Sandy Eisenberg SassoReviews

This book is about a tree but it’s also about having patience. A gardener plants a fig tree and tells everybody it takes time. Then one summer goes by then two summers and still no figs. The gardener wants to replace the tree, but the children say no the tree just needs love which they give it for another year or two or three until eventually the tree produces figs and becomes shade. The kids always knew it just took patience. The story is lovely and sweet. The illustrations are not my favorite, but they did grow on me by the end of the book. I do wish the cover was changed to one of the inside pictures that looks more complete. The current cover seems like a fast slap together.

A beautifully illustrated story attempting to communicate the Parable of the Mustard Seed falls just short of its attempt, giving a fun and creative story in a child-friendly way to understand and engage in the picture of a mustard seed, but leaves a bit to be desired in its connection to faith, Jesus, and the kingdom of God. It does connect to this toward the very end, but just for a moment. In this attempt, this comes across more as a cute story to emphasize the idea of not being seen as much or having much ability to achieve...YET! That in itself is a fun opportunity of conversation with a child, but doesn't do well on the faith-based side in communicating what this has to do with the kingdom of God.

NAMAAH, NOAH, EARTH

I received this ARC as part of the Early Reviewers in exchange for an honest review. This was a sweet story about a Fig tree that need time and love to grow into it's full potential. Based on a parable from the Gospel of Luke, it is a quick simple way to teach children the importance of patience and love, and that each one is different.
I enjoyed reading this book and look forward to sharing with my nephews.

Noah's wife Naamah is called upon by God to gather the seeds of every type of plant on Earth and bring them safely onto the ark before the great flood.

This is a unique little book about patience, determination, care, and love. The students will love the illustrations. The fact that it was inspired by the parable of the barren fig tree from the Bible makes it a welcome addition to our collection for young children. It even comes with a recipe! Parents and teachers will enjoy sharing this in their home and classroom.

Thank you, Flyaway Books, for giving us this free copy.
Augustine School Library

It’s easy for children to feel as if they are “good for nothing” because they do not commonly make as significant of societal contributions like adults. Sometimes, forgotten in a Christian, technological culture is that care, and nurture are required for all things to bloom. This book, based on one of Jesus’ parables from Luke 13.6-9, reminds us all – children and adults alike – of the value of love so that things can grow.

Levine and Sasso, interestingly, are both Jewish and culturally relate to this parable in a way that many Christians might not. I have known of Levine’s work as a New Testament scholar for some time, and her academic research focuses on the Jewish culture during New Testament times. I am happy to discover that she also writes children’s books!

Bowler’s illustrations in this book are clear and receive my ten-year-old daughter’s seal of approval. Through vivid colors and relatable characters, they bring the story to life and allow all readers to reimagine the meaning behind this ancient text. Sometimes, love and nurture can seem far away from us all in the midst of argument, politics, and strife. Levine and Sasso remind us of its eternal value to both trees and humans.

Overall, this is a nice picture book with a good message about patience and perseverance. A gardener and some children plant a small fig tree that takes several years to bear fruit. Even though the adults give up on the tree, the children (who don't really age for some reason) keep taking good care of it until it finally produces sweet, juicy figs. It's a quiet book and there's a recipe for fig balls at the end :)

With beautiful illustrations and a simple text, The Good For Nothing Tree, reminds us that things grow at their own pace and we must have patience.
The adults all say the fig tree is good for nothing and will not grow but it's the children who have faith that them tree will produce figs.
The book also includes a recipe for fig balls.

In the 1920s the world was changing for women. Maybe it was time for things to change in the synagogue as well. But when Judy’s father, Rabbi Mordechai Kaplan, said it was time for her to lead services, she nearly dropped the noodle kugel. It was unthinkable. Or was it? The tradition of bat mitzvah in the synagogue had just begun.

When two wise people leave their lonely, confused town to find out if God really does exist, they make an amazing discovery about where He can be found.

After his grandfather died Isaiah was told that Grandpa had gone to heaven. Isaiah wondered exactly where and what heaven was. He became determined to find out and sought answers from many different people. He finds that heaven is often found in the places where you least expect it.

Jewish people bless their houses and remind themselves of the commandments and promised blessing of God by affixing a little, decorative container, called a "mezuzah" to the doorposts of their houses. Each mezuzah contains verses from the Torah (the Five Books of Moses, also known as the Pentateuch), including also the verses known as the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-9, 11:13-21), as follows:

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates. / And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, That I will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil. And I will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou mayest eat and be full. Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; And then the LORD'S wrath be kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which the LORD giveth you. Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates: That your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth."

The mezuzah is believed to protect the household like the blood of the Passover lamb protected the homes of the Israelites on the night of their Exodus from Egyptian bondage. Jewish people touch the mezuzah as they enter or depart through the doorways containing a mezuzah, reminding themselves of the greatest commandment--to love God--and asking for the protection and blessing of God. Some Jewish people then kiss their own fingers that have touched the mezuzah, believing that the holiness of the mezuzah has been transferred to their hand.½

This book invites the reader/listener to imagine how Adam and Eve felt the first time night fell and the sun left the sky. Through wonder and fear, they found trust and faith.

On the first day of creation, God said, Let there be light,; and there was light. But it was not until the fourth day that God created the light of the sun and the moon. This book explores the light of the first day -- what was/is it, and how does it differ from the lights of the day and the night? The text travels through Bible stories, sacred legends and the reader's imagination -- wondering about the first light and where we find it now. This is a simple, compelling story of the Light within all creation ... the light in all of us.

Bold splashes of color illustrate this interpretation of a Bible story that emphasizes the destructive power of anger. Running through the narrative is the midrashic tradition of nature's mourning for Abel. We know the story well. This book recasts the biblical tale of Cain and Abel in a way that invites both adults and children to think about anger and our power to deal with it in positive ways.

“A child plants a mustard seed in an empty garden. It is an itty-bitty seed. It isn’t anything very special—yet.” Discover the surprising potential of one small seed in The Marvelous Mustard Seed. Based on Jesus’ parable of the Mustard Seed, this inspiring children’s book shows young readers that one tiny seed—just like one small child—carries a world of potential.

When an array of opinionated shapes just can't find common ground, AND comes to the rescue. AND is the link that helps each pair of shapes overcome their differences, teaming up to create something entirely new.

Oh, no! The man is missing his sheep! The woman is missing her coin! The father is missing his son! Can you help them find what they are looking for? Who Counts? is a creative retelling of three popular parables: the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son.

Told by Rabbi Sandy Sasso, this is a simple, compelling story of the Light within all creation. The book refers to essential Bible stories, then carries the Light into the here and now. Illustrated with vibrant paintings.

The Story of AND by Sandy Eisenberg Sasso is about a young girl who likes to count (or has OCD… could go either way). The adults in her life are rather rude about it, telling her to stop wasting time. But then one day, she read a story aloud, a story about the value of 'and' to bring things together. Line AND Circle made a balloon. Triangle AND Rectangle made a seesaw. Whereas before Line and Rectangle had insulted the other shapes, they saw together they could be something more. The story goes through several more pairings, showing how each could grow, and illustrating the value of cohesion over division. The artwork was a little unusual. Not bad, mind, just not typical of our usual reads. I read this with my cubs and we all enjoyed it.

***Many thanks to Netgalley and Flyaway Books for providing an egalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.