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  • Finn and Ezra's Bar Mitzvah Time Loop

Finn and Ezra's Bar Mitzvah Time Loop

Author
Publication Date
May 14, 2024
Genre / Grade Band
Fiction /  6th − 8th
Language
English
Finn and Ezra's Bar Mitzvah Time Loop

Description

Finn and Ezra's bar mitzvah weekend takes on a Groundhog Day twist in this hilarious and magical middle grade novel from Joshua S. Levy.

Finn and Ezra don't have a lot in common--except, of course, that they're trapped in a bar mitzvah time loop, reliving their celebrations in the same New Jersey hotel over and over and over again. Not ideal, particularly when both kids were ready for their bar mitzvahs to end the moment they began.

Ezra comes from a big family--four siblings, all seeming to get more attention than him, even on his bar mitzvah weekend. Finn is an only child who's tired of his parents' constant focus, even worse on his bar mitzvah weekend. They just want to get past it, just want to grow up. And now they're both stuck. Friday. Saturday. Sunday. No way out.

Until Finn and Ezra meet and realize they're not alone. Teaming up, they try everything they can think of to break the loop. But nothing works, and after every reset, the boys' schemes become more desperate. As their frustrations build, the questions mount and real-life problems start to seep through the cracks. With all the time in the world, can Finn and Ezra ever figure out how to move forward?

Publication date
May 14, 2024
Genre
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780063248243
Publisher
Katherine Tegen Books
BISAC categories
JUV039060 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Friendship
JUV039020 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Adolescence
JUV033020 - Juvenile Fiction | Religious | Jewish
JUV064000 - Juvenile Fiction | Time Travel

Kirkus

Exciting and heartfelt.

ALA/Booklist

The tale is embedded within such a rich matrix of Jewish customs that the story is likely to have an informational aspect for audiences of any belief or culture.

Publishers Weekly

When 13-year-old Ezra Rosen starts repeatedly reliving his bar mitzvah weekend, he wonders if there's a way out. Then he meets fellow 13-year-old Finn Einstein, who is also caught in the same 55-hour time loop. Armed with myriad theories on why this is happening--as well as many more about how to break the loop--type A Finn and cautious Ezra spend countless variations of the weekend putting their plans into motion and learning through trial and error. Enacting schemes such as engineering "the perfect loop" and robbing a bank, they leave no potential solve unexplored. It's only when they discover the physicists convention taking place in the same hotel that they see real progress. While juggling matters of science, family, and faith, the two new friends must confront their personal challenges and vulnerabilities if they hope to break free. Levy (The Jake Show) puts a new spin on time loop tropes by infusing this energetic tale with Jewish sensibilities via Ezra's conservative family traditions and Finn's reformed upbringing, making for a delightfully offbeat read about becoming a man dozens of times over. The protagonists read as white; most characters are Jewish. Ages 8-12. Agent: Elana Roth Parker, Laura Dail Literary. (May)

Copyright 2024 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Sydney Taylor Book Award
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Honor Title 2025
Nation­al Jew­ish Book Awards
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Middle Grade Winner 2024
Golden Kite Awards
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Middle Grade Finalist 2025