91
ReviewsThe Genius Under the Table: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain
by Eugene Yelchin
in: Biography Nonfiction
The Cloak from Baghdad: A Graphic Novel
Growing up Jewish in London, Louise has always felt different from her classmates. But, when she tries on her grandmother’s magical abaya, she discovers the secret that her family never talks about…
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What the Book is About
Jewish Content and Values
Content Advisory
What the Book is About
In 1970s London, ten-year-old Louise doesn’t know much about her Jewish immigrant parents’ lives in Iraq... until her grandmother has her try on an old cloak. Suddenly Louise finds herself standing in her mother Flora’s childhood home in 1930s Baghdad. Grandma reassures her she’s invisible and should go enjoy herself!
Louise is impressed by ten-year-old Flora’s refusal to follow all the strict rules for girls, but she is also saddened to learn that her mother was never allowed to have a bat mitzvah. Louise witnesses the growing restrictions against the Jews, who have lived in Iraq for over 2,600 years. Then Flora’s Papa hears the government has fallen and mobs have taken to the streets. Soon the family is running for their lives–and, thankfully, are saved by their quick-thinking Muslim neighbors.
Louise wakes up back in London and goes on to write an essay on her ancestral history. She reads it to her classmates, who listen eagerly to the moving story. In an appended note, the author-illustrator provides further historical details and explains that she based this short, fast-paced graphic novel on her own family’s experiences in Iraq.
Jewish Content and Values
- Louise’s classmates don’t believe she is Jewish; she’s the only Jewish student at school whose family is not from Eastern Europe.
- Louise’s mother Flora attends a Jewish girls’ school, the family celebrates Purim and Passover, and Papa prays at the synagogue each day. Louise learns her great-great-grandfather was Baghdad’s chief rabbi. In an act of charity (tzedakah), Flora and her brother buy food for some hungry children.
- There’s rising antisemitism: Flora’s brother must study in secret for his bar mitzvah, a newspaper headline mentions Hitler, bullies make antisemitic threats, and then mobs begin burning synagogues.
Content Advisory
Some younger readers may find the climax frightening: Flora’s house is attacked by a mob. While the family is jumping from their roof in order to escape, Flora’s brother almost falls. Later, Louise’s grandmother reassures her that the whole family escaped safely.
What the Book is About
What the Book is About
In 1970s London, ten-year-old Louise doesn’t know much about her Jewish immigrant parents’ lives in Iraq... until her grandmother has her try on an old cloak. Suddenly Louise finds herself standing in her mother Flora’s childhood home in 1930s Baghdad. Grandma reassures her she’s invisible and should go enjoy herself!
Louise is impressed by ten-year-old Flora’s refusal to follow all the strict rules for girls, but she is also saddened to learn that her mother was never allowed to have a bat mitzvah. Louise witnesses the growing restrictions against the Jews, who have lived in Iraq for over 2,600 years. Then Flora’s Papa hears the government has fallen and mobs have taken to the streets. Soon the family is running for their lives–and, thankfully, are saved by their quick-thinking Muslim neighbors.
Louise wakes up back in London and goes on to write an essay on her ancestral history. She reads it to her classmates, who listen eagerly to the moving story. In an appended note, the author-illustrator provides further historical details and explains that she based this short, fast-paced graphic novel on her own family’s experiences in Iraq.
Jewish Content and Values
Jewish Content and Values
- Louise’s classmates don’t believe she is Jewish; she’s the only Jewish student at school whose family is not from Eastern Europe.
- Louise’s mother Flora attends a Jewish girls’ school, the family celebrates Purim and Passover, and Papa prays at the synagogue each day. Louise learns her great-great-grandfather was Baghdad’s chief rabbi. In an act of charity (tzedakah), Flora and her brother buy food for some hungry children.
- There’s rising antisemitism: Flora’s brother must study in secret for his bar mitzvah, a newspaper headline mentions Hitler, bullies make antisemitic threats, and then mobs begin burning synagogues.
Content Advisory
Content Advisory
Some younger readers may find the climax frightening: Flora’s house is attacked by a mob. While the family is jumping from their roof in order to escape, Flora’s brother almost falls. Later, Louise’s grandmother reassures her that the whole family escaped safely.
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