Book Review: Gilgul I: Re-dedication

Gilgul I: Re-dedication by Emily Singer is a fascinating and compelling fictional retelling of the Chanuka story written for children. With the great success of the Harry Potter series, many Jewish authors have taken themes from our history and expanded them  with magic and mysticism especially for youth.

Considering that Israel is now at war for its survival, and Jews in the Diaspora are dealing with a rise in antisemitism that had been unthinkable even a year ago, this really is the time to give your children a book of Jewish heroism and hope, like Gilgul I. 

In this interview with Singer, you can read of how she felt the need for the book, even in simpler times.

David, just fifteen 15, and his sister Leya are the heroes of this behind the scenes biblical adventure. Their father defies the Greeks by secretly teaching Torah, while producing exquisite wooden furniture with the help of his children. 

Like many biblical heroines, Leya is brave and practical, even more so than the males. Her prowess with the bow and arrow are, davka, superior to David's who prefers playing Skyros, similar to rugby but much more dangerous. His extraordinary talent has been noticed by a royal Greek player making David's life much more complicated. 

Yes, I recommend Gilgul I, which can be ordered from Amazon.

Product details

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Hakodesh Press (November 13, 2018)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 208 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 6202455276
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-6202455275

Adventure on The New Jerusalem High Speed Train

One great advantage of our age and being retired is the opportunity for spontaneity. There are very few strictly scheduled events to worry about. After a lovely lunch in Center 1 with friends from all over the world, my longtime buddy and I decided to take the lightrail to the center of Jerusalem. Since we had a few minutes before the trolly's arrival, she wanted to ask some questions at the nearby Navon Train Station of the new Jerusalem High Speed Train. The young man at Information informed us that "today," meaning yesterday, we didn't need advance reservations to take the new train to Ben Gurion Airport. All we needed was our trusty Rav-kav.

And so, within seconds, we were on our way. The young friendly help staff assisted us in "purchasing" our free roundtrip tickets. We're still young enough to enjoy an unplanned adventure.

We had read about the Jerusalem High Speed Train, which like when the lightrail was new, is offering free rides. I must admit that I had been nervous about the long escalator ride underground. I'm still traumatized by old wooden escalators in the London Underground at Kings Cross to the Northern Line, which I had taken forty-three years ago. I must tell you that these new Jerusalem escalators are wonderful. I felt very safe and didn't feel any ear pressure when we got deep underground to the tracks.

In keeping with the festive mood of the pre-opening of the Jerusalem High Speed Train, we were given little chocolates. It was clear that many of the passengers, including young families, were on the train as a lark, like us, but there were also quite a few who appeared to be legitimate airplane travelers. They had lots of luggage with them.

We sat in the upper part of the train and looked out of the window, but it was disappointing to discover that a large portion of the route was in tunnels. We could see at times that we were speeding much more quickly than the cars of the parallel road.

The biggest time-waster was when we got back to Jerusalem and couldn't find an up escalator. All there seemed to be were a few much-too-small elevators. They were crowded and slow in coming. I think that only one was actually working. If that's so, then Gd willing it should be easier to get up once they're all fully functioning.

For people who live in or near Jerusalem, the Jerusalem High Speed Train is great. To and from Shiloh it isn't. We're actually as close to the airport as we are to Jerusalem. That's another reason why I enjoyed yesterday's adventure. I may never have another real opportunity to take the train.

eating the free chocolate candy

The actual train ride is just over twenty minutes in each direction, and there's a train every half hour.

In just over 90 minutes we traveled to Ben Gurion Airport, walked around the arrivals area and took the train back to Jerusalem.

Book Review: Night of the Living Cuddle Bunnies by Jonathan Rosen

I must let you know in advance that Night of the Living Cuddle Bunnies by Jonathan Rosen isn't a Jewish book, though the author certainly is. It was written for the general young English reading public. It is set during the Christmas season, but there is nothing religious in the story. It is culturally American, and the story would be much more difficult to tell without the American winter holiday customs. Remember that many of the classic English Literature is set during Christmas season.

Now, if you're still reading this review, I'm going to tell you that the book is totally fantastic. I really had fun reading it and would offer it to my grandchildren, who are totally Israeli, to read.

As I was reading Jonathan Rosen's debut fantasy for children, Night of the Living Cuddle Bunnies, I kept envisioning it as an animated movie. Or maybe that's too 20th century; today they have movies that realistically combine animated and human actors.

Twelve-year-old Devin Dexter has problems. His sister, Abby, is annoying. His cousin, Tommy, sees conspiracies everywhere. And his new neighbor, Herb, might be a warlock. When strange things start happening, like the hot new Christmas toy, the Cuddle-Bunny, coming to life and turning evil, Devin and Tommy set out to stop them and prove Herb is a warlock. Will they have enough time before the town of Gravesend is overrun by the cutest little murderers ever?

Even though this is a totally, or I should hope so,  make believe adventure story, the characters were amazingly well-written and realistictic. Night of the Living Cuddle Bunnies should be found enjoyable by both boys and girls. There were lots of surprises in the plot, even for me who reads lots of suspense and detective novels. I understand that Rosen has more books in the works. I hope that he'll send me all of them when they are published.

• Age Range: 8 - 12 years
• Grade Level: 2 - 7
• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Sky Pony Press (August 29, 2017)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1510715231
• ISBN-13: 978-1510715233
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 1 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)