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NISHA’S JUST-RIGHT CHRISTMAS TREE—A REVIEW BY VERONICA JORGE

December 22, 2024 by Veronica Jorge in category Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge tagged as Jaya Mehta, Nisha's Just Right Christmas Tree, Parvati Pillai, Susan Lynn Meyer

NISHA’S JUST-RIGHT CHRISTMAS TREE

SUSAN LYNN MEYER
AND
JAYA MEHTA

ILLUSTRATED by PARVATI PILLAI

Beaming Books
2024
ISBN 978-1-5064-9646-7

BIG. That’s all Nisha can think about. After all, in her mind, she’s not little anymore. She’s big. So, when it’s time to buy the family Christmas tree, Nisha wants to help her father pick out the right one.

Nisha wants a big tree. “As tall as a camel! As wide as an elephant!” One that can fit all of their ornaments, many of which came all the way from Baba’s home country of India.

But her Baba wants a small tree. One that he can easily carry up the stairs and that will fit in their small Brooklyn apartment.

Nisha and her father shop around, but they cannot seem to agree on a tree.

“Too big,” says Baba.

“Too small,” says Nisha.

Yet somehow they must find a tree that’s just right for each of them and that will make their Christmas special.

Nisha’s Just-Right Christmas Tree celebrates the childhood excitement of growing “big enough” to participate in holiday preparations, and is a heart-warming story of a little girl on a mission to help her father find the perfect Christmas tree.

Parvati Pillai’s illustrations in deep rich green, red, and gold colors draw the reader into the magical season and the warm tender family moments.

Nisha’s Just-Right Christmas Tree is a meaningful story of the ways in which cultures often mix and blend traditions from their home countries with those of their new country in order to create the just-right life for their families.

This is one to add to your holiday collection.

Veronica Jorge

Happy Holidays!

See you next year, January 22^,2025!

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A SKY FULL OF SONG by SUSAN LYNN MEYER—A REVIEW BY VERONICA JORGE

November 22, 2024 by Veronica Jorge in category Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge tagged as A Sky Full of Song, book review, Chanukah, Susan Lynn Meyer

Union Square Kids, 2023

ISBN 978-1-4549-4784-4

Sydney Taylor Honor Award-Winning Author.

Will Rogers Gold Medallion Award for Western Fiction: Young Readers.

When you think of Chanukah, the Jewish eight-day festival of lights, which begins on December 25^th this year, you probably don’t associate it with starting a new life on the American prairie. It may be that you have no connection with either experience. But we can all relate to something they both share in common: a desire to establish your place in the world, and to preserve your identity. Even when faced with apparently insurmountable obstacles.

Susan Lynn Meyer’s, A Sky Full of Song, unfolds in the early 1900s. The protagonist, eleven-year-old Shoshona and her family, have fled Jewish persecution in the Russian empire and hope to find safety in North Dakota, and start a new life.

The wide open country offers Shoshona many opportunities for discoveries, and a world of exploration. It also presents challenges, like learning English, and understanding different customs. Her traditions are so unlike those of all of her classmates. Especially the upcoming Christmas holiday, which her family doesn’t celebrate, but where she is expected to sing a song. Should she refuse?

Eager to make friends and fit in, she struggles with her Jewish identity. How much can she share about her ways without them rejecting her? Some already bully her. Or is it best to hide who she really is?

When a blizzard hits and darkness engulfs the prairie, the menorah in Shoshona’s window illuminates the night, providing a guiding light for someone in need, and an opportunity for Shoshona to share the story of Chanukah and the meaning of the light.

At the Christmas concert that takes place after the storm has passed, Shoshona makes a decision to sing, not a Christmas carol, but a song from her country in her own language about new beginnings.

Susan Lynn Meyer’s story is beautifully written and filled with poetic lines, evocative imagery, and memorable phrases that will sing in your heart. A story of belonging, acceptance, identity, and of remaining true to yourself, A Sky Full of Song reminds us of the importance of singing your own special song, and of shining your own unique light.

Veronica Jorge

See you next time on December 22^nd!