ABOUT THE BOOK
ROCCO THE GIANT BOY tells the story of a boy belonging to a tribe of giants, who learns, through an encounter with little people, that it is wiser to treat others with respect rather than with a show of force. The book will help guide children to an understanding of some of the principles underlying moral behavior.
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In I WANT A DOG, a boy tells us how he has been trying to persuade his mother that she should allow him to have a dog. One by one, he goes through his mother's objections to his having a dog, and he explains how he has tried to counter each of her objections. Although his counter-arguments are at times far-fetched, they are always amusing. The reader will find satisfaction in the fact that the boy never loses his hope and perseveres in his effort to achieve his goal..
FROM BLACK AND WHITE TO COLOR: JOURNEY OF A PICTURE BOOK ILLUSTRATOR
ABOUT THE BOOK
FROM BLACK AND WHITE TO COLOR demonstrates the journey of a picture book illustrator from black and white illustrations to full color ones. Over a period of five years, from 2015 to 2020, the author had Gau Family Studio, a company dedicated to picture book illustration, illustrate nineteen of her books. During that whole period, the author collaborated with Cindy Nguyen, Project Manager at Gau Family Studio, on creating and perfecting the illustrations for her stories. Black and white illustrations from each of the nineteen picture books which the author and Cindy Nguyen collaborated on getting illustrated are presented in this volume, alongside their final, full color version, so the reader can follow the illustrator's journey from non-color to the world of color, and gain insight into the journey taken by a skilled illustrator of picture books.
FROM SKETCHES TO PICTURE BOOKS: A TRIBUTE TO THE ARTISTRY OF CINDY NGUYEN
ABOUT THE BOOK
FROM SKETCHES TO PICTURE BOOKS is a tribute to the artistry of Cindy Nguyen, a children's book illustrator who served as Project Manager for Gau Family Studio and who was the illustrator of nineteen of the author's picture books. For five years - from 2015 to 2020 - Cindy Nguyen and Judith Weinshall Liberman collaborated on bringing the latter's stories to life via color illustrations. This book presents Cindy's character sketches for the main characters of each of these nineteen books, as well as the front covers of the published picture books. Cindy's great skill at design and drawing, and her spectacular use of color, which are clearly revealed in the present book, should be an inspiration to children and to all others who appreciate beautiful illustrations.
More on FROM SKETCHES TO PICTURE BOOKS: A TRIBUTE TO THE ARTISTRY OF CINDY NGUYEN or TO PURCHASE
ABOUT THE BOOK
In THE SCARECROW AND THE CROW, a young scarecrow seeks to learn what the world is like beyond the tall
mountains surrounding the wheat field which he is guarding against crows. Since his feet are stuck in the ground
and he is therefore unable to travel and find out for himself, he asks a crow whom he befriends to tell him what the
world is like. There is a surprise ending when the crow returns from a long winter journey and tells the scarecrow
what she has learned about the world.
ABOUT THE BOOK
CHILD'S PLAY contains six short plays for children who like to act. In most of these plays, the characters can be represented by either a boy or a girl, and the age range represented is flexible. The plays can be put on in school settings as well as at home or at other social settings. They require few props, and will not only be fun for children to read and act in, but will also raise some important questions for discussion.
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In STARTING SCHOOL, a young boy who is about to start school, tells us what he imagines his school experience will be like. He speaks positively about the learning which will be taking place at school, but his primary emphasis is on the diverse group of children he will meet and on the interaction he anticipates having with his classmates. STARTING SCHOOL is an inspiring story which should be read by any child who is wondering what the school experience will be like.
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DAD'S DESK tells a story about the love and admiration a girl has for her father. From early childhood, the girl is fascinated by her father's desk and its use by him, and as she grows up she uses the desk herself, first to help her father with his work and later for her own writing. DAD'S DESK is a heart-warming story about a close child-parent bond and the continuity of family values
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SARAH AND HER GRANDMA tells the story of the close bond that develops over the years between a girl and her grandmother as they celebrate the festival of Hanukkah together. The girl stays at her grandmother's house during Hanukkah, and as she listens to her grandmother telling the story of the Maccabees and participates in the ceremony of lighting the Hanukkah menorah, the girl not only gains in understanding the meaning of Hanukkah but also in self-confidence.
