Mode

kid

parent

The Book of Secrets

by: Mat Tonti  

Ages

9+
A creature made of dough, a chilly giant, and an evil sorceress bent on stealing their greatest treasure! Will Rose and Ben defeat the bad guys and rescue their missing grandparents?
Ages 9+
Pages 205
Publisher Lerner Publishing Group
Coming Aug 2023
Awards
PJ Our Way Author Incentive Award Winner

Average Rating

277 Reviews
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Rose sees a vision of her grandmother, who is supposed to be on vacation, calling to her for help. With her brother Ben’s assistance, she finds a magical book and lantern that give readers the power to enter stories from Jewish tradition and bring light into the darkness. Unfortunately, there’s someone else who is also bent on acquiring the book for her own dark purposes. In this fast-paced and well-drawn graphic novel, Rose and Ben travel through seven Jewish folktales and use their wits, courage, and strength to fight the darkness and save their grandparents.

  • All the stories in the book are based on Jewish traditional folk tales and Midrash (biblical commentary).
  • Rose and Ben are helped by a “doughlem,” a little Golem character made of challah dough.

  • Rose and Ben are clever and resourceful characters who are eager to fight the bad Sorceress and save their grandparents.

Og, the giant in one of the stories, is quite hideous, though unlikely to disturb readers.

In the story “Under the Bridge,” a clever girl travels far from home searching for treasure, only to discover that the treasure was under her house all along. What do you suppose Rabbi Nachman, the storyteller who told this tale, wanted people to think about when he told this story?

Rabbi Nachman of Breslov was an eighteenth-century Torah scholar and mystic from Poland. The great grandson of the Baal Shem Tov (the founder of Hasidism), he reinvigorated the Hasidic movement by integrating Kabbalah (a Jewish mystical philosophy) with Torah learning and inspiring his followers to serve God with joy. He lived until the age of 38 and had many devoted Hasidim (followers). Their mantra, Na Nach Nachma Nachman Meuman (loosely translated to “Nachman from Uman”), became very popular in contemporary Israel and can be found woven into white knitted kippot (yarmulkes, or skullcaps), as graffiti, bumper stickers, jewelry, and especially in music. Every Rosh Hashanah, thousands of Breslovers from all over the world travel to pray at Rabbi Nachman’s grave in Uman.
What the Book is About

Rose sees a vision of her grandmother, who is supposed to be on vacation, calling to her for help. With her brother Ben’s assistance, she finds a magical book and lantern that give readers the power to enter stories from Jewish tradition and bring light into the darkness. Unfortunately, there’s someone else who is also bent on acquiring the book for her own dark purposes. In this fast-paced and well-drawn graphic novel, Rose and Ben travel through seven Jewish folktales and use their wits, courage, and strength to fight the darkness and save their grandparents.

  • All the stories in the book are based on Jewish traditional folk tales and Midrash (biblical commentary).
  • Rose and Ben are helped by a “doughlem,” a little Golem character made of challah dough.

  • Rose and Ben are clever and resourceful characters who are eager to fight the bad Sorceress and save their grandparents.

Og, the giant in one of the stories, is quite hideous, though unlikely to disturb readers.

In the story “Under the Bridge,” a clever girl travels far from home searching for treasure, only to discover that the treasure was under her house all along. What do you suppose Rabbi Nachman, the storyteller who told this tale, wanted people to think about when he told this story?

Rabbi Nachman of Breslov was an eighteenth-century Torah scholar and mystic from Poland. The great grandson of the Baal Shem Tov (the founder of Hasidism), he reinvigorated the Hasidic movement by integrating Kabbalah (a Jewish mystical philosophy) with Torah learning and inspiring his followers to serve God with joy. He lived until the age of 38 and had many devoted Hasidim (followers). Their mantra, Na Nach Nachma Nachman Meuman (loosely translated to “Nachman from Uman”), became very popular in contemporary Israel and can be found woven into white knitted kippot (yarmulkes, or skullcaps), as graffiti, bumper stickers, jewelry, and especially in music. Every Rosh Hashanah, thousands of Breslovers from all over the world travel to pray at Rabbi Nachman’s grave in Uman.