Little Red Rosie

by Eric Kimmel, Monica Guttierrez (Illustrator)

Overview

A bouncy, colorful picture book by award-winning author Eric Kimmel for Rosh Hashanah.

“A beautiful retelling with a kinder, more inclusive ending.” –Midwest Book Review

In this playful version of The Little Red Hen, a young girl enlists her animal friends to help make the challah for Rosh Hashanah.

The whole diverse neighborhood joins in the Rosh Hashanah celebration at the end of the story, emphasizing the universality of our resolve to build a better world in the new year.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781681155180
Publisher:	Behrman House, Incorporated
Publication date:	08/04/2016
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	1,019,661
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 10.10(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	3 - 6 Years

Editorial Reviews

"Little Red Rosie" is the delightful retelling of the story of the little red hen, with a Rosh Hashanah twist. [It is] a beautiful retelling of an old children's tale with a kinder, more inclusive ending. Rosh Hashanah is honored and celebrated by the mitzvah of hachnasat orchim, or welcoming guests. The universality of Rosh Hashanah is emphasized as Rosie and her friends wish everyone a good year to come!"

- Midwest Book Review

From the Publisher

10/01/2016
PreS-Gr 1—A young girl sets out to bake a challah, a traditional braided bread, for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. "Who will help me measure the flour and make the dough?" Little Red Rosie asks her stuffed friends, Toucan, Parrot, and Hornbill. Unlike in the familiar tale, the birds respond enthusiastically. However, they have a hard time following Rosie's instructions, and in their eagerness to assist, they make quite a mess. Rosie remains patient and encouraging but soon realizes that it's better if she kneads and braids the dough, brushes it with egg, sprinkles the poppy seeds, and cleans up all by herself. The animals help Rosie say the blessing over the challah and help her eat it, too. The bright, cheerful cartoon illustrations complement the text but also create some confusion. While the bread traditionally eaten on the Sabbath is a braided loaf, on Rosh Hashanah a round challah is used. Both shapes are depicted and appear on the dinner table. No explanation or distinction is provided. The animals come to life to help Rosie in the kitchen, but when the guests arrive for the holiday dinner, the toys sit lifeless on the couch. They spring back to life to help Rosie with the blessings and to share a bite of challah but are again lifeless in the final illustration. In the author's note, Kimmel explains that Rosie is practicing kindness, patience, and encouragement through role-playing; he also discusses the Jewish value of welcoming guests. These messages may not be so obvious to young children. VERDICT Leslie Kimmelman's The Little Red Hen and the Passover Matzah is a more successful Jewish holiday adaptation of the well-loved folktale.—Rachel Kamin, North Suburban Synagogue Beth El, Highland Park, IL

School Library Journal

2016-06-22
As in the story of the little red hen, Little Red Rosie, a Jewish white girl, is baking bread, but she is baking festive challah.In the folk tale, the hen gets no help and must do everything herself. In this lively picture book, Rosie's stuffed animals come to life, and Toucan, Parrot, and Hornbill (and a yellow bird that observes) help make the loaves, both the usual braided type and the round challah, symbolic of the cycle of life and God's crown and made specifically for the high holidays. No adults help, but Kimmel writes in his afterword that Rosie "practices being the capable one—the parent—with her bird friends." Rosie's repetitive questions, as in "Who will help me knead the dough?" and the frequent, eager "I will" responses of the main avian characters will help young readers join in. Watercolor paintings set in a modern kitchen detail the mess and emphasize the story's fun. The three birds are pictured sitting on the (covered) rising dough "like it was an egg in a nest." The shaping of the dough into challah is quite amusing. Luckily, the loaves are ready for the neighborhood holiday dinner, a multiethnic affair. Readers wishing for educational extras will need to look elsewhere for a description of the holiday and the festive foods pictured (pomegranate, apple, and honey), a Hebrew transliteration of the English prayer, and a challah recipe. An attractive, different take on a holiday tale. (Picture book. 3-7)

Kirkus Reviews