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ARON AND HIS GRANDPA tells the story of the close bond that develops between a Jewish boy growing up in America and the boy's grandfather, who lives in Israel. The grandfather visits his family in America every Passover, and the relationship between the boy and his grandfather becomes increasingly close as they celebrate the Passover Seder and discuss its meaning.
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In GRANDMA'S LESSONS, a grandmother tries to teach her beloved grandchildren the lessons she has learned about living a good life. To do so, she recounts incidents from her past and points out the lessons she learned along the way, hoping that her grandchildren will benefit from her experience. This book will be appreciated by anyone who is trying to guide young people toward a positive life.
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MY FRIEND GERARD tells the story of a young man called Gerard who came to Palestine from Switzerland in 1946 to help in the fight for a Jewish state. In Palestine, Gerard, an explosives expert, joined the Palmach, the elite fighting force of the Jewish underground army, and trained Palmach members in the use of explosives. Gerard was killed in March 1948, before the establishment of the State of Israel. This book, written in the form of a letter from the author to Gerard's sister in Switzerland, is a moving tribute to the memory of an idealistic young man who sacrificed his life for a cause he believed in.
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THE KING tells the story of a king who is cruel to his people and causes many of them to flee their country. The young prince is baffled by the king's conduct and asks the king why he is treating his people so harshly. When the prince ascends the throne, he invites those who have fled to return to their country, promising them that they will be kindly treated. This is an apt story for our times. Available in paperback.
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ROKITNO SQUARE tells the story of the massacre which took place in the town of Rokitno in eastern Poland in 1941 during the Nazi occupation. In this book, the massacre is seen through the eyes of someone who witnessed the event as a young man and managed to escape. The book raises moral questions relevant for our times. Available in paperback.
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THE VISIT TO LATRUN tells the story of a teenager living in pre-Israel Palestine a nd eager to fight for the establishment of a Jewish state. The boy's father, who, as one of the leaders of the Jewish community, has been incarcerated by the British authorities in Latrun, wants the boy to pursue higher education abroad so he can acquire the perspective required for future leadership. The story, which focuses on the boy's fateful meeting with his father in Latrun, throws light on th e conflicting viewpoints of two generations and illuminates an important period in the history of Israel. Available in paperback.
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BEN AND THE BISHOP tells a story about a Jewish boy named Ben who lives in the German town of Speyer during the eleventh century, at the time of the People's Crusade. Ben, who wants to become a teacher when he grows up, volunteers to teach Hebrew to the Bishop of Speyer. Ben and the Bishop become friends. Will Ben's friendship with the Bishop help save the Jews of Speyer from harm at the hands of the Crusaders? Available in paperback.
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THE SINKING OF THE PATRIA tells the story of a lonely girl who finds an unexpected soulmate in her caretaker, a survivor of the Patria disaster. The story takes place in Haifa, Palestine (now Israel), during World War II, shortly after the SS Patria, a ship full of Jewish refugees from Nazi-occupied Europe, sank in Haifa Port. While illuminating the human toll exacted by the sinking of the Patria, this book tells a heartwarming story about the bonding of a lonely, empathetic young girl with one of the Patria's survivors.
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QUEEN ESTHER retells the story which is found in the BOOK OF ESTHER in the Bible and which is commonly read during the celebration of the festival of Purim. In retelling the story, Ms. Liberman focuses on the noble character of Queen Esther, a young Jewish woman living in the 6th century B.C. and married to the king of Persia. The current book brings to life a woman who, despite her young age, possesses admirable values, such as modesty and generosity. This book will be an inspiration to readers, young and old.
