2018 Sydney Taylor Book Award Winners Announced

For More Information Contact:
Susan Kusel, Chair Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee
Association of Jewish Libraries
sydneytaylorbookaward@jewishlibraries.org

January 10, 2018
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

2018 Sydney Taylor Book Award Winners Announced

Winners of the annual Sydney Taylor Book Award were announced by the Association of Jewish Libraries today. Named in memory of Sydney Taylor, author of the classic All-of-a-Kind Family series, the award recognizes books for children and teens that exemplify high literary standards while authentically portraying the Jewish experience. 

2018 is the 50th Anniversary of the Sydney Taylor Awards. The first winner was The Endless Steppe: Growing Up in Siberia by Esther Hautzig in 1968, published by the Thomas Y. Crowell Company.

GOLD MEDALISTS

The Language of Angels: A Story About the Reinvention of Hebrew by Richard Michelson, illustrated by Karla Gudeon, published by Charlesbridge, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Younger Readers category. This beautiful picture book tells the story of how Hebrew became an everyday language in Israel, after being out of use for two thousand years. The folk art illustrations are an illuminating match. 

Refugee by Alan Gratz, published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Older Readers category. The journeys of three different young refugees from Nazi Germany, 1990s Cuba and present-day Syria come together to form an emotional and timely narrative about the refugee experience.

The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antonio Iturbe, translated by Lilit Thwaites, published by Godwin Books, an imprint of Henry Holt and Company, a division of Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Teen Readers category. This powerful story of Dita Kraus and her protection of a handful of books in the Auschwitz concentration camp shows the importance of hope in the darkest of times. 

Harold Grinspoon and PJ Library won the Sydney Taylor Body of Work Award. PJ Library, a project of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, is a family engagement program that sends free books celebrating Jewish values and culture to families with children 6 months through 8 years old. This program has revolutionized the field of Jewish children’s literature by providing dramatically improved access to Jewish books for families. It has also significantly increased the publication of children’s books with Jewish content. The Body of Work Award has been given twelve times in the 50-year history of the Sydney Taylor Awards. The last recipient was author Eric Kimmel in 2004. 

SILVER MEDALISTS

Eight Sydney Taylor Honor Books were also recognized.  For Younger Readers, the Honor Books are: Yaffa and Fatima: Shalom, Salaam adapted by Fawzia GilaniWilliams, illustrated by Chiara Fedele, published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group and Drop by Drop: A Story of Rabbi Akiva by Jacqueline Jules, illustrated by Yevgenia Nayberg, published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group.

For Older Readers, the Honor Books are: Viva, Rose! by Susan Krawitz, published by Holiday House, which was also the recipient of the 2015 Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award; This Is Just a Test by Madelyn Rosenberg and Wendy Wan-Long Shang, published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic; and The Six-Day Hero by Tammar Stein, published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group.

For Teen Readers, the Honor Books are: To Look a Nazi in the Eye: A Teen’s Account of a War Criminal Trial by Kathy Kacer with Jordana Lebowitz, published by Second Story Press; Almost Autumn by Marianne Kaurin, translated by Rosie Hedger, published by Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic; and The Girl with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke, published by Albert Whitman & Company.

In addition to the medal winners, the Award Committee designated twelve Notable Books of Jewish Content for 2018. More information about the Sydney Taylor Book Award and a complete listing of the award winners and notables can be found at www.sydneytaylorbookawards.org.

Winning authors and illustrators will receive their awards at the Annual Conference of the Association of Jewish Libraries, to be held in Boston, MA from June 18-20, 2018. Gold and silver medalists will also participate in a blog tour February 4-8, 2018. For more information about the blog tour please visit www.jewishlibraries.org/blog.

The Language of Angels and Refugee were also named winners of the 67th Annual National Jewish Book Awards, which were announced today as well. A full list of all the winners can be found on the Jewish Book Councils website here. 

