Lessons for Life

By KATHY BLOOMFIELD

The holiday of Shavuot (the Feast of Weeks), which arrives on the evening of June 5, is a celebration of the giving of the Ten Commandments to Moses and the Israelites at Mount Sinai. As such, it presents a wonderful opportunity for parents to teach their children about the Ten Commandments and what they mean as well as learn about the traditions of this special holiday, like eating blintzes!

A MOUNTAIN OF BLINTZES
By Barbara Diamond Goldin.
Illustrated by Anik McGrory.
32 pages. Harcourt. $16.00.
Ages 4 - 8.

In this fun story, set in the Catskills of New York in the early 1920s, we prepare to celebrate Shavuot with Sarah, Max, and their five children. When Sarah is reminded that Shavuot is only two weeks away, she begins to worry that they will not have enough money to make the "mountain of blintzes" this important holiday warrants. Fairly quickly, Sarah comes up with a plan to earn a little extra money and enlists Max. For two weeks, she will take in Mrs. Grossinger's laundry and Max will help Mr. Epstein build some new bungalows. Each evening they will deposit their extra coins in their pushke (piggy bank.)

When the time comes for Sarah to add her first coins to the box, however, she decides that Max's extra contribution will be enough for what she needs for the holiday. She, therefore, decides to save her coins for new clothes for the children. Unfortunately, Max has a similar idea, and as he goes to add his coins, he decides the children need new shoes and Sarah's extra coins will be enough. When the two weeks are over, Sarah opens the pushke only to find it empty! She and Max begin to argue, while the children giggle uncontrollably. "'Giggles?' said Max sternly. 'This is not time for giggling.'"

It turns out that while Max and Sarah were doing their extra work, so were the children. Each one had earned a special ingredient–'sugar, flour, jam, cottage cheese and sour cream–'everything necessary for making blintzes. "When Shavuot came, they had a mountain of blintzes with a mountain of other good things–'candles and wine, not to mention new clothes and shoes for the children."

The delightful illustrations by Anik McGrory, beautifully capture the emotions of each moment in the story: the joys of farm life, the breathless anticipation waiting for the extra coins to spill out of the pushke, and most importantly, the love each member of the family has for the others. There is a subtle lesson about cooperation here, but children from toddlers to elementary school will love listening to this story–'perhaps while helping you make blintzes using the recipe provided in the back of the book

WHO KNOWS TEN?
Children's Tales of the Ten Commandments
By Molly Cone.
Illustrated by Robin Brickman.
110 pages. UAHC Press. $12.00.
Ages 7 and up.

In this timeless and classic collection, Molly Cone uses Jewish stories to illustrate the meanings of each of the Ten Commandments. Each chapter opens with a short introduction about the Israelites receiving a specific commandment–'what they heard and what they thought about it. Then Ms. Cone provides a story that perfectly illustrates the deeper meaning of the commandment and that demonstrates why each commandment is so important.

There are the stories one would expect. To illustrate the Seventh Commandment, "You shall not be unfaithful to your wife or husband," we read a midrash (rabbinic tale) adapted from Song of Songs Rabah about a wise wife who teaches her foolish husband about the true value of promises. For the Ninth Commandment, "You shall not tell false tales about your neighbor," we read about "The Gossip" who learns from her rabbi that just like feathers let loose from a pillow, "it is impossible for you to take back all the unkind things you have said about others."

But then there are the stories that are not so expected and that have meanings that are not so obvious and may take a little longer to discover. Commandment number three, "You shall not use God's name falsely" takes us to "A Place Called Kushta" where no one ever broke their word. And the Sixth Commandment, "You shall not steal," is paired with a story titled "The Reward" about a clever young painter who learns a valuable lesson in honesty from King Solomon himself.

All in all, this is the perfect book to share and discuss with your children as they learn the Ten Commandments. I picture a family sitting around the holiday or Shabbat table, reading a story and having a lively discussion of its meaning and value and why the author chose it to illustrate a specific commandment.