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The year 1492 is generally thought of as the year when Columbus discovered America. But in Jewish history, the year is mainly remembered as the year in which the Jews were expelled from Spain. EXPULSION tells the story of a Jewish family living in Spain in 1492 and facing the choice between conversion and exile. The family's predicament is seen through the eyes of Alicia, the youngest member of the family. The agonizing decision facing the family makes EXPULSION a compelling story relevant to our time.
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THE FUTURE tells the story of a woman who, thinking about the future, feels sad that some day she will not be around to enjoy the things in life that she has enjoyed. However, in the end, she derives satisfaction from the fact that although she will not be around to enjoy it, life will go on and others will derive pleasure from it. THE FUTURE is a thought-provoking story.
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THE BLANKET tells the story of a girl who visits a cemetery on a rainy day. While she is at the cemetery, a soldier who was killed far away is brought in to be buried. The girl feels sorry for the dead soldier who is being buried in the rain, and she runs home to get a blanket to spread over the dead soldier's grave to keep him warm. THE BLANKET is a moving story of compassion.
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MY BIRTHDAY tells the story of a woman who, anticipating her upcoming birthday, wonders how she should celebrate her special day. She recalls how she celebrated her birthday at various stages of her life, and, after considering various alternatives, she makes a decision. Can you guess what that decision is?
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The Wailing Wall, which is in Jerusalem, acquired its name from the fact that, for generations, Jews have gone there to pray and cry over the destruction of the Temple. The Wailing Wall has also served as a place for special celebrations. In THE WAILING WALL, a boy is about to celebrate his Bar Mitzvah at the Wailing Wall. He is happy to have a chance to pray at the Wall and let God know his special wish. But as he tucks a note expressing his special wish into one of the cracks between the stones of the Wailing Wall, something unexpected happens. Can you guess what that is?
ABOUT THE BOOK
In THE TRAIN, author Judith Weinshall Liberman uses the metaphor of a train and its passengers to speak about her life. The author is portrayed as an old woman sitting on a train on which members of her family rode with her. But, one by one, the others have disembarked, and now it is her turn to get off the train. Readers, young and old, will find meaning in this story.
Your Grandpa: A Letter to Our Grandchildren
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YOUR GRANDPA is a heartwarming story about an imaginary relationship between a grandfather and his four grandchildren. The story is written in the form of a letter from a grandmother to her grandchildren, recounting her late husband's great personality and accomplishments. The grandchildren never knew their grandfather because he had passed away before they were born. Yet through their grandmother's words, they can get to know their grandfather and can imagine the wonderful times they would have spent with him.
More on YOUR GRANDPA: A LETTER TO OUR GRANDCHILDREN or TO PURCHASE
Heavenly Gardens: Baha'i Gardens of Haifa
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The magnificent Baha'i Gardens of Haifa, Israel, have been listed by the UNESCO World Heritage Commission as a World Heritage Site. Members of the Baha'i faith have established their world center in the city of Haifa and maintain their shrine in the Gardens. In HEAVENLY GARDENS, Judith Weinshall Liberman, a native of Haifa, presents her unique insight into the symbolic meaning of the Gardens by probing the relationship between tenets of the Baha'i faith, such as the oneness of humankind, and various elements in the design of the Baha'i Gardens of Haifa.
Dog Ear Publishing 2017
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THE RAINBOW tells the story of a girl who, after a storm, notices a rainbow on the horizon and decides to reach it. Since she knows that rainbows don't last, she is in a rush to reach the rainbow before it disappears. She climbs mountains and swims across waters in an effort to reach the rainbow in time. Although she may not succeed, her effort nonetheless pays off.
Dog Ear Publishing 2017
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SHOP AND SHOP presents a little girl's story about her mother's compulsive shopping behavior. The mother spends much of her time shopping for items she does not need and can ill afford, and the little girl, who witnesses her mother's shopping sprees, is puzzled by her mother's actions. The little girl's insight into her mother's compulsive behavior makes the story both amusing and instructive.
Dog Ear Publishing 2017
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RONNIE'S ALARM CLOCK tells the story of a lonely alarm clock who tries to connect to others in order to overcome his loneliness. The clock's efforts to reach out to Ronnie and to his friends at school end up disastrously, as do his efforts to befriend various objects at home until...