Members of the 2018 Sydney Taylor Book Award committee are: Chair Susan Kusel, Temple Rodef Shalom Library, Falls Church, VA; Rena Citrin, Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School, Chicago, IL; Elissa Gershowitz, Horn Book Magazine, Boston, MA; Rebecca Levitan, Baltimore County Public Library, Pikesville Branch, Baltimore, MD; Heather Lenson, Joseph & Florence Mandel Jewish Day School, Beachwood, OH; Marjorie Shuster, Congregation Emanuel of the City of New York, New York, NY; and Rivka Yerushalmi, Silver Spring, MD.

###

The 2018 Sydney Taylor Book Awards
Association of Jewish Libraries

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Younger Readers

The Language of Angels: A Story About the Reinvention of Hebrew by Richard Michelson, illustrated by Karla Gudeon, published by Charlesbridge

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Older Readers

Refugee by Alan Gratz, published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Teen Readers

The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antonio Iturbe, translated by Lilit Thwaites,  published by Godwin Books, an imprint of Henry Holt and Company,  a division of Macmillan Children's Publishing Group

The Sydney Taylor Body of Work Award Winner

Harold Grinspoon and PJ Library

~~~~~~

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Younger Readers

Yaffa and Fatima: Shalom, Salaam adapted by Fawzia Gilani-Williams, illustrated by Chiara Fedele

published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group

Drop by Drop: A Story of Rabbi Akiva by Jacqueline Jules, illustrated by Yevgenia Nayberg

published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Older Readers

Viva, Rose! by Susan Krawitz, published by Holiday House 

This Is Just a Test by Madelyn Rosenberg and Wendy Wan-Long Shang,  published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic

The Six-Day Hero by Tammar Stein, published by Kar-Ben Publishing,  a division of Lerner Publishing Group

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Teen Readers

To Look a Nazi in the Eye: A Teen’s Account of a War Criminal Trial by Kathy Kacer with Jordana Lebowitz, published by Second Story Press

Almost Autumn by Marianne Kaurin, translated by Rosie Hedger published by Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic

The Girl with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke, published by Albert Whitman & Company

 ~~~~~~

Notable Books for Younger Readers

Yom Kippur Shortstop by David A. Adler, illustrated by Andre Ceolin published by Apples & Honey Press, an imprint of Behrman House 

Under the Sabbath Lamp by Michael Herman, illustrated by Alida Massari published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group

Big Sam: A Rosh Hashanah Tall Tale by Eric A. Kimmel, illustrated by Jim Starr published by Apples & Honey Press, an imprint of Behrman House 

The Knish War on Rivington Street by Joanne Oppenheim, illustrated by Jon Davis published by Albert Whitman & Company

Ruth Bader Ginsburg: The Case of R.B.G. vs. Inequality by Jonah Winter, illustrated by Stacy Innerst, published by Abrams Books for Young Readers, a division of Abrams

 Notable Books for Older Readers

Hedy’s Journey: The True Story of a Hungarian Girl Fleeing the Holocaust by Michelle Bisson, illustrated by El primo Ramón published by Capstone Press, a Capstone imprint

The Children of Willesden Lane: A True Story of Hope and Survival During World War II:  Young Readers Edition by Mona Golabek and Lee Cohen and adapted by Emil Sher published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, a division of Hachette Book Group

Wordwings by Sydelle Pearl, published by Guernica Editions

The Dollmaker of Krakow by R.M. Romero published by Delacorte Press, a division of Random House Children’s Books

 Notable Books for Teen Readers

Man’s Search for Meaning: Young Reader Edition by Viktor E. Frankl, published by Beacon Press

Ronit & Jamil by Pamela L. Laskin published by Katherine Tegen Books, a division of HarperCollins Publishers

