family dog Boaz finish off the rest. Recipes and a holiday overview conclude. Ages 4-8. (Sept.)

Copyright 2022 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.
Laura Gehl
LAURA GEHL is the author of nearly two dozen popular picture books, board books, and early readers. Her books include One Big Pair of Underwear (Charlotte Zolotow Highly Commended Title, International Literacy Association Honor Book, Booklist Books for Youth Editors' Choice); the Peep and Egg series (Parents' Choice Recommendation, Children's Choice Book Award Finalist); among others. Visit her on the web at lauragehl.com

ANDREA ZUILL is the author-illustrator of Regina is NOT a Little Dinosaur, an Indie Next List selection; Sweety, a Booklist Best Book of the Year; and Wolf Camp, a Children's Choice Award finalist. She is also the creator of Business Pig, Dance Is for Everyone, and Marigold & Daisy. Andrea is the illustrator of Cat Dog Dog by Nelly Buchet, an American Library Association Notable Book which was called "A clever, winning read-aloud for modern families" in a starred review from Kirkus. Her work has been exhibited in galleries in California, Texas, and New York. Visit Andrea on the Web at andreazuill.org or follow her on Twitter at @AndreaZuill.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780807571712
Lexile Measure
580
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Albert Whitman & Company
Publication date
September 15, 2022
Series
Ruby Celebrates!
BISAC categories
JUV013030 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | Multigenerational
JUV033020 - Juvenile Fiction | Religious | Jewish
JUV050000 - Juvenile Fiction | Cooking & Food
JUV017090 - Juvenile Fiction | Holidays & Celebrations | Other, Religious
Library of Congress categories
Picture books
Judaism
Customs and practices
Baking
Rosh ha-Shanah

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