RUTHIE AND HER ANCESTORS Kindle Edition Available!
Dog Ear Publishing 2017
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RUTHIE AND HER ANCESTORS tells the story of a young girl who becomes curious about her ancestry. She is particularly eager to find out whether one of her ancestors was a king, which would make her a princess of sorts. Her father begins telling her the story of her ancestry going all the way back to Abraham the Patriarch, but the story is so long that she falls asleep before her father finishes the story. Yet when she falls asleep, she dreams about searching for her ancestors at various times and places in history. What she discovers in the course of her dream makes her realize that she may be a princess after all.
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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THE SECRET is a fable about a little girl who, in a dream, is seeking the secret to a good life. In her dream, the girl is walking in a forest, where she encounters a lion, a cheetah, a squirrel, and a spider. She asks each of these creatures in turn what the secret is to a good life, and each creature gives a different answer. After waking up and considering their answers, the girl realizes that the answer given by one of the creatures in her dream resonates with her. Can you guess which creature, and what the answer was?
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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IF I WERE A MOM is an amusing story about a young girl who, having been scolded by her mother, fantasizes about how differently from her own mother she would mother a child if she ever became a mother herself. She imagines that, unlike her own mother, she would be lenient, allowing her child to eat infinite amounts of sweets, stay up all night playing with friends, skip school etc. The little girl's recipe for sound mothering will intrigue any reader.
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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GRANDMA'S GLASSES tells the story of a young girl who spends time with her artist-grandmother, and who learns from her grandmother not only the basics of painting but also what it takes to be a true artist. The emotional connection between the young girl and her grandmother is palpable, and the lifelong lessons learned by the girl will touch any reader's heart.
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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IF I HAD A LITTLE SISTER tells an amusing story about a lonely little boy who is an only child and who yearns for a little sister that he could play with. He fantasizes about how, being the older and wiser of the two, he would teach his little sister various skills. He finally realizes that perhaps the little sister he is yearning for would not be as amenable to his plans as he might wish, and he reaches a crucial decision. Can you guess what that decision is?
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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THE BRIDGE tells the story of a girl who leaves her home town in search of a place where she can thrive. In order to reach her destination, she has to climb a long, steep bridge. Despite obstacles, she perseveres and eventually reaches her destination. The story of the girl's perseverance will encourage the reader, young or old, to pursue a worthwhile goal despite seemingly insurmountable difficulties.
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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TALE OF THE ROMAN NUMERALS teaches the reader, young or old, the basics of the Roman numeral system, a way of writing numbers which was used in the Roman Empire for centuries and which is still used for various purposes in the West today. The amusing story and the colorful illustrations in TALE OF THE ROMAN NUMERALS make mastering the fundamentals of the Roman numeral system both easy and fun.
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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THE LETTERS OF THE ALPHABET tells an amusing story about a fight erupting among the letters of the English alphabet, during which each letter tries to point out its own superiority. In the process, the origins of many of the letters of the English alphabet are traced back over three thousand years to their roots in the ancient Middle East. The way the fight among the letters is finally resolved will bring a smile to any reader's face.
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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LUCY AND THE SNOWMAN tells the story of a young girl who is lonely and, on a snowy day, when school has been canceled, plays alone in her back yard and builds a snowman. The snowman turns out to be a very special snowman, who can converse with Lucy and thus drive away her loneliness. When Lucy returns to school and tells her classmates about her conversation with the snowman, nobody seems to believe her. Ultimately Lucy realizes that what really matters is not whether others believe her, but rather what she herself knows in her heart to be true.
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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THE WHIRLPOOL tells the story of two girls who go swimming in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Haifa, Israel, one summer day. Both girls are excellent swimmers, but that day one of them gets caught up in a whirlpool. About to drown, she desperately calls for her friend to rescue her. The loyalty and courage shown by that friend is sure to warm a reader's heart.
