Shoham's Bangle

Shoham's bangle jingles and jangles, clinks and clacks Shoham wears a golden bangle on her wrist, just like her Nana Aziza. Their bangles jingle when they cook, and glitter in the sun. When Shoham and her family must leave Iraq, they are allowed to take only one suitcase each. They may take no jewelry. Shoham has the important job of carrying Nana's homemade pita bread, which Nana says they will eat when they get to Israel. But when they finally arrive and it is time to eat, Shoham bites into something hard inside the pita bread.

About the Author :
Sarah Sassoon is an Australian-born poet and writer of Iraqi-Jewish descent who grew up drinking her grandmother's cardamom tea. One of her favorite places is in the kitchen, cooking up stories for her husband, four boys and dog. She lives in Jerusalem. Noa Kelner graduated from the Bezalel Academy of Art & Design. She works with book publishers, newspapers, and magazines, and loves to give stories color and form. She is the co-founder and artistic director of the annual Outline - Illustration and Words festival in Jerusalem and also teaches illustration. She lives in Jerusalem with her husband and two children.

Review :
What a delight it is to be invited into Shoham's warm, multigenerational home in Iraq via the pages of Sarah Sassoon's Shoham's Bangle. When the family departs for Israel, the reader, too, mourns for the home and fig tree by the Tigris River that they are leaving behind. Shoham's titular bangle is especially missed, as the Iraqi government did not allow the emigrating Jews to bring their jewelry. Shoham's grandmother, Nana Aziza, comforts her, comparing their journey to the original Exodus, and entrusts her granddaughter with carrying the pita (instead of matzo) to eat on their arrival in Israel. When she bites into it, she finds a wonderful (and hard to chew) surprise - her hidden bangle! This book is a lovely introduction to Iraqi Jewry and its own exodus, which is handled deftly and lightly. A short author's note mentions the airlifts to Israel by name so that interested readers can investigate further. Shoham's Bangle will certainly join my collection of what I call "family heirloom" books. Like the best of those, it is both specific and universal. Immigrants and refugees everywhere - and even children who have simply lost a meaningful object, or who have a special relationship with a grandparent - will relate. The illustrations by Noa Kellner effectively utilize different amounts of white space and different perspectives (such as the view from the airplane upon takeoff and landing), and bring the colors of Iraq and Israel alive. This book is certainly a candidate for the Sydney Taylor Book Award. -- "Blog" (8/23/2022 12:00:00 AM) The bangles that Shoham and their grandmother wear may be small, but they mean so very much. Shoham and Nana Aziza have a special and loving relationship. They gaze at the stars together, cook and bake together, and pick figs from their tree in the garden. Shoham wears one bangle; Nana Aziza wears many. Nana Aziza teaches Shoham how to cut round cookies using a bangle or to move a bangle from one wrist to the other to help remember something important. Shoham is told that the family will be emigrating from Iraq to Israel, which Shoham's father has been praying for (in an author's note, Sassoon states that in 1951 her own grandmother, her grandfather, and their children--along with 120,000 other Iraqi Jews--were airlifted to Israel under Operation Ezra & Nehemiah). An overhead view of the very small suitcase that must hold the belongings of eight people signifies, simply and poignantly, what the family values as they move to their new lives. No jewelry is allowed, however, and Shoham is told that the bangles must be left behind. But Nana Aziza finds a way to put things right, and eventually Shoham settles into their new home while never forgetting their old one. Passengers on the plane are crowded into their seats; the thoughtfully drawn faces reflect a variety of emotions, fear, worry, happiness, hope, and love. Shoham and their family are brown-skinned and Jewish. (This book was reviewed digitally.) A moving and authentic story of love, family, and home. (Picture book. 5-8) -- "Journal" (7/6/2022 12:00:00 AM)