Stolen Secrets by L.B. Schulman, published by Boyds Mills Press, a division of Highlights

 ~~~~~~

For more information contact:

Susan Kusel, Chair Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee, Association of Jewish Libraries sydneytaylorbookaward@jewishlibraries.org

www.sydneytaylorbookawards.org

2018 Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award Winner Chosen

For More Information Contact:
Aileen Grossberg, Coordinator Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award Committee
Association of Jewish Libraries
STMACAJL@AOL.com
tinyurl.com/stma18

January 10, 2018
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

2018 Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award Winner Chosen 

The Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award Competition committee is pleased to announce the recipient of the 2018 award. Judith Pransky, author of The Seventh Handmaiden, will receive the award at the annual conference of the Association of Jewish Libraries to be held in Boston, MA, from June 18-20, 2018. The Award is offered annually to an unpublished manuscript that has broad appeal to readers aged 8-13 and presents Jewish life in a positive light.

Set in the time of King Xerxes of Persia, the novel begins with the kidnapping of a young girl and then flashes forward several years to focus on Darya, a young slave who is uncertain of her origins. The story follows Darya and her free friend Parvaneh from service in the household of a Persian army captain to positions in Xerxes’s palace as handmaidens to Queen Esther. Swirling around the girls’ everyday activities is palace intrigue orchestrated by Haman’s henchmen including Behrooz, who has a mysterious and frightening connection to Parveneh’s mother. 

Filled with historical details, intrigue, mystery, politics and a host of issues that contemporary readers can identify with, the story has a satisfying ending for both Darya and her mistress Esther and fleshes out the story found in the Megillah. The judges were impressed by the unique approach to the story of Esther, the strongly nuanced characters, the touch of mystery and the relevance of the issues to today’s world.

According to Ms Pransky, The Seventh Handmaiden was written with her sixth grade ancient history students in mind, and tries “to bring the history and lifestyle of Persia to life, as well as the characters that populate the Megillah and the Jewish story that permeates it.” Ms Pransky, a middle school language arts/history teacher, has contributed to Philadelphia area magazines and edited the Marmac Guide to Philadelphia. She has also taught writing to adults and worked as an editor for a textbook publishing company before returning to teaching. The Seventh Handmaiden is her first novel for young readers.

In an unusually strong year, the Committee is pleased to name three honorable mention manuscripts: Go To Yourself by Stuart Melnick is the story of an Orthodox boy preparing for his bar mitzvah. Through sports he experiences the outside world for the first time and learns about friendship, decisions and their consequences. Diverse characters and a warm family setting are hallmarks of this story. Raising Canaans by Catherine Orkin Oskow uses humor to tell the story of a dog-crazy preteen who obsesses over the Canaan dogs that her aunt raises and finally comes to accept that she cannot have a dog. Reeni’s Turn by Carol Coven Grannick uses verse to follow ballet dancer Reeni from doubt about herself to self-acceptance. The contemporary story focuses on issues common in today’s families.

###

Meeting Minutes: March 1, 2017

Meeting Minutes: March 1, 2017, B'nai Torah Congregation, Boca Raton, FL

Present: Rita Cimbal, Robin Coller, Bea Gold, Etta Gold, Sue Kirshner, Jeff Marks, Heidi Rabinowitz, Matt Ransom, Daniel Scheide, Ruth Weiner, Barb Weiss

Heidi began the meeting by showing the three gold medalists for the 2017 Sydney Taylor Book Awards: I Dissent, The Inquisitor's Tale, and Anna and the Swallow Man. She also passed out lists of all winners, honor books, and notables. Other AJL business announced: an opening on the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee, AJL's new Jewish Fiction Award, and the How Is This Book Different event. This event is co-sponsored by AJL, the Jewish Book Council, and Call Me Ishmael. Readers are invited to call 774-325-0503 between March 27-April 4, 2017 to leave a message about a Jewish book that made a difference to their life.

