Description
This spirited collection will make the Jewish people's beginnings tangible to today's readers. --KIRKUS REVIEWS
Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Moses. We think we know their stories, but the Bible tells us only part of it. What if we could see the full picture?
Maybe we'd discover that...
...Adam and Eve were challenging the rules, growing up.
...Noah felt fearful and angry, desperate for any kind of hope.
...Abraham and Sarah gleefully, recklessly smashed idols in his father's workshop, and were stunned by a revelation that would change their world.
...Moses could not imagine that the Israelites would want to follow him, and felt dread at being asked to lead.
Maybe these iconic figures of the Bible were people just like us, filled with fear and joy, jealousy and passion, mischief and love.
Maybe it happened this way.
This is a modern take on Bible stories, with relatable characters; not earnest and reverent, but not transgressive either. It explores timeless themes of interest to kids, including fairness, sibling rivalry, perseverance, forgiveness, courage. Maybe It Happened This Way also covers many lesser-known narratives and lifts up the stories of women in the Bible as well.
Includes an introduction explaining of the Jewish concept of midrash--stories created to add new layers to our understanding of the Bible; a discussion guide with questions; an index of values; and a guide to sources for each Bible story.
About the Author
Rabbi Leah Berkowitz is the spiritual leader of Congregation Kol Ami in Elkins Park, PA. A graduate of Brandeis University and Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, she contributed to Mishkan HaNefesh for Youth, a High Holy Day prayer book, and The Sacred Calling: Four Decades of Women in the Rabbinate. She is also the author of two children's books: The World Needs Beautiful Things (Kar-Ben, 2018) and Queen Vashti's Comfy Pants (Apples & Honey Press 2021). Erica Wovsaniker is a religious school teacher at Congregation Or Shalom in Vernon Hills, Illinois. She has been a teacher for many years and an aspiring writer for many more. A graduate of Brandeis University, she earned an MA in English from University of Illinois-Chicago and an MA in Divinity from the University of Chicago. She lives in Buffalo Grove, Illinois, with her husband, two children, and their dog. Katherine Messenger is an illustrator, designer, and editor whose work has appeared in numerous books, magazines, and journals, including SAPIR: A Journal of Jewish Conversations and Paper Brigade. She lives in Blue Hill, Maine, with her husband and two young boys.
Reviews
Stories from the Torah, the Old Testament's first five books, are enlivened.
A Reform rabbi and a Jewish educator use the original text, midrashim (stories that "search or explore" the original Bible), and their own creativity to reinterpret the well-known tales about Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Moses, Aaron, Miriam, and others. Sometimes they invent characters, and in the last story, they leap into the future, juxtaposing Moses writing the Torah with God telling him about the questions future people will have, even mentioning the smartphone, to show the continuing importance of Jewish learning. Though the events are familiar-the Great Flood, the departure from Egypt and the long desert sojourn-the storytelling is engaging. The biblical figures have strong personalities, and the authors make playful asides, such as a remark from God to Moses when the great leader is worried about his brother's feelings: "When was the last time you saw Aaron happy?" Although traditionalists may not be comfortable with these adaptations, the stories make real the joy and suffering of the Jewish people during their early days. With particularly rich backmatter (including excellent discussion questions), the book will be useful for some Jewish education programs, but individual readers will also enjoy this less formal approach to the stories that have been taught in religious schools and homes and mentioned in secular literature for centuries. Simple black-and-white vignettes accompany chapter headings and are interspersed throughout.
This spirited collection will make the Jewish people's beginnings tangible to today's readers. (descriptions of Jewish values and the stories that relate to each value, index of values and sources) (Religious anthology. 10-13) ---KIRKUS REVIEWS
Chil dren are often taught sto ries from the Bible as midrashim. These tales can be pre sent ed in an engag ing yet sim ple man ner, allow ing their built-in lessons to shine through. Occa sion al ly thoughts, com ments, and events are added in an attempt to bring the sto ries to life, with the result that they are often long-remem bered. But there can be a draw back to this method of learn ing. Chil dren don't always dis tin guish between the orig i nal sto ries told in the Torah and these more col or ful, mem o rable ver sions. This book and its unusu al approach elim i nates that prob lem. It explains the con cept and uses of midrash while relat ing the sto ries in a relat able and inter est ing way.
The authors share twen ty tales, each clear ly and mem o rably told. In intro duc to ry sec tions, the authors explain midrash in a way that chil dren can under stand, allow ing them easy access to the deep er, rich er ver sions of the sto ries to come and elim i nat ing any pos si ble con fu sion. The sto ry of Adam and Eve, their encounter with the Ser pent, and their expul sion from the Gar den of Eden receives a poignant ren der ing; Noah and his rela tion ship with his grand son as they look toward the future feels endear ing ly opti mistic; and Abra ham's smash ing of his father's idols is nuanced and com plex. Rebec ca, Rachel, Leah, Joseph, Ben jamin, Moses, Aaron, Miri am, and oth ers make appear ances in ways that both edu cate and enter tain. Not only that, the text appears along side black and white line draw ings that enhance under stand ing and clarity.
With this book, chil dren learn that there is more than one way to tell a good sto ry and have its lessons stick. They begin to under stand the use ful ness of learn ing about the Bible through midrashim in addi tion to the tra di tion al approach of read ing direct ly from its pages.
A use ful dis cus sion guide con cludes the text, hom ing in on Jew ish val ues and ques tions for fur ther thought and dis cus sion. There is also an index that ties each sto ry back to its orig i nal Torah source. ---MICHAL MALEN, THE JEWISH BOOK COUNCIL
Book Information
ISBN 9781681155869
Author Leah Berkowitz
Format Hardback
Page Count 216
Imprint Behrman House Inc.,U.S.
Publisher Behrman House Inc.,U.S.
