All-Of-A-Kind Family Hanukkah - by Emily Jenkins

Book Synopsis

The beloved characters from Sydney Taylor's All-of-a-Kind Family return in a heartwarming picture book from the acclaimed author and Caldecott Award-winning artist. A Kirkus Reviews best book of the year that is perfect for Hanukkah gift-giving!

"Share this joyous holiday tale of a Jewish immigrant family all year long." -- Kirkus Review, starred review

The beloved All-of-a-Kind Family comes to life in a picture book perfect for younger readers. Join the five sisters back in 1912, on the Lower East Side of NYC, and watch as preparations for Hanukkah are made. When Gertie, the youngest, is not allowed to help prepare latkes, she throws a tantrum. Banished to the girls' bedroom, she can still hear the sounds and smell the smells of a family getting ready to celebrate. But when Papa comes home she is given the best job of all: lighting the first candle on the menorah.
First published in 1951, Taylor's chapter books have become time-honored favorites, selling over a million copies and touching generations of readers. In this time when immigrants often do not feel accepted, the All-of-a-Kind Family gives a heartwarming glimpse of a Jewish immigrant family and their customs that is as relevant--and necessary--today as when it was first written. Jenkins and Zelinsky's charming compliment to Taylor's series perfectly captures the warmth and family values that made the original titles classics.

Review Quotes

"While readers need not be familiar with the classic series, generations of parents who grew up with this unforgettable immigrant family will certainly welcome this new picture book as the perfect way to introduce these memorable characters to the next generation of readers" --School Library Journal, starred review

"Writing with the support of the Sydney Taylor Foundation, Jenkins expertly captures the warm family spirit of the classic books and their time for a new generation of readers. Zelinsky's digital artwork brilliantly evokes the crowded but cozy tenement world of the early 20th century, while his use of perspective lovingly draws readers into the drama. Share this joyous holiday tale of a Jewish immigrant family all year long." --Kirkus Review, starred review

"Here's hoping for more adventures of these exceptional sisters." --Booklist, starred review

"When two top picture book talents (the team behind the Toys Go Out series) introduce a new generation to Sydney Taylor's classic stories of Jewish family life on the Lower East Side, it's what's known in Yiddish as a mechaye--something that gives great joy." --Publishers Weekly, starred review

"While readers need not be familiar with the classic series, generations of parents who grew up with this unforgettable immigrant family will certainly welcome this new picture book as the perfect way to introduce these memorable characters to the next generation of readers." --School Library Journal, starred review

"Jenkins's cozy present-tense text and Zelinsky's thick-lined, expressive, color-saturated illustra¬tions capture the happy bustle of a loving family amid lots of well-researched period details."--Horn Book, starred review

"This will be a snug holiday readaloud both for those celebrating and those who are just yearning for latkes, and it could elicit tales of audience family traditions as well." --Bulletin

"A picture book that lovingly and dutifully brings to life the family's cozy Lower East Side apartment, with Zelinsky's warm, close-up illustrations -- and occasional dazzling cutaways -- which evoke both the cramped quarters and the strong emotional bonds of the family." -- The New York Times

"a beautiful picture-book adaptation of events taken from Sydney Taylor's classic stories, published in the 1950s, about an all-daughters family of Jewish immigrants." --Wall Street Journal

"This touching celebration of food and family (based on Sydney Taylor's All-of-a-King Family series from the 1950s) is flavored with dashes of history and love - a lovely recipe for any holiday." --USA Today

About the Author

Emily Jenkins has written many highly acclaimed books for children, including Water in the Park, a Booklist Editors' Choice and a Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book; Lemonade in Winter, a Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year; and two Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Books: Five Creatures and That New Animal. She is also the author of the popular Toys trilogy: Toys Go Out, Toy Dance Party, and Toys Come Home. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Paul O. Zelinsky was born in Evanston, Illinois. He attended Yale University, where he took a course with Maurice Sendak, which later inspired him to pursue a career in children's books. He went on to receive a graduate degree in painting from Tyler School of Art, in Philadelphia and Rome. His first book was published in 1978. Among many other awards and prizes, he received the 1998 Caldecott Medal for his illustrated retelling of Rapunzel, as well as Caldecott Honors for three of his books: Hansel and Gretel (1985), Rumpelstiltskin (1987), and Swamp Angel (1995). Paul Zelinsky lives in New York with his wife, Deborah.