The neighborhood blintz maker is injured right before the blintz holiday, Shavuot.
Mr. Mintz (light-skinned, with a curly ginger mop) is a neighborly gent. He carries groceries, puts out milk for the cats, and, most importantly, is always there with a bite to eat. A "marvelous cook," Mr. Mintz gives away most of what he prepares to his neighbors.—soup for the sniffly, latkes on Hanukkah, challah for Shabbat, and gooey, tasty blintzes for the spring holiday of Shavuot. But the day before Shavuot, Mr. Mintz takes a tumble off his skateboard. He's going to be OK, but who will make the "cheesy, and apple-y . . .gooey and delicious" blintzes for the neighborhood? Why, the neighbors, of course! When Mr. Mintz returns from the hospital on crutches, his neighbors are all there to bring him hot tea, kittens,—and blintzes. Mr. Mintz's neighbors, nameless and lacking in cultural markers, have a wide variety of skin tones and facial features in the cartoon art. It's up to the reader to decide whether this gentle, community-minded tale depicts a racially diverse Jewish neighborhood, a neighborhood where people are happy to celebrate other cultures' traditions, or both. An author's note provides a two-sentence reference for the religious aspect of the holiday, but returns to the focus on food with a blintz recipe. (This book was reviewed digitally)
"A cozy tale of friendship, mutual aid, neighborliness, and tasty, tasty food."
—Kirkus Reviews
Everyone in the neighborhood loves Mr. Mintz. He’s friendly, generous, and helpful; he remembers everyone’s birthday, rakes leaves, and shovels snow when needed; he brings homemade soup to a sick neighbor and delivers latkes on Hanukkah and challah on Shabbat. But Mr. Mintz is most famous for his sweet and savory, gooey and delicious Shavuot blintzes. When he breaks his leg skateboarding just before the holiday, his neighbors surprise him by working together to make the blintzes.Cute, expressive cartoon illustrations depict a diverse contemporary neighborhood, with added speech bubbles used to enhance the text. The text mentions that "Shavuot celebrates the giving of the Torah to the Jewish people," and the appended author’s note further explains that "because the Torah is said to be nourishing, like milk, many people celebrate Shavuot by eating dairy foods such as cheese, ice cream, and blintzes." The strength of Mr. Mintz’s Blintzes is in how it illustrates in a fun way the Jewish values of chesed (kindness) and visiting the sick. There are similar versions of the story told about other times of year in picture books, some examples being The Cholent Brigade by Michael Herman, illustrated by Sharon Harmer (Kar-Ben, 2017), Chik Chak Shabbat by Mara Rockliff, illustrated by Kyrsten Brooker (Candlewick, 2016), and The Bagel King by Andrew Larsen, illustrated by Sandy Nichols (Kids Can Press, 2018).
—Michal Malen, The Jewish Book Council
