BOOK REVIEW: HAPPY ROSH HASHANAH!

…and “shanah tovah um’tukah” or “have a good and sweet New Year!” Here is a picture book about how a young girl celebrates her first 10 Rosh Hashanah holidays with her family and community beginning in 1937:

​​TITLE: LILY’S HONG KONG HONEY CAKE

AUTHOR: Erica Lyons

ILLUSTRATOR: Bonnie Pang

PUBLISHER: Apples & Honey Press

OPENING LINES:

​When Lily was a baby in Austria, Mama placed her bassinet in the family bakery so Lily could be by her side. Nothing could be sweeter.
Every pastry was wrapped in pink paper, delicate like a butterfly’s wings.

This historical fiction picture book tells the story of through the eyes of Lily as she celebrates ten Rosh Hashanah holidays beginning in 1937. Though fictional, this story gives a historical context to what a Jewish family living in Vienna might have experienced during that time. Lily’s first Rosh Hashanah is spent in her family’s bustling bakery filled with customers in “fine suits and dresses” and “bakery boxes tied with pink satin ribbons.” Two years later, her family is forced to close their shop and board a ship for Shanghai, China. Her family opens a new shop, and Lily learns to measure and bake as well as speak Chinese. As time goes on, she also learns to “make do” as they have less and less until they can’t even bake their traditional honey cake for Rosh Hashanah. But Lily’s family always finds a way to celebrate the holiday, and her Mama always wishes Lily a sweet year. This heartfelt, beautifully told and illustrated story is about emigration, Rosh Hashanah, and honey cakes, but also about resiliency, family, and community connection. Highly recommend!
 
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