Summary
This beautiful story mixed of unrealistic and realistic events gives an amazing take on getting to Savta’s (Jewish for grandmother) for Shabbat. The little boy is woken up by a penguin to set off on their journey. This book is imaginative yet tells the story of Shabbat and keeps the tradition alive. Both the grandmother and the grandson are Jews of color and the delightful illustrations are shown with pastel colors used to represent the beautiful landscapes.
Theme(s):
Family, Friendship, Traditions
Personal Response
This book is a great book for teaching young children about Shabbat. I loved how they used animals as characters because it still gives the book that sense of imagination while also explaining real things. The author did a great job of making sure to allow for the differences in this book to be shown and to make sure that we truly got an understanding of what Shabbat is truly about for the characters. This book is filled with family and friendship and portrays these themes very well.
Teaching Ideas
For an activity based on reading this book I would read this book to my class. We would discuss all of the things the boy brought in his backpack for Shabbat. As a class, we would then discuss different celebrations that are special to our families. After discussing, I would have each student work on a project about their own celebration that is special to them. They would make a “backpack” and fill it with items that they feel necessary and important to bring with them to their celebration.
Recommended Reading Level
Birth-PreK, Grade 01