Etta talked about why the AJL annual conference is valuable, and passed out information about the program, registration, etc. She also reported on programs at Temple Beth Am, and shared the story of how she rescued a program with a no-show speaker by using a video of that author's lecture at the Library of Congress.

Sue talked about the difficulties of lending books to non-members (Canadian snowbirds) whose names they do not have on record. The group suggested collecting names of potential borrowers throughout the week in at other temple activities, so that these borrowers will not need to write their names on Shabbat.

Ruth gave a short presentation about the biblical women who saved Moses.

SFAJL Meeting: March 1, 2017

You're invited!

WHAT: Association of Jewish Libraries, South Florida Chapter meeting
WHEN: Wednesday, March 1, 2017, 11:45am-2:30pm
WHERE: B'nai Torah Congregation, 6261 SW 18th St., Boca Raton, FL 33433

Kosher lunch will be provided.

Please RSVP to Heidi at heidi [dot] rabinowitz [at] cbiboca [dot] org.

2017 Sydney Taylor Book Awards Announced

For More Information Contact:

Ellen Tilman, Chair
Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee
Association of Jewish Libraries
(215) 906-4657
chair@sydneytaylorbookaward.org

January 11, 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

2017 SYDNEY TAYLOR BOOK AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED

Winners of the annual Sydney Taylor Book Award were announced by the Association of Jewish Libraries today. Named in memory of Sydney Taylor, author of the classic All-of-a-Kind Family series, the award recognizes books for children and teens that exemplify high literary standards while authentically portraying the Jewish experience.

GOLD MEDALISTS

I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark by Debbie Levy with illustrations by Elizabeth Baddeley, published by Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Younger Readers category. This delightful biography of the Supreme Court Justice teaches children that dissent does not make a person disagreeable, and can even help change the world. The grab-your-attention illustrations help explain the text.

The Inquisitor’s Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog by Adam Gidwitz, illustrated by Hatem Aly, published by Dutton Children’s Books/Penguin Random House, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Older Readers category. Part fantasy and part adventure, this is the tale of strangers who become friends while on a quest to save thousands of volumes of Talmud. The beautiful illuminations reflect the medieval flavor of the book.

Anna and the Swallow Man by Gavriel Savit, published by Alfred A. Knopf/Penguin Random House, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Teen Readers category. Anna is left alone in 1939 Krakow when the Nazis take her father away. She meets the mysterious Swallow Man who is able to speak “bird,” and travels with him in the forests of Poland, where they spend four years hiding and eluding capture. This is a haunting story that may be allegory or folktale or perhaps both.

SILVER MEDALISTS

Four Sydney Taylor Honor Books were also recognized. For Younger Readers, the Honor Books are Fascinating: The Life of Leonard Nimoy by Richard Michelson with illustrations by Edel Rodriguez, published by Alfred A. Knopf/Penguin Random House, and A Hat For Mrs. Goldman: A Story About Knitting and Love written by Michelle Edwards with illustrations by G. Brian Karas, published by Schwartz and Wade Books/Penguin Random House.

Dreidels on the Brain written by Joel Ben Izzy and published by Dial Books for Young Readers/Penguin Random House, and A Poem For Peter: The Story of Ezra Jack Keats and the Creation of The Snowy Day by Andrea Davis Pinkney with illustrations by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher, published by Viking Children’s Books/Penguin Random House, are the Honor books in the Older Readers Category.

