General & Miscellaneous Holidays, Liturgy - Judaism, Prayerbooks & Devotional Literature - Judaism, Scriptures & Rabbinical Literature - Judaism, Passover

The Family Haggadah

Name: The Family Haggadah
Author: Ellen Schecter
ISBN: 9780670883417

by Ellen Schecter, Neil Waldman

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Overview

Now family members of all ages can participate in the Seder celebration with this traditional yet contemporary guide to the Passover ritual dinner. Illustrated step-by-step guidelines create a meaningful experience for children and adults alike. With stories and songs, recipes and ritual platters, The Family Haggadah will turn your Seder into a true celebration, filled with joy.

Synopsis

Children's Literature

This Haggadah is terrific! I wish I'd had it when my children were young; it explains everything more clearly than any other that I've seen. And it gives children specific things to do in preparing for Passover-from cleaning their rooms (don't forget the cookie crumbs-they're Hametz!) to polishing silver, making a cover for the matzah and afikomen, polishing or decorating Elijah's cup and then decorating a new "tradition"-Miriam's cup. It contains water instead of wine. If the kids want to act out the story while the Seder is going on, there's a wonderful summary of the journey that can be read aloud as they pantomime it, or summarized further as they act it out. All of the symbols are carefully explained. There's room for everyone-if you're a vegetarian, for example, how about substituting a roasted beet for the traditional shankbone? The music is here for the traditional songs, and the translations are fine. The illustrations are magnificent, as we have learned to expect from Neil Waldman.

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Editorials

Children's Literature - Judy Silverman

School Library Journal

K-Gr 6This Haggadah makes the Passover Seder accessible to youngsters, regardless of their upbringing or educational background. After a brief introduction on how to use the book, Schecter jumps right in with a script to follow, from the night before the celebration until the end of the Seder. The book maintains an egalitarian standard without becoming didactic. God is never referred to as male, and both men and women are shown to have played large roles in the Exodus story. The traditional Four Sons have become the Four Children, and the recent tradition of Miriams Cup is included. The book ends with a list of ways in which youngsters can participate in the holiday celebration. Black-and-white paintings depict biblical characters and some of the items used during the meal. Unfortunately, half of the prayers are written in English only the rest are in English, Hebrew, and transliteration. However, this is a small flaw in an otherwise excellent presentation.Yapha Nussbaum Mason, Brentwood Lower School, Los Angeles Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.