Abuelita's Secret Matzahs [Paperback]

Sandy Eisenberg Sasso (Author), Diana Bryer (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

Abuelita’s Secret Matzahs tells the fascinating and little-known story of the Cryptojews, while illustrating the universal importance of faith for people of all religious denominations. Jacobo loves to visit his abuelita, his grandmother, especially at Easter time. But Abuelita has a big secret. During semana santa, Holy Week, his grandmother never makes bread, only tortillas made without yeast. She never eats pork, and she lights two candles on Friday nights. But whenever Jacobo asks her questions, she answers, "Ah, mijito, my child, it is the way of our family." One day, Abuelita is finally ready to share her secret. "Sit with me on the porch. It is time to tell you the secret of our family . . ."

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Gr. 2-4. Jacobo loves to visit his grandmother in Santa Fe, especially at Easter, when they hunt for eggs and go to church. After making friends with David, a Jewish boy, and attending a family Passover seder, Jacobo notices similarities to things his grandmother does--for example, she doesn't eat pork. Abuelita tells him that "long ago" his Jewish family escaped the Spanish Inquisition, and fearing persecution in America, they kept their Jewish identity secret, choosing to pass on their family history to just one person in each generation--as Abuelita is doing to Jacobo. It may be hard for the picture-book audience to imagine fifteenth-century Spain, but the connection with Passover brings home the persecution story, and Bryer's pastel folk-art pictures nicely connect the exodus from Egypt with that from Spain and with the loving family in New Mexico now. Parents and kids can talk about the Sephardic history and the identity issues. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"An outstanding example of children's literature. The characters are wonderfully written and it is beautifully illustrated." -- Winner, 2006 Best Books of Indiana competition

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Clerisy Press (March 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1578601770
• ISBN-13: 978-1578601776
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 7.5 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,028,172 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #41 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Religion & Spirituality > Judaism > Jewish Life

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why on this night do we eat flat tortillas, grandma?, March 13, 2005

By 

Larry Mark "editor of MyJewishBooks.com" (nyc) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Abuelita's Secret Matzahs (Paperback)

Abuelita (grandma) is descended from "crypto Jews" in New Mexico, people who hid their religion in the 15th and 16th Centuries when they left Spain for Mexico and the new Mexican territories. When her grandson, Jacobo, comes to visit around Easter time, he learns about her avoidance of pork and the secret flat tortillas (no yeast) she traditionally eats at this Springtime religious festival. Peculiar? Then Jacobo meets and plays with David. David's family also eats flat bread, lights candles on Friday night, and avoids pork. They are Jewish and celebrate Passover, not Easter. Jacobo, like David, asks a lot of questions. But unlike at a seder, there is no Ha Lachman Anya... abuelita keeps quiet. But after continued question, abuelita relents and tells him the story of hidden Jews. A lovely multicultural and historical story. The book ends with a recipe for Jacobo's favorite Sopa (although it is not a Passover soup since it uses leavened bread)

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good reading skills will lend appreciation to this sensitive story, September 12, 2005

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Abuelita's Secret Matzahs (Paperback)

Jacobo's grandmother has a secret: she does things differently than his friends, never making his favorite sopaipillas with honey during Holy Week and celebrating some holidays differently. "It's the way of our family," she will only say when Jacobo asks her about the tortillas made without year - until one day she shares a family secret about their real heritage. Good reading skills will lend appreciation to this sensitive story.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great book for all families, May 20, 2005

By 

Meg (Cincinnati, OH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Abuelita's Secret Matzahs (Paperback)

Contrary to what another reviewer said, this book is about accepting and treasuring your family's heritage, not hating or hiding it. Crypto Jews represent a real chapter in Jewish history, and their story has not often been told.

This book is also a great choice for mixed-religion families; it sensitively portrays the choice Jacobo will face as he gets older and has to choose his own religious path, and it does so without a bias toward either Judaism or Christianity.