In addition to the medal winners, the Award Committee designated ten Notable Books of Jewish Content for 2017. More information about the Sydney Taylor Book Award and a complete listing of the award winners and notables can be found at www.SydneyTaylorBookAward.org.

Winning authors and illustrators will receive their awards at the Annual Conference of the Association of Jewish Libraries, to be held in New York City in June. Gold and silver recipients will also participate in a blog tour during February. For more information about the blog tour please visit www.jewishlibraries.org/blog.

###

 THE 2017 SYDNEY TAYLOR BOOK AWARDS ANNOUNCED BY THE ASSOCIATION OF JEWISH LIBRARIES

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Younger Readers

I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark
by Debbie Levy with illustrations by Elizabeth Baddeley
(Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers)

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Older Readers

The Inquisitor’s Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog
by Adam Gidwitz with illustrations by Hatem Aly
(Dutton Children’s Books/Penguin Random House)

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Teen Readers

Anna and the Swallow Man by Gavriel Savit
(Alfred A. Knopf/Penguin Random House)

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Younger Readers

Fascinating: The Life of Leonard Nimoy
by Richard Michelson with illustrations by Edel Rodriguez
(Alfred A. Knopf/Penguin Random House)
A Hat For Mrs. Goldman: A Story About Knitting and Love
by Michelle Edwards with illustrations by G. Brian Karas
(Schwartz and Wade Books/ Penguin Random House)

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Older Readers

Dreidels on the Brain by Joel Ben Izzy
(Dial Books for Young Readers/Penguin Random House)
A Poem for Peter: The Story of Ezra Jack Keats and the Creation of the Snowy Day
by Andrea Davis Pinkney with illustrations by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher
(Viking Children’s Books/Penguin Random House)

Notable Books for Younger Readers

Chicken Soup, Chicken Soup by Pamela Mayer with illustrations by Deborah Melmon
(Kar-Ben Publishing)
Gabriel’s Horn by Eric Kimmel with illustrations by Maria Surducan
(Kar-Ben Publishing)
Not This Turkey by Jessica Steinberg with illustrations by Amanda Pike
(Albert Whitman & Company)
On One Foot by Linda Glaser with illustrations by Nuria Balaguer
(Kar-Ben Publishing)
The Sundown Kid: A Southwestern Shabbat by Barbara Bietz with illustrations by John Kanzler
(August House)
The Tree in the Courtyard: Looking Through Anne Frank’s Windowby Jeff Gottesfeld with illustrations by Peter McCarty(Alfred A. Knopf/Penguin Random House)

Notable Books for Older Readers

The Bicycle Spy by Yona Zeldis McDonough
(Scholastic Books)
Irena’s Children: Young Readers Edition: A True Story of Courage
by Tilar J. Mazzeo and adapted by Mary Cronk Farrell
(Margaret McElderry Books/Simon and Schuster)
The Ship to Nowhere by Rona Arato
(Second Story Press)
Skating with the Statue of Liberty by Susan Lynn Meyer
(Delacorte Press/Penguin Random House)

No Honor or Notable Books were designated for Teen Readers in 2017.

Meeting Minutes: February 23, 2016

Meeting Minutes, SFAJL February 23, 2016, The Jewish Museum, Miami, FL

Present: Robin Coller, Heidi Estrin, Linda Glick, Sandy Glick, Etta Gold, Joyce Levine, Phil Levine, Matt Ransom, Jeff Rosenberg, Daniel Scheide, Ruth Weiner, Barbara Weiss, Danielle Winter, Lauren Wohl, Helene Yentis

We gathered at Pita Loca for a delicious kosher lunch, then walked to the Jewish Museum of Florida, where a docent told us about the exhibit Discovery and Recovery: Preserving Iraqi Jewish Heritage.

We also had the opportunity to view an exhibit by artist Mark Podwal, All This Has Come Upon Us, illustrations of various attacks on the Jews throughout history.

While wandering the museum, we caught up with eachother's news and planned additional AJL projects.

2016 Sydney Taylor Book Awards Announced

Lesléa Newman and Amy June Bates, author and illustrator of Ketzel, the Cat who Composed, Aharon Appelfeld, Philippe Dumas and Jeffrey M. Green, author, illustrator and translator of Adam and Thomas, and Laura Amy Schlitz, author of The Hired Girl, are the 2016 winners of the Sydney Taylor Book Award.

