On June 18 I had the pleasure of speaking on a panel about Jewish Children’s Literature. I offered an introduction to the Whole Book Approach that highlighted books by and/or about Jewish life and culture. I talked a bit about how I’ve often seen Whole Book Approach discussions about art and design give way to children’s critical engagement with characterization around aspects of identity, which could certainly include Jewish identity. But, I also wanted to drive home the point that the Whole Book Approach can be used with any picture book, which means that book selections for storytimes, collection development, and for programs like the one I was offering that day, can and should be inclusive of a broad range of human experience. Here is the book list I used in my session (linked as a PDF here AJL WBA Book List) with titles listed in the order I mentioned them:
The Whole Book Approach Book List from the 2018 Association of Jewish Libraries Conference
Megan Dowd Lambert, Senior Lecturer in Children’s Literature, Simmons College
Lambert, Megan Dowd. Reading Picture Books with Children: How to Shake Up Storytime and Get Kids Talking About What They See. Charlesbridge, 2015
Rosenblatt, Louise. “The Acid Test for Literature Teaching.” 1956. Making Meaning with Texts, Heinemann, 2005, pp. 62-71.
Nikolajeva, Maria and Carole Scott. How Picturebooks Work. Routledge, 2001.
Yenawine, Phillip. Visual Thinking Strategies: Using Art to Deepen Learning Across School Disciplines. Harvard Education Press, 2013.
Kimmel, Eric A. Gershon’s Monster. Illustrated by Jon J. Muth. Scholastic Press, 2000.
Sendak, Maurice. In the Night Kitchen. HarperCollins, 1970.
Sendak, Maurice. The Nutshell Library. HarperCollins, 1962.
Newman, Lesléa. Daddy, Papa, and Me. Illustrated by Carol Thompson. Tricycle Press, 2009.
Newman, Lesléa. Mommy, Mama, and Me. Illustrated by Carol Thompson. Tricycle Press, 2009.
Glaser, Linda. Emma’s Poem: The Voice of the Statue of Liberty. Illustrated by Claire A. Nivola. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.
Yolen, Jane. How Do Dinosaurs Say Happy Chanukah? Illustrated by Mark Teague. Blue Sky Press, 2012.
Rocklife, Mara. Chik Chak Shabbat. Illustrated by Kyrsten Brooker. Candlewick, 2014.
Levy, Debbie. I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark. Illustrated by Elizabeth Baddeley. Simon and Schuster, 2016.
Winter, Jonah. You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?! Illustrated by André Carillho. Schwartz and Wade, 2009.
Rubin, Susan Goodman. Jean Lafitte: The Pirate Who Saved America. Illustrated by Jeff Himmelman. Henry M. Abrams, 2012.
Michelson, Rich. Fascinating: The Life of Leonard Nimoy. Illustrated by Edel Rodriguez. Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2016.
Cline-Ransome, Lesa. Benny Goodman and Teddy Wilson: Taking the Stage as the First Black-and-White Jazz Band in History. Illustrated by James Ransome. Holiday House, 2014.
Newman, Lesléa. Ketzel, the Cat Who Composed. Illustrated by Amy June Bates. Candlewick, 2015.
Sendak, Maurice. Where the Wild Things Are. HaperCollins, 1963.
Zemach, Margot. It Could Always Be Worse. Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1992.
Spier, Peter. Noah’s Ark. Doubleday, 1977.
Pinkney, Jerry. Noah’s Ark. Chronicle Books, 2002.
Bartoletti, Susan Campbell. Naamah and the Ark at Night. Illustrated by Holly Meade.
Brett, Jan. On Noah’s Ark. G.P. Putnam’s, 2003.
Cousins, Lucy. Noah’s Ark. Candlewick, 2004.
Hest, Amy. When Jessie Came Across the Sea. Illustrated by P.J. Lynch. Candlewick, 1997.
Stampler, Ann Redisch. The Rooster Prince of Breslov. Illustrated by Eugene Yelchin. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010.
Newman, Lesléa. Here Is the World. Illustrated by Susan Gal. Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2014.
Gottesfeld, Jeff. The Tree in the Courtyard: Looking through Anne Frank’s Window. Illustrated by Peter McCarty. Penguin Random House, 2016.
Polacco, Patricia. Mrs. Katz and Tush. Penguin Random House, 1991.
Kimmel, Eric A. Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins. Illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman. Holiday House, 1991.
Shulevitz, Uri. Snow. Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1998.
Michelson, Rich. The Language of Angels: A Story about the Reinvention of Hebrew. Illustrated by Karen Gudeon. Charlesbridge, 2017.
Markel, Michelle. Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers’ Strike of 1909. Illustrated by Melissa Sweet. HarperCollins, 2013.
Kimmel, Eric A. Simon and the Bear: A Hanukkah Tale. Illustrated by Matthew Trueman. Scholastic, 2014.
Taback, Simms. Joseph Had a Little Overcoat. Penguin Random House, 1999.
Wolf, Gita. The Enduring Ark. Illustrated by Joydeb Chitrakar. Tara Books, 2013.