The Latke Who Couldn't Stop Screaming: A Christmas Story (Hardcover)

by Lemony Snicket (Author), Lisa Brown (Illustrator)
Key Phrases: flashing colored lights

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Go ahead and cover this book in red, stamp it with gold foil and label it a Christmas story—Lemony Snicket fans won't be fooled. The miraculous birth here is of a potato pancake, which, unlike its less loquacious literary cousin the Gingerbread Man, begins screaming the moment it gets cooked. Leaping out of the frying pan and into the great white spaces of Brown's retro-cool graphics, the latke screams even louder as it tries in vain to explain itself and its role at Hanukkah to flashing colored lights (So you're basically hash browns, they reply. Maybe you can be served alongside a Christmas ham) and an equally Christmas-centric candy cane and tree. Embedding a satirical sting in his elegantly cadenced prose, the author (Daniel Handler) up-ends any number of conventions in what may be his funniest book yet. The gift-edition trim size makes this as easy a choice for adults as for the Unfortunate Events crowd. All ages. (Nov.)
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Product Description

Latkes are potato pancakes served at Hanukkah, and Lemony Snicket is an alleged children’s author. For the first time in literary history, these two elements are combined in one book. A particularly irate latke is the star of The Latke Who Couldn’t Stop Screaming, but many other holiday icons appear and even speak: flashing colored lights, cane-shaped candy, a pine tree. Santa Claus is briefly discussed as well. The ending is happy, at least for some. People who are interested in any or all of these things will find this book so enjoyable it will feel as though Hanukkah were being celebrated for several years, rather than eight nights.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Hardcover: 48 pages
• Publisher: McSweeney's (October 28, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932416870
• ISBN-13: 978-1932416879
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 6.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #99,651 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #3 in	Books > Children's Books > Holidays & Festivals > Jewish > Hanukkah
  #27 in	Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Holidays > Christmas
  #31 in	Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( S ) > Snicket, Lemony

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a high decibel hash brown escapes hot oil in search of understanding, November 26, 2007

By	Larry Mark "editor of MyJewishBooks.com" (nyc) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Finally, a book that reinforces that Hanukah is not the Jewish Christmas and is not about presents. It is about hope in the face of being outnumbered. Here is a story about a latke in the midst of a Christmas story. It is screaming and wailing. And why shouldn't it? Someone who lives in the house without the xmas lights adorning it has tried to fry the latke in sizzling hot oil. Rather than jumping out of the frynig pan and into the fire, this little latke heads for the open window. As the story progresses, we learn about the story of Hanukah and the misconceptions about the latke and the holiday. A variety of popular Christmas symbols cross paths with the latke and think it is nothing more than a hash brown, a nice side meal to a Christmas ham, and more (or less). Oh, what a deep and meaningful book this is. It gets more insightful with each reading. Why do the colored lights fail to understand the latke? Why does the candy cane only focus on its minty fragrence and have no inclination for understanding that not everyone desires a peppermint scent? How could a candy stick be so distasteful under its red and white striped mint coating? Each confrontation ends with the latke running and screaming in search of understanding and identity. Until it lands under a pine tree in a snow covered, deep, dark forest (or is this the subconcious). Yet again, the pine tree is only focused on its small, provincial worldview. If something plopped under it, then it must be a present. No? But wait. A family with an axe approaches the pine forest...

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A silly take on religious differences, November 25, 2007

By	Julie Neal "The Complete Walt Disney World" (Sanibel Island, Fla.) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The small, square, hardback is a great book for families of all religions to learn a little about Hanukah and the importance of understanding different cultures, but it's just as skewed and wicked as the other Lemony Snicket titles. Holiday lights, a candy cane and a pine tree just can't understand that not everything is about Christmas, especially a little potato pancake. The flashing lights say that the latke is basically hash browns, which go great alongside a nice Christmas ham.

Finally the latke finds some kindred spirits: a Jewish family who understands him so well, it eats him.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars There's a kind of hash, December 10, 2007

By	Amanda Richards "Modest to the extreme" (Georgetown, Guyana) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

[To the tune of "There's a Kind of Hush (All Over the World)" as recorded by Herman's Hermits and The Carpenters.]

There's a kind of hash, in Lemony's world, that's right
In Lemony's world, you can hear the sound of a latke with lungs
If you know what I mean
Just potato mush, with onions and egg, and fried
There's no better way, than the Hanukah way, with the latke that cried

So read it very carefully
Closely now and you will see what I mean
The latke that screamed
Between the silly bits you'll see
That there's a lot of history
On the Jews, and Hanukah's meaning

Yes there's a kind of hash, in Lemony's world, all right
In Lemony's world, you can learn a lot, from Hanukah lore


Seriously now, this deceptively simple little book effectively illustrates the difference between Hanukah and Christmas for those of us who weren't too sure before (and were afraid to ask).

Through funny exchanges with other objects and some delightful illustrations by Lisa Brown, "Snicket" brings out the significance of Hanukah by comparing the traditions of Christmas with the miraculous defeat of Antiochus IV at the hands of the Maccabees, the subsequent re-dedication of the temple, and the oil that burned for eight days.

The book ends in true dramatic Snicket fashion, with a kind of hush.

Educational, yet entertaining, this is a good, albeit brief, book for everyone.



Amanda Richards, December 10, 2007