The Sydney Taylor Book Award honors new books for children and teens that exemplify the highest literary standards while authentically portraying the Jewish experience.  The award memorializes Sydney Taylor, author of the classic All-of-a-Kind Family series.  The winners will receive their awards at the Association of Jewish Libraries Conference in Charleston, South Carolina this June.

Newman and Bates will receive the 2016 gold medal in the Sydney Taylor Book Award’s Younger Reader category for Ketzel, the Cat Who Composed, published by Candlewick Press.  This delightful picture book tells the true story of musician Morris Moshe Cotel, whose cat helped him compose a one-minute composition that received an honorable mention in the Paris New Music Review competition.  The illustrations are heartwarming and add much charm to the story.  Appelfeld, Dumas and Green will receive the 2016 gold medal in the Sydney Taylor Book Award’s Older Readers category for Adam and Thomas, published by Seven Stories Press.  This sweet story tells of two nine-year-old Jewish boys who survive the last winter of World War II, helping each other so that one grows physically stronger and braver and the other grows spiritually.  Laura Amy Schlitz will receive the 2016 gold medal in the Sydney Taylor Book Award’s Teen category for The Hired Girl, published by Candlewick Press. This sensitive story tells how fourteen-year-old Catholic Joan Skraggs becomes a hired girl to a Jewish family where she learns and grows in unexpected ways.

Five Sydney Taylor Honor Books were named for 2016.  For Younger Readers, the Honor Books are Everybody Says Shalom written by Leslie Kimmelman and illustrated by Talitha Shipman, published by Random House, and Shanghai Sukkah written by Heidi Smith Hyde and illustrated by Jing Jing Tsong, published by Kar-Ben Publishing.  Hereville:  How Mirka Caught a Fish by Barry Deutsch, published by Amulet Books, is the Honor book in the Older Reader category.  For Teen Readers, the Honor books are Serendipity’s Footsteps by Suzanne Nelson, published by Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, and Stones on a Grave by Kathy Kacer, published by Orca Book Publishers.

Winners and Honor recipients will be participating in a Blog Tour from February 7-12, 2016. For more information about the blog please visit www.jewishlibraries.org/blog.

In addition to the medal winners, the Award Committee designated twelve Notable Books of Jewish Content for 2016.  More information about the Sydney Taylor Book Award can be found at www.SydneyTaylorBookAward.org.

Click here for a pdf of 2016 winners, honor books, and notable books.
 
For more information, contact:
Diane Rauchwerger, Chair
Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee
Association of Jewish Libraries
(408) 245-7641
chair@sydneytaylorbookaward.org

THE WINNERS

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Younger Readers:

Ketzel, the Cat who Composed by Lesléa Newman with illustrations by Amy June Bates
(Candlewick Press)

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Older Readers:

Adam & Thomas by Aharon Appelfeld, translated by Jeffrey M. Green
with illustrations by Philippe Dumas
(Seven Stories Press)

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Teen Readers:

The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz
(Candlewick Press)

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Younger Readers:

Everybody Says Shalom by Leslie Kimmelman with illustrations by Talitha Shipman
(Random House)

Shanghai Sukkah by Heidi Smith Hyde with illustrations by Jing Jing Tsong
(Kar-Ben Publishing)

Sydney Taylor Honor Book for Older Readers:

Hereville: How Mirka Caught a Fish by Barry Deutsch
(Amulet Books)

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Teen Readers:

Serendipity’s Footsteps by Suzanne Nelson
(Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House)

Stones on a Grave by Kathy Kacer
(Orca Book Publishers)

Notable Books for Younger Readers:

Hanukkah Cookies with Sprinkles by David A. Adler, illustrated by Jeffrey Ebbeler
(Apples & Honey Press, an imprint of Behrman House & Gefen Publishing House)

The Parakeet Named Dreidel by Isaac Bashevis Singer illustrated by Suzanne Raphael Berkson
(Farrar Straus Giroux)

Sadie and Ori and the Blue Blanket by Jamie Korngold illustrated by Julie Fortenberry
(Kar-Ben Publishers)

Notable Books for Older Readers:

The Girl in the Torch by Robert Sharenow
(Balzer + Bray, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers)

Mr. Doctor: Janusz Korczak and the Orphans of the Warsaw Ghetto
by Irene Cohen-Janca and illustrated by Maurizio A. C. Quarello
(Annick Press)

The Safest Lie by Angela Cerrito
(Holiday House)

Watch Out for Flying Kids!: How Two Circuses, Two Countries, and Nine Kids Confront Conflict and Build Community by Cynthia Levinson
(Peachtree)

The Wren and the Sparrow, by J. Patrick Lewis, illustrated by Yevgenia Nayberg
(Kar-Ben Publishers)

Notable Books for Teens:

Courage & Defiance: Stories of Spies, Saboteurs, and Survivors in WWII Denmark by Deborah Hopkinson
(Scholastic Press)

Deep Sea by Annika Thor
(Delacorte Press)

Imagining Katherine by Carol Solomon
(Tova Press)

Last Night at the Circle Cinema by Emily Franklin
(Carolrhoda Lab)

SFAJL Meeting: February 23, 2016

SFAJL will hold a chapter meeting on Tuesday, February 23, 2016 in Miami Beach.

We will gather at Pita Loca (http://pitaloca.com/) at 11:30am for kosher lunch, then walk to the Jewish Museum of Florida (http://jmof.fiu.edu/) for a 1pm tour of the exhibit Discovery and Recovery: Preserving Iraqui Jewish Heritage. The tour will last approximately 2 hours. Museum admission is $5.

Please RSVP to Etta Gold at egold@tbam.org.

Parking is tight in Miami Beach, but here is a list of parking garages within range of our destination. All accept credit cards.

• 1

Imperial Parking Incorporated

500 Collins Ave

Miami Beach, FL

(305) 538-6002

• 2

Laz Parking

404 Washington Ave, #720

Miami Beach, FL

(305) 913-4882

• 3

Central Parking System

555 Washington Ave

Miami Beach, FL

(305) 372-5152

Open 24 hrs

• 4

Associated Parking Systems

2 on Yelp

350 Ocean Dr

Miami Beach, FL

(305) 673-4716

• 5

Elite Parking

119 Washington Ave

Miami Beach, FL

(305) 861-1070

Minutes: SFAJL Meeting, March 9, 2015

Meeting Minutes, SFAJL March 9, 2015, Temple Beth Am, Miami, FL

Present: Robin Coller, Heidi Estrin, Etta Gold, Steve Hersh, Steve Liebowitz, Matt Ransom, Jeff Rosenberg, Daniel Scheide, Barbara Weiss, Danielle Winter

Meeting called to order after a delicious lunch provided by Temple Beth Am. Since we had a small group, we spent some time doing in depth introductions of ourselves, getting to really know each other.

Etta Gold spoke about the value of attending the national AJL conference, and showed some "historical" program books from past conferences. We discussed various other resources including AJL's revamped website, and FAU's Judaica Sound Archives, which have expanded to become the Recorded Sound Archives (non-Jewish material is now accepted).

Danielle Winter reprised the presentation she had given previously at Temple Beth Am's Sunday Salon, a talk about children's books in Yiddish based on her research at the National Yiddish Book Center.

Local author Steve Liebowitz talked about his historical novel Devorah: The Covenant and the Scrolls, Book 1.

The meeting was adjourned.

Next SFAJL Meeting: March 9, 2015

I am pleased to invite you to the South Florida Chapter of the Association of Jewish Libraries' first meeting of the year at Temple Beth Am in Pinecrest, FL. 

I am the newest member of the Chapter, having moved down to Florida in September to be the Library/Media Specialist at Temple Beth Am Day School. I look forward to meeting my peers in the area and discussing our relevance and programming for the year. 

Please join me in our Adult Reading Room for lunch at 11:45am on March 9, 2015, to meet both fresh and veteran librarians in our specialized field. 

PROGRAM 

11:45-12:30: Lunch along with schmoozing and introductions 

12:30-1PM: A presentation on Yiddish Children's Literature 

1PM- 1:15: Break 

1:15-2:30: Discussing our varied roles and programming AND the future of our chapter 

Please RSVP to me, Danielle Winter, DWinter@tbam.org 

I look forward to being in touch with you all.

My best,

Danielle Winter

South Florida Association of Jewish Libraries