Chil­dren’s

An Invi­ta­tion to Passover

  • Review
By – February 14, 2023

This delight­ful sto­ry illus­trates the tra­di­tions of Passover by link­ing them to the cus­toms of oth­er cul­tures. When Hannah’s extend­ed fam­i­ly is unable to join her imme­di­ate fam­i­ly at their annu­al seder, she and her par­ents (and their fluffy dog, Mitzi) invite a diverse group of friends to join their rit­u­al din­ner. Each con­tributes some­thing from his or her tra­di­tion that con­nects to Passover. Her Indi­an bestie, for exam­ple, brings a kite, which is used to cel­e­brate spring in her cul­ture. The friends share in the fes­tive meal and each other’s traditions.

An Invi­ta­tion to Passover offers a won­der­ful mes­sage: that no mat­ter our back­grounds, we are all con­nect­ed. The joy­ous and some­times humor­ous illus­tra­tions include details to which chil­dren and adults alike can relate — from Mitzi’s wag­ging tail, to Hannah’s friend’s baby sis­ter with a binky in her mouth, to the tra­di­tion­al seder plate.

This high­ly rec­om­mend­ed sto­ry is a great read-aloud for Jew­ish fam­i­lies, and a must-have for school libraries everywhere.

Paula Chaiken has worked in a vari­ety of capac­i­ties in the Jew­ish world — teach­ing in reli­gious school, curat­ing at the Sper­tus Muse­um and fundrais­ing for the Fed­er­a­tion — for more than twen­ty years. She also runs a bou­tique pub­lic rela­tions con­sult­ing firm and enjoys read­ing all sorts of books with her three sons.

Discussion Questions