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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IF I WERE RICH tells the story of a girl who fantasizes about what she would do if she became wealthy. She imagines various changes that she would make in her life if she were rich, but she finally decides that she is better off staying the way she is. Can you figure out why?
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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IF I HAD THE POWER tells the story of a girl who, observing the many problems besetting the world, wonders how she would change the world if she had the power to do so. She imagines various changes that could be made to improve the world, and finally zeroes in on the most important change she would make if she could. Can you figure out what that change might be?
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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WHAT WILL I BE? is the story of a young girl who wonders what profession she will choose when she grows up. She imagines being a sailor, an astronaut, a soldier, an archaeologist, a linguist, an architect, a landscaper, a fashion designer, a lab technician, an inventor, a doctor, a teacher, an artist, and a writer, and finally settles on one.
Dog Ear Publishing 2016
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MICHAEL AND THE FLAG tells the story of a young boy whose grandfather, a veteran of World War II, has passed away. The boy remembers the war stories that his grandfather told him, and, after receiving an American flag from his grandmother, the boy dreams about searching in various war settings for his grandfather and for the flag his grandfather fought for. This book throws light on the symbolic significance of the American flag in America's wars as well as on the flag's vitality in the consciousness of Americans.
Dog Ear Publishing 2015
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MORE TALES OF HUMAN FOIBLES presents fifteen original short stories written in verse by author Judith Weinshall Liberman. The book is a companion to the author's TALES OF HUMAN FOIBLES. Each of the stories focuses on a different negative human characteristic and on its resulting behavior. The stories cover a range of human characteristics, including vanity, jealousy, gullibility, and narcissism. Through these stories, readers, young and old, will gain insight into human behavior, and will be inspired to avoid its pitfalls.
Dog Ear Publishing September 2015
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THE GIRL AND THE PIGEONS tells the story of a young girl who is taken by her mother to the park to feed the pigeons. However, when they get to the park and the girl tries to feed the pigeons, the pigeons avoid her. Although disappointed, the girl is eager to go back to the park the following day to try again. This time she is successful. The story suggests that the cause for failure is not always obvious, and that we should not give up but rather try again.
Dog Ear Publishing August 2015
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IN THE MILITARY CEMETERY tells the story of a young woman who goes to the military cemetery at night to lay a bouquet of flowers on her loved one's grave. Because of the dark, the young woman cannot locate the grave amidst the many soldiers' graves all around. Undeterred, she lays the flowers on an unknown soldier's grave, reminding us that all the soldiers buried in the military cemetery sacrificed their lives for us and thus they are all dear to us.
Dog Ear Publishing July 2015
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TALES OF HUMAN FOIBLES presents fifteen original short stories written in verse by author Judith Weinshall Liberman. Each of these stories focuses on a different negative human characteristic and on its resulting behavior. The stories cover a range of human characteristics, including vanity, jealousy, mendacity, and narcissism. Through these stories, readers, young and old, will gain insight into human behavior, and will be inspired to avoid its pitfalls.
Dog Ear Publishing June 2015
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A PARAKEET FOR ERIC tells the story of an insecure boy whose parakeet dies, unbeknown to him, soon after he acquires it. The boy's mother, who discovers the dead parakeet, is faced with the dilemma of whether she should let the boy find his parakeet dead when he returns from school, thus possibly adding to his feelings of insecurity, or whether she should secretly replace the parakeet with one that looks exactly like it, and have the boy take pride in the good care he has given his parakeet. The story of how the mother resolves this dilemma will raise in the mind of the reader, young or old, important questions about moral judgment.
Dog Ear Publishing April 2015
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TWELVE MORE FABLES presents twelve original fables written by author Judith Weinshall Liberman. The book is a companion to the author's book FIFTEEN FABLES. Like Aesop's fables, each of these modern fables imparts an important moral. Most of the fables utilize animals as their subjects; others use people, or flora and fauna, or inanimate objects. The fables cover a range of human characteristics, including aggressiveness and vanity. Through these fables, readers, young and old, will gain insight into human behavior, and will be inspired to do their best.
