In my opinion, this book would be a great addition to an elementary classroom or for a young reader. I really liked the interactivity that is involved with this book. On each page that is on the right, there is a symbol of Passover. You can unfold this page again to see a scene that involves this symbol and how it applies to the holiday. Young readers would enjoy unfolding these pages and discovering what is underneath. Another thing that I liked about this book was that it includes Hebrew vocabulary so that the reader can be aware of this different language. This adds an important cultural perspective to the book and defines terms that are used during and around this holiday. I also really like the illustrations in this book. They look very traditional and are extremely detailed and colorful which really helps to emphasize what it in the text. This also helps readers who are unfamiliar with the holiday because they can clearly visualize what it is like. The big idea of the story was teaching the reader about Passover and what it is like today and how it was back then. ( )

Harriet Ziefert and Karla Gudeon, the author/illustrator team who produced the lovely One Red Apple, return in this gorgeous celebration of Passover. With a simple, informative text, that explains both the story behind the holiday, and the rituals associated with its celebration, as well as breath-takingly beautiful illustrations (I almost gave this five stars, based on the artwork alone!), Passover: Celebrating Now, Remembering Then is a title I can unreservedly recommend to anyone looking for high quality Passover picture-books!

I was particularly impressed with the format, in which many of the two-page spreads lay out the "then" and "now" of the holiday. "Now..." begins the text on one page, "We dip the parsley in salt water. We taste the bitter herbs." The facing page depicts the karpas (parsley, celery, potato), the maror (bitter herb/horseradish), and the chazeret (bitter vegetable/lettuce), and then folds out, revealing a two-page spread of "then," when the Israelites slaved in Egyptian fields. Linking the past and the present, this dual narrative structure reinforces the meaning of each part of the Passover celebration, while also providing a fun, interactive reading experience. As already mentioned, Karla Gudeon's artwork is a real delight, with vivid colors, folk-motif type details, and decorative endpapers. All in all, this is a